All posts by Amy Caudill

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About Amy Caudill

I am a a writer and dreamer of different worlds, who dabbles in paranormal and science fiction, a fan girl at heart who loves books and movies in equal measure. Join me as I explore and sample some of the best in media available as well as some original writing.

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Moriarty

Book Reviews, , ,
Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz

Moriarty (Horowitz’s Holmes, #2) by Anthony Horowitz (Goodreads Author)

Amy Caudill‘s review

Once again, modern author Anthony Horowitz has stepped into the shoes of Arthur Conan Doyle, with the full blessing of the latter’s estate, and produced a new Sherlock Holmes era story. This installment picks up from the end of Doyle’s “The Final Problem,” a short story which details the demise Sherlock along with his arch enemy.


The principals, Watson and Holmes, are not actually present in this story, but only mentioned in passing. However, to compensate for the lack of our favorite detective duo, we are introduced to Detective Inspector Athelney Jones, of Scotland Yard, who actually appeared in at least one other Holmes’ story; and his new friend and cohort, Pinkerton agent Frederick Chase.


The two join forces to find a new criminal mastermind, Clarence Devereux, who reputedly intended to align with Moriarty, and set up shop in London. Chase is familiar with some of Devereux’s henchmen, while Jones has studied Holmes’ methods and believes he is ready to apply his techniques to finding this new threat.


The detectives chase clues all over Europe before returning to London to face off against ruthless gangsters and a criminal network that seems to be one step ahead of them. In the end, they finally face off to the real threat, only for one of the protagonists to realize the enemy wears a familiar face. Spoilers: there is no indication until nearly the end of the story, but the reader has been following an unreliable narrator all along.


The final twist was shocking, but made the entire novel, already a fascinating read, truly worthwhile. Horowitz’s characters seamlessly fit into the world of Victorian London and Baker Street in Doyle’s universe. I award this novel five stars, and hope that Horowitz will find time to venture into that world again in the future.

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Naked Came the Phoenix

Book Reviews, murder mystery, strong female characters
Naked Came the Phoenix by Marcia Talley

Naked Came the Phoenix by Marcia Talley (Goodreads Author) (Editor),

Nevada Barr, Nancy Pickard, J.A. Jance (Goodreads Author), Lisa Scottoline (Goodreads Author), Anne Perry, Mary O’Shaughnessy, Val McDermid,more…

Amy Caudill‘s review

From some of the modern queens of mystery, comes this entertaining tale of family lost and found, treachery, blackmail, and murder. Caroline and her mother Hilda are visiting the exclusive Phoenix spa, a place where the rich and famous come to hide while being alternately pampered and starved in the name of beauty and relaxation.


Caroline is determined to enjoy this break, despite her mother’s predilections for cruelty and control, when she encounters a dead body in the spa’s mud baths, the owner of the spa. This proves to be only the first of several as a number of guests, all with mysterious links to each other and the late owner, appear to be murdered by an unknown assailant, who must be hiding at the isolated resort.


The local police do their best, but the wealthy guests all have lawyers to impede the investigation. Hilda reveals that she has through covert means become the primary owner of the Phoenix, and also that the previous owner had blackmailed her over a child she gave up for adoption before Caroline’s birth.


The novel contains numerous red herrings as different contributors hint who could possibly be Caroline’s lost sibling. The story flows surprisingly well considering each chapter is written by a different author. Overall, the effect is of an engaging, sometimes shocking mystery, with a couple of twists this reader couldn’t have predicted.


I enjoyed this short novella very much, and recommend it to fans of the genre at large as well as any of the included authors. I award it four stars.

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Extinction

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Extinction by Douglas Preston

Extinction by Douglas Preston (Goodreads Author)

Amy Caudill‘s review

A technological breakthrough runs amok in this new novel by author Douglas Preston. A group of scientists have “DE-extincted” several species of dinosaurs, aka Jurassic Park, and set them up in a nature preserve in the Colorado wilderness.


When a wealthy couple disappear deep in the wilderness of the preserve, the reader is left wondering momentarily if the culprits are animal or human, at least from the short early chapters I read before the book’s official release. However, after getting a copy of the entire book I was able to quickly realize the dinosaurs were innocent. Instead, a group of unknown size had somehow infiltrated the park, a group that had insider knowledge of the security, the routines, and the hidden old mining areas underneath the park.


As Colorado Bureau of Investigation Special Agent Frankie Cash and Sheriff Jim Colcord are forced to work together to find the missing couple, they quickly discover clues to far more sinister deeds. The kidnappers have left behind videos and evidence they wanted to have discovered-evidence of murder, cannibalism, and strange, primitive rites conducted under their noses. Who are the members of this group? How are they eluding the security of the park and the manhunt of combined forces of CBI and police investigators?


Forced to work under close scrutiny of the press, the administration of the park who are being evasive, the billionaire father of one of the victims who is outraged but also hiding information, as well as the CBI and the governor; Cash and Colcord are only left with more questions and very few answers. Finally they resort to underhanded means to get inside the laboratories where the dinosaurs are made. Once there, they discover that the scientists bred more than dinosaurs.


The group of scientists actually De-extincted one of humanities’ ancient rivals, a rival species driven into extinction by homo sapiens. The newly resurrected race escape the control of the scientists, and are out for revenge. Their goal- extinction of the human race.


I was shocked at the big twist in this book; I definitely did not predict the direction this story would take. That being said, I believe it was handled in a manner that was all too plausible. Preston has a history of writing stories where technology gets the better of its inventors and this is just the latest example of his writing style. What at first seems like a re-write of Jurasssic Park turned out to be so much more, and I award this novel 5 stars.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

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Photo by Jill Wellington on Pexels.com

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to one and all! This is the time of year many of will choose to look back on the year we’ve had, sometimes with hope, sometimes with regrets about things we’ve done or haven’t done, and anticipations either fulfilled or still unfulfilled. For my family, we had our celebration a little early this year, because we chose to celebrate when we could all be together.
Still, I’m looking for to a break from my day job, and another celebration with family who are still local and can come to share a meal, and just relax in each other’s company. This year I am trying to focus on not what I should do, but rather what I want to do, and cherry-picking the holiday tasks and traditions that are most important to me and my loved ones.
I hope each of you has an enjoyable holiday, however you choose to spend it, and in the company of your preference. May we all know a moment of peace as we prepare ourselves for the coming year!

Amy

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Never Lie

Book Reviews, , ,
Never Lie by Freida McFadden

Never Lie by Freida McFadden (Goodreads Author)

Amy Caudill‘s review

Nov 03, 2024

I honestly can’t say I remember when I picked up a copy of this book, but I will say I will be reading more from this author, assuming my heart can handle it.  Freida McFadden’s work contained shocking twists near the end, and they just kept coming.  

What begins as a seemingly run-of-the-mill plot, with a couple stranded at an isolated country home during a blizzard, leads the reader on a merry chase with one red herring of an antagonist through the majority of the book.  Tricia and Ethan seem like a happily married newly wed couple, but why are they keeping secrets from each other, and why are they afraid of how the other will react when they are revealed? From the very beginning some of their interactions seem off, though I only realized this in hindsight.

The home they find themselves in is the former abode of Dr. Adrienne Hale, a psychiatrist and bestselling author who disappeared under mysterious circumstances three years prior.  Will their unintended stay reveal clues to the doctor’s disappearance, and is she really the innocent victim?

Tricia finds a secret room where the good doctor kept cassette tapes of all her sessions with her patients, and surreptitiously starts to listen to them to pass the time, and because she can’t contain her curiosity.  Meanwhile, Ethan disappears somewhere upstairs to “work” remotely, and the reader is left wondering about the identity of one particular patient, who was blackmailing Dr. Hale.  

The chapters with Tricia and Ethan are interspersed with those of Adrienne, prior to her disappearance, and the audience learns of the same events from her point of view.  While Adrienne seemingly believes she does a lot of good, it is amazing the lengths she will go to to keep her secrets; and the reader has to wonder exactly what happened to her, and who caused it, which is only revealed near the end.  

The big question posed by this story; is anyone truly innocent?  Without revealing any more spoilers, I will say the conclusion shocked me.

This is an excellent psychological thriller and I would recommend it to any fans of the genre. I give this story five stars.

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Sherlock Holmes and the Highgate Horrors

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Sherlock Holmes and the Highgate Horrors by James Lovegrove

Sherlock Holmes and the Highgate Horrors by James Lovegrove

Amy Caudill‘s review

What a good book to read to start off the spooky season!  This fourth volume in the series by James Lovegrove combines the classic characters of Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes with the monsters of H.P. Lovecraft to weave a tale that brings our heroes into a secret war against alien monstrosities that not only influence our world from afar, but now are found to walk among us.

This novel, presented as sort of an addendum to the three prior, skillfully takes the original characters of Holmes and Watson, as well of some of the original author’s specific cases, and weaves into to them a secret subtext that Watson, as the “author” whose works appeared in The Strand, chose to keep hidden from the public.  Lovegrove, as the “heir” to these secret case notes, has decided the time is right to reveal what really happened behind the scenes.

This particular volume delineates happenings from not only earlier cases, but also particulars at the end of Holmes and Watsons’ careers and lives.  For instance, the “real” reason Holmes retired to the country, and what “really” happened to Irene Adler.  Throughout, the reader is treated to multiple cases where the duo fights against the hordes of the Outer Gods and worshippers of The Great Old Ones, so named from Lovecraft’s work. 

Now, though, it appears a cabal of humans is assisting the otherworldly creatures in conquering a much nearer and dearer target, Earth itself.  Why have the invaders come to Earth, despite their different physiology and inability to survive under Earth’s atmosphere and gravity?  The reason is not revealed till deep in the text and is shocking in its insidiousness and desperation.  The culmination of the final story shows links between all the cases and reveals the ultimate plot of the aliens, who are no longer united in their goals.

This book is a treat for fans of the original works of classic authors, Conan Doyle, and Lovecraft, and combines their characters in a plausible way that can delight a whole new generation of readers.  Fans of the series’ will easily recognize specifics, but can also enjoy the new stories, like that rare well-written piece of fan fiction with an original plot.  I award Lovegrove four stars and recommend this volume to fans of Holmes, Cthulhu, classic mystery and horror books.

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Dead Man’s Hand

Book Reviews, ,
Dead Man's Hand by James J. Butcher

Dead Man’s Hand (The Unorthodox Chronicles, #1) by James J. Butcher

Amy Caudill‘s review 

Two unlikely allies are pitted against a corrupt bureaucracy in the first volume of The Unorthodox Chronicles by James J. Butcher.

I adore the Dresden Files, written by the father of this author, so I wanted to give this newer series a chance.  To make sure I was unbiased, I did not read anything about this book or series before opening the first chapter.  I found myself in a familiar, yet different, setting to the world occupied by Harry Dresden. 

To be honest, I did not much like one of the protagonists in the beginning.  We are first introduced to Mayflower, a retired, bitter, drunken recluse who once was a legendary Hunter for the Bureau of Unorthodox affairs, which manages magical beings and creatures in the world.  He seemed to have potential as a player in the story, but we are abruptly switched from him to this other, younger, more pathetic seeming character, Grimsby. 

Grimsby is a failed witch, as all magic users are called here, but more than that he has an outlook of grim hopelessness in his situation (pun intended).  He has just recently had his life goal, becoming an Auditor for the Bureau, ripped from him, but he has given up on everyone and everything.  He seems to be drowning in a mundane job going nowhere and no ambitions for moving forward or making any kind of life at all.  Of course, in interior dialogue with Grimsby we learn he had no confidence or ambition in his prior training either; it seems he has only gone through the motions for most of his life.

Grimsby and Mayflower first cross path when the former is implicated in the death of his former magical mentor, who was previously the latter’s partner.  Mayflower has to decide if this cowardly being could possibly have murdered the most powerful witch to exist, or if he is being framed.  The two are drawn together by a need to find answers and a mutual distrust of the magical authorities.

Their partnership seems unlikely but Mayflower’s sense of duty and morality forces him to keep the kid safe.  Meanwhile, Grimsby is mainly terrified by the events around him and falls victim to the first stirrings of hope to improve his situation, which will betray his new ally.

Before the end, Grimsby will finally shed his self-doubt, and rise the occasion, but there are numerous hurdles in the way of actual success, including a corrupt bureaucrat who craves the artifact that only Grimsby and Mayflower, working together, have a chance of recovering.

This book, which does show some evidence of urban fantasy world building, really lacks in showing its setting.  I suppose that is a comparison to Jim Butcher, whose Dresden series takes place mostly in and around Chicago, which the author brought to life while laying out his plots.  In contrast, The Unorthodox Chronicles take place in Boston, but the only location described in detail is the Chucky Cheese-style restaurant where Grimsby works. 

The plot is a little thinner than I’d like, but does contain a number of twists to keep the reader on his or her toes.  I can see potential in the book, I just hope the other (currently two) volumes build on what is already there and give more background about the characters and the setting.  This is a solid debut, and I give it three stars.

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Holmes, Marple & Poe

Book Reviews, ,
Holmes, Marple & Poe by James Patterson

Holmes, Marple & Poe (Holmes, Margaret & Poe #1) by James Patterson (Goodreads Author), Brian Sitts

Amy Caudill‘s review

From the genius of James Patterson and Brian Sitts, comes this new novel about three private investigators that may or may not be related to three legends of detective fiction.  The trio sets up practice in present-day New York City, and immediately proceeds to solve several baffling crimes while making enemies of the police commissioner and mayor.  Their only official/unoffical ally is a Detective Lieutenant Helene Grey.

Holmes, like his fictional namesake, is able to discern many clues from the scents that frequently overwhelm him, and also has, like the fictional Sherlock, a heroin addiction.  Poe, named for the author of some of the earliest crime fiction, is a womanizer and rare car collector with a trouble past who is skilled at computer programming, and under-the-table hacking. Marple is a singularly mysterious lady with numerous shady connections to some well-placed government officials.

While they are investigating several cases that include an art heist, a kidnapping, and a possible serial murderer, the trio continues to embarrass the police department with their superior work and manage to become suspects in themselves.  However, they seem more than willing to save the day and see the truly deserving punished.

The authors take the time to set up the main characters well, and even include a romance for Poe’s character, with hints about a tragedy in his past.  There are also several well-developed secondary characters, including a secretary for the agency who makes several real contributions to their work and cases.

There is also plenty of action, with car chases, gun fights, and a chase that leads to an underground bunker under a crypt, as well as several twists in the mysteries presented by the various cases the partners undertake.

My only real complaint about the book is that the in the end, the trio seems to be at least temporarily breaking up.  Though Detective Grey is at least suspicious that their assumed identities are not authentic, she seems willing to overlook this because of the results they get in aiding the city. However, with Holmes off to rehab and Marple on the road, it seems unlikely that this may ever be the series I would like to see.

I give this novel four stars, and recommend to fans of classic detective fiction as well as fans of Patterson and modern crime novels.

Review: Everything, Everywhere, All at Once

Movie Review, , , ,
Image from Rotten Tomatoes

Talk about underlying themes in sci-fi movies; what on the surface appears to be a time-travelling, dimension-hopping storyline populated by body snatchers is little more than a plot device for a compelling story of the relationships between parents and children, particularly mothers and daughters.

I know I’m a little late to the party reviewing this movie, considering it won a whopping seven Oscars in the 2023 Academy Awards, but I honestly just got the chance to watch it recently. 

At first, I didn’t know what to make of the story, where in the first scenes we see Michelle Yeoh and Ke Huy Quan as a seemingly ordinary couple struggling to balance a marriage with business ownership and familial relationships with a daughter and estranged father for Michelle’s character.  Yeoh is facing the struggles of most modern women; her life pulled in multiple directions at once by various demands on her time and emotions. 

Suddenly, though, that changes as another reality version of Quan takes over, warning Yeoh that she’s in danger, and suddenly fighting it out with Jamie Lee Curtis in a scene that could have almost come from a Bruce Lee movie.

It’s later revealed that Yeoh is the original version of herself in a persona that has branched out into infinite dimensions, each with different strengths and weaknesses, and that she is responsible for the creation of the being trying to destroy them all. The heartbreaking revelation of exactly who is the Jobu Tupaki, and her relationship to Yeoh’s character, as well as her response to this, is what makes this movie worthy of Best Picture. 

Yeoh, or Evelyn, is encouraged to stop the Jobu Tupaki at all costs, by her other-version husband and father, but decides that is not acceptable.  Instead she decides to learn to relate to her by becoming more like her and dissuade her from her chosen path of destruction.

In the end, friendship and love are the only tools able of stopping the universe from imploding, as well as preventing a catastrophe in Yeoh’s “real” life.

I would recommend this movie to everyone who hasn’t already seen it; it has everything from sci-fi to kung fu action, as well as romance and family feels.

Amy Caudill’s Reviews : Dead Mountain

Book Reviews, , ,
Dead Mountain by Douglas Preston

Dead Mountain (Nora Kelly, #4) by Douglas Preston (Goodreads Author), Lincoln Child

Amy Caudill‘s review

May 13, 2024

The fourth installment of The Nora Kelly Novels featuring secondary characters from the authors’ best known series, The Pendergast Novels, finds our intrepid heroines facing an investigation based on true-life adventures.  Nora Kelly, archeologist, and Corrie Swanson, junior FBI agent, find themselves examining some remains uncovered in a cave that may have ties to a fifteen year old unsolved case.

Fifteen years ago, a group of college students went missing in the Manzano Mountains, near an Air Force base, under mysterious circumstances.  Only some of the bodies were ever found, until now.  The evidence seems to indicate that the hikers went crazy, because some apparently left their shelter at night, in various states of dress, during a blizzard. 

Before the final curtain comes down, Nora and Corrie will deal with a military cover-up, a self- righteous victim’s group whose leader is a conspiracy nut, and the true villain of the so-called Manzano massacre, who has been hiding the truth all these years.

The two main characters have developed an uneasy friendship over the course of this series, based on joint adversity.  However, this volume shows Corrie growing the most as an individual and as an agent.  She has to adjust to a new mentor following the murder of her last in the previous book, and she’s finally taking a chance on love in the person of recurring character Sheriff Watts.  Overall, it’s nice to see the two women have lives outside of archeological digs, bureaucratic problems, and death-defying escapes from terror.

This book delivers on the promise that there’s going to be plenty of action, deep mysteries, and enough twists and turns to satisfy any discerning reader, as per usual with the names of Preston and Child on the cover.  I can’t wait to see where the next adventure takes the ladies, as well as the next installation of the main series, both due out this year.  I award this book five stars, and recommend it to readers of police procedurals, action thrillers, and fans of strong female characters.