The Case of the Empty Tin by Erle Stanley Gardner

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Perry Mason at his best! Lots of curves and turns. The mystery starts as one thing and turns into something all together different. Mason’s efforts to solve the puzzle are a bit over the top. It’s all a little too incredible as he masquerades as something that would put anyone else in reality in jail. But it is fiction and maybe things were that different in the 1930s, when this was written.And the book is well written and good characters. Though a seemingly short book, best to read carefully as the story gets more and more complex and stay in that trajectory.



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The Case Of The Fabulous Fake by Erle Stanley Gardner

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is my first Perry Mason book and if this is any indication of the rest of the series I’ll dive into the 30 or so other novels I have. I’ve been collecting them for years, mostly due to the Robert McGinnis paintings used for the covers. Guess I’ll be reading more!



This was a very engaging and fun book to read. it was also well written. It moved very fast and yet the characters were well presented. The backdrop was more than a little sketchy and often it was hard to imagine the area the characters were in.



There is a part at the end that was a real fling of the imagination and I don’t believe would happen in real life. That part involves getting characters to fly some place.



Still this was a good book and I do like the Mason character and see why so many have for 70+ years.



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e_BouThe Bourne Identity by Robert Ludlum

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is a very enthralling and involved story of an amnesiac who finds out he is an assassin and wants to know why. Author Robert Ludlum created a very thorough story that, though a little wordy in dialogue, is otherwise concise in a long narrative way.

Unlike so many of today’s super spies who are out to kill, the main character, Jason Bourne, turns pacifist as an amnesiac. Though there is violence, it is far less than in current similar themed novels by Vince Flynn or Brad Thor. This is more of a study of a person trying to find themselves.

I love the series by folks like Flynn because they are so much fun to read. But, in light of Ludlum, they are missing the important parts of the story that makes the Ludlum book so much better in it’s writing and plotting.

About the movie: It might as well been named the Schwartz Identity. It’s a separate world than the one Ludlum created and made for the financial purposes of the film industry.



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Beware the Young Stranger by Ellery Queen

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is one of the mid-60s books sporting the Ellery Queen moniker but without the fabled detective. This one is a bit of a soft thriller with a mystery tucked into it involving a person and a couple murders committed and the people who chase him about it. There is very good character development and a real sense of place. There are a few places where the writer cuts some corners to get to the conclusion. The writer also could have created some real suspense but instead lept into the next scene. Otherwise, it is well written and the conclusion just might surprise you.



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Was signing and jotting some personal illustration for folks for Marguerite Cavanaugh’s book signing party.

Power Down by Ben Coes

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

What a thrill ride! All that I read review wise of this book is true. It moves hard and fast. It also reflects much of what we are afraid of these days involving terrorists. The foundation of that is very real. Otherwise realism does have a hard time here, especially involving the financial issues dealt with. Author Coes knows a lot of details but misses some critical fundamentals that would occur due to actions in the plot of the book. Because of that and some logical issues, I’ll trim the rating a bit. Most reading wouldn’t notice the errors anyway. Despite that this is a not to be missed thriller for anyone who is a fan of those!



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The Devil’s Cook by Ellery Queen

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is an outstanding mystery!But first to know is that this book does not feature Ellery Quenn himself. This is one of a few books produced in the later 1960s that was ghost written. I wish i knew who the ghost writer was because I’d get more of their books, if they exist. One item that is distinctive in this book is that each character clearly has their own way to look at life. The writer does an expert job of getting that across by each having distinct dialogue. Then the individual character’s living areas and other aspects are spelled out in the narrative. With so many different characters all entwined in the murder within such a well written story adds up to a compelling, interesting and a mystery that will keep anyone guessing.



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The Glass Key by Dashiell Hammett

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the first book of Hammett’s I’ve read and wish I’d read him in the past. This is a very good story. Well written. The skips in time by chapters does keep one wondering who might be involved with the central murder. There is no detective here. Just a fellow trying to help a pal. That fellow and just about everybody featured in the book are caught in an upcoming political election that is well described and helps move the story move beyond the average who-done-it. I look forward to reading more Hammett in the future.



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The Vanisher by Kenneth Robeson

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

This is my first Doc Savage novel. I read some of the comic books back in the 1970s. Those didn’t strike me even though I’m a fan of the main artist that drew it. This one also didn’t grab me. It is poorly plotted, written and, in general, conceived. It’s full of plot holes and bad literary devices. There is all kinds of nonsense where one minute Doc is thinking way ahead of everyone and then suddenly seems not to be able to think at all. The writer worked way to hard to keep the bad guy a mystery, though to me it was obvious what was going on. I hoped loose ends and needless action scenes added up to even a bad plot twist. Didn’t happen in that way. All of this is assembled to be one of the worst books I’ve read in many years.



However, two friends tell me not to give it up and track down the early adventures of the Doc. This I get. Sounds like a situation similar to the Mike Shayne series. It’s a powerful set of mysteries up until the original writer dropped it into the hands of a sea of freelancers brought in by Dell publishers. So I will wander back to the Doc Savage series as soon as I find one of the early parts of the series.



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History of Brevard County Vol. 1 by Jerrell H. Schoffner

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This first volume of the History of Brevard County is as excellent as one would suspect when written and composed by Jerrell Schofner. I think it can be said that if Schofner writes a history, that history can be considered the definitive history of the subject. This is as thorough as any of his works are. Maybe a bit too much. There is a bit too much history of how all of Florida developed with population. I think he could have just focused on the central east coast and kept a better focus of the subject matter. Otherwise, the writing is spot on and spells out everything from politics to trains to citrus production. There are few humorous parts. Schofner is, as always, straight history. Though, there are some signs of his political bent in his writings of the rise of the “progressive” early 20th century. It is the early 20th century that this volume ends. My next stop is volume 2 of the definitive history of Brevard County.



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Attending the Lake County Festival of Reading in Mount Dora gave the opportunity for Swampy, the Swamp Ape, to meet up with author Tim Dorsey. Above is said encounter.

Below are sketches I made of speakers and authors, Jefferson Bass and James Grippando.

Here’s a sketch of a lady who got comfortable in the auditorium seat.

Later I wandered into the  Truly Scrumptious Bakery and Ice Cream Shop and found a wonderful renovated historic bakery. Look for photos of the interior coming soon on the Swampy’s Florida site.