The Watchman by Chris Ryan

One of the books I took away on holiday was The Watchman by Chris Ryan.  I had not read any of his books before now, but a friend recommended I give him a try as I like thrillers.  I had a quick look on Amazon about a week before I went away, and the Watchman seemed to have some good reviews.

The story follows Alex Temple who is an SAS soldier on a mission to track down a killer.  The story starts off by following Alex on his last mission.  It does give you some feel for his character, but doesn’t relate too closely to the rest of the book.

The main story was very easy to read and I did find it engrossing.  Some of the reviews I’d read on Amazon had eluded to it being a bit shocking and having a twist, but I must say I guessed fairly early on how the storyline would go.  However, it was still an enjoyable read and I’d certainly try some more of his books.

Getting ready for my holiday

Just in time managed to pick up a book on Orlando that a friend from work recommended – Brit’s Guide to Orlando and Walt Disney World.  They produce a new one every year with some good tips about what days to visit what, what order to see things in once you’re at a park as well as lots of general tips about Florida.

We’ve also managed to check in online with British Airways and choose our seats.  We’ve managed to book the bulk head seats so we’ll have more legroom – brilliant!  We’ll have to look out for internet access in Florida so we can do the same coming home.  Now we’ve checked 24 hours ahead of flying it feels much more relaxed…less worrying about getting to the airport in good time to try and get a good seat.  Should just now have to go to the fast bag drop rather than standing in a long line. 

We have decided to drive down and stay the night at my mum and dad’s house tonight.  They’re on holiday but I’ve got a key.  It means we’ll only be about a 40 minute drive from the airport and can avoid all the Monday morning rush hour on the motorways which is good.  (Mum and Dad – thanks for the hotel!)

Trapped cat survives engine trip

I’ve personalised my Google homepage so that it shows me some of the top or most recent news stories from the BBC.  Just spotted that one of them is all about a cat who managed to survive a 15 mile trip inside a car engine!  Read the story here.

Cats are so amazing!  I got a ‘Cat Tales’ book in my Christmas stocking last year which was full of ex-news articles from the Sun newspaper all about cats that had done strange things, become heroes, survived long trips, etc. 

2nd Chance by James Patterson

I’ve just finished reading 2nd chance by James Patterson.  I’ve read quite a lot of his books and never found one I’ve not liked, so I knew I was going to enjoy this. 

The book is the second in the Women’s Murder Club series of books which follow a homicide detective called Lindsay Boxer, and her group of friends – a medical examiner, a reporter and an assistant district attourney – as they work together to solve a murder case.  It is nice to have four strong female characters in the story as the concept is a bit different from other crime books.  However I felt that their parts, outside of the main storyline, could have been developed further to make you care about the characters more.

The book is made up of lots of very short chapters – it gave me lots of opportunities to put the book down to get some sleep, however, it was such an easy read that I found myself turning to each new chapter thinking, ‘well they’re so short…why not read another’.  Luckily there were three clear sections and so I did manage to spread it over three nights so I could get up for work the next morning!

On the whole, I’d recommend the book as a good solid crime thriller that keeps you turning the pages.  Don’t expect a literary masterpiece but it’s a great bedtime read if you like crime fiction.