The Wheel of Darkness

Title: The Wheel of Darkness
Author: Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing

I am in two minds about this latest Pendergast instalment.

After eagerly awaiting the continuing adventures of the charismatic Pendergast, it gave me great pleasure to see Pendergast and Constance Greene again. Yet, stucked on the high seas with them along with a vague caricature of a Tibetian demon along with irritating passengers on a luxury cruise, all I got was a sinking feeling at the end.

What happened to the intrigue, plots and fascinatingly crafted characters of the earlier Pemdergast novels that have so many of us hooked?

I can only hope that the veiled promise of Constance becoming the mother of the next holy man can fulfill expectations in the next instalment by Preston & Child!

Bee Season

Title : Bee Season
Author : Myla Goldberg
Publisher : Harper Perennial

This is a piognant book. Told mostly through the eyes of a child, Elisa, it evoked innocent yet bittersweet sentiments. In some ways, it brought to my mind “To kill A Mockingbird”.

It began gently with Elisa’s surprising qualification in her school’s Spelling Bee competition and her sense of achievement at finally being embraced by her family of gifted individuals. Then it escalated as the family span out of control with its members caught within each own whirlwind. There was an aching sense of despair as various notions of love and personal faith started to be called into question. As each person's own crisis overflowed and became the source of sadness for the family.

Myla Goldberg’s debut work has also been made into a movie starring Richard Gere and Juliette Binoche, the latter translating the role of Miriam into a fragile porcelain on the threshold of heartbreak. This is one of the few instances when I find that words translated into motion picture can still retain magic.

Bee Season is a very special book to me - it somehow reminded me of myself as a child and my position within the family. Elisa’s dad Saul brought to mind, my grandfather. Like Elisa, words have mystical powers to me and as certain as I am as Aaron, I have always felt God’s presence in many places and spaces.

谨告犯人!

Title: 谨告犯人! Hannin Ni Tsugu
Author: 雫井脩介 Shusuke Shizukui
Translator:王蕴洁
Publisher: 獨步文化Cite Publishing

．榮獲第七屆大藪春彥獎！
．《週刊文春》2004「十大推理小說」第一名
．《週刊現代》2004「最有趣的書」第一名

An award-winning novel by Shusuke Shizukui, this book focused on police procedures and featured highly intensified scenes of the matching of wits between police officers and ciminals.

It opened with the kidnap and coldblooded murder of a child after a failed ransom attempt and the subsequent disgrace of the police officer inviolved. Six years later, a child serial killer surfaced and the protagonist卷島 was called upon to track down the murderer. Faced with his past career-cippling failure, societal expectations, unrelenting pursuit by the news media; 卷島 had to overcome immense pressures as he attempted to hunt down the killer.

A truly thrilling novel where the excitment never lets up, this is a hard-to-put-down read. It is a Japanese version of the famed American police-drama Law & Order!

推理小说 - 不公平的人,是谁?

Title : 推理小说 - 不公平的人,是谁?
Author : 秦建日子 Hata Takchiko
Translator : 江裕真
Publisher : 商周出版

This is the first novel by Hata Takchiko, one of the writers behind the popular Japanese TV drama "Hero" starring Takuya Kimura.

The concept of this mystery-thriller is unique, a departure from the norm of most Japanese books in the genre. The premise of the book is based on the question of "Fairness" as evident in its subtitle. As we all are sadly aware, fairness does not always equate with justice

There are many philosophical observations found in this novel:

- 不公平的行为,经长是假借[正义]之名而做出来的.
- 批评没有才能的人也没什么意义.
- 人生没有到可以让你重复犯同样的错.
- 人活着的时候再怎么帤力,从死去的那一瞬间起,大家就会渐渐忘记他.
- 大家每天都有自己的事要忙,就会忘记你.
- [活的象自己]这件事,永不嫌太迟.
- 只要肯下决心,人生就能改变.

This book has now been dramatized into a TV serial as well.