"Simple Genius" by David Baldacci

A body is found just inside a secret CIA compound and the cause of death is ruled suicide. The man's employer does not believe it so they hire a PI firm to investigate.

Sean King and Michelle Maxwell are partners out of work and almost out of money at the beginning of the story thanks in great part to a near complete breakdown by Michelle. She goes into a bar and picks a fight with the biggest meanest dude in the place and is nearly killed. After settling with the man and paying for the hospital they are nearly broke. Michelle is convinced by Sean to seek help and checks into a facility.

In the meantime Sean goes to an ex for a job and is given one that lands in Northern Virginia investigating the mysterious death of a man found on CIA property. He is stonewalled at every turn and soon learns much more is going on than was first suspected. The victim had a daughter whom he taught a secret code to and the key to solving his death is cracking the code.

Michelle checks out of the hospital and joins Sean in Virginia and they work to solve the mystery . Many complained that the author had Michelle suddenly well, frankly I did not see that part of the story is her dealing with the ghost of her past and how she is going to get well. I also read many complain the author jumps around to much, I did find this to be the case at all. The author did have multiple story lines but that keep the story interesting in my opinion.

In the end the death is solved some rough agents are "taken care" of and Sean and Michelle endure some trials along the way. This was my first Baldacci book and I like it.

"Just Like Jesus" by Max Lucado

"God loves you just the way you are, but he refuses to leave you that way. He wants you to be like Jesus."

What a very strong and true statement that I believe is lost on us at times in the hustle and bustle of our every day lives. Lucado makes us stop and really examine our actions and thoughts and poses the question, "What if, for one day, Jesus were to become you?" I don't about you but for me that is a daunting thought but the flip side is if we were to become Jesus for a day how much different would we look at life and all the things we face.

In this work Luacdo examines the different aspects of Jesus' life and gives us easy to understand examples. While the concepts are simple the impact they can have on a life is profound. This book is well worth the time to read and even better the application to one's life is invaluable.

"The Gunslinger" The Dark Tower Book 1

"The Gunslinger" is the first book of the Dark Tower series. It is also one of the first books Stephen King wrote. I read the revised and expanded edition I picked in a boxed set containing the first four books of the series.

The tale takes place in a very hot and dry land with Roland (the gunslinger) in pursuit of the dark man. He eventually comes to settlement the dark man passed through and in which he leaves Roland a trap. Seeking information about the dark man Roland learns of the magic the dark man did in resurrecting a dead man and before he leaves the trap is sprung by the woman he was sleeping with and getting information from. The Gunslinger is forced to kill the entire town to escape and thus he continues his pursuit.

Roland then encounters a boy named Jake and he learns his strange tale and knows that he is also a trap left by the dark man. They travel together and experience many trails but in the end Jake loses his life when Roland is forced to choose pursuit of the dark man or saving Jake.

At the end the gunslinger and the dark man palaver and the gunslinger learns more about the nature of the dark tower but he does not fully comprehend all he learns. He also learns the dark man has been a part of his life for a very long time and after the palaver finds remains of what appear to be the dark man but he does not believe it to be so. So the gunslinger continues his quest for the tower.

"The universe (he said) is the Great All, and offers a paradox too great for the finite mind to grasp. As the living brain cannot conceive of a nonliving brain-although it may think it can-the finite mind cannot grasp the infinite."

"The Gunslinger" by Stephen King

"The Great House of God" by Max Lucado

Another wonderful study by Max Lucado this time focusing on The Lord's Prayer. He takes the tact of using a house to explain the Lord's Prayer. He goes from room to room and explains different parts of the prayer and helps us understand each part. He gives us a unique look on the prayer and encourages us to live in the prayer rather than just saying the words.

I highly recommend this book and it comes with a study guide to help with the application to every day life. Lucado does a great job of making the gospel easy to grasp and he does it with everyday language and illustrations.

"The Lord's Prayer is a floor plan of the house of God: a step-by-step description of how God meets our needs when we dwell in him. Everything that occurs in a healthy house is described in this prayer. Protection, instruction, forgiveness, provision . . . all under God's roof."

Max Lucado "The Great House of God"

"One Christmas in Washington"

I am fascinated by the relations between the United States and England in the World War 2 era. More specifically the give and take between Churchill and Roosevelt. This work studied the meetings that took place in Washington Christmas 1941 in which the allied strategy was initially laid out, the nuts and bolts of how the war was going to be conducted.

There was a great deal of distrust on both sides when the meetings started. The British needed help to fight Germany and feared the United States would focus all it's efforts on defeating Japan. The author points out this view may have been justified because of the public sentiment following Pearl Harbor. For this reason Churchill thought it important to meet with Roosevelt and insure that the agreement reached at Argentina would be honored. The Chiefs of staff distrusted the British and wanted to defeat Japan first, following popular public sentiment. The first lady felt Churchill would run right over the President but the author points out all of the fears were not realized.

The book covers the events of the meetings and does a good job showing the difficulties the meetings went through. Roosevelt kept no written records so the main sources were Churchill's notes and writings, Hopkins notes and other aides and generals. The list of sources is indeed long and includes many countries. The research is well done and it is a good source for a beginning study of Allied relations in the second world war.

Authors: David Bercuson & Holger Herwig

Meeting Franklin Roosevelt was like opening your first bottle of champagne; knowing him was like drinking it.

Winston Churchill
English, Statesman Quotes
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Do Something. If it works, do more of it. If it doesn't, do something else.

Franklin D. Roosevelt
1882-1945, Thirty-second President of the USA
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"Winter in Madrid" by C.J. Sansom

Winter in Madrid
I found this book by accident. I was not sure what to expect but decided to give it a try. I found a compelling story set in 1939-40 Madrid after the Spanish Civil War. England is blockading Spain and using the sale of essentials to Spain to keep them from joining the axis in the war. It is part suspense, spy and romance. The story is focused around three central characters with very different views of the world and with those views come very different ideologies. The central character is Harry Brett who is injured at Dunkirk and had lived a life of privilege before the war.

He is recruited by the British secret service to spy on a former class mate in Spain. The English want to find out if the story of a possible gold find is true and if so how large is the find. The English believe Harry's former classmate may be the key to finding out this information. The story reveals an inner struggle he faces as he deals with the guilt of spying on a former friend but more so the struggle of how he views the world and human nature. The friend he is asked to spy on is Sandy Forsyth the son of a bishop. Sandy has nothing to do with his family and is only concerned with making a profit. He became and is involved with a Red Cross nurse named Barbara Claire who after the supposed death of her lover Bernie falls into despair. Sandy helps Barbara recover and the live together and every one thinks they are married but they are not.

Barbara then learns that Bernie is not dead but instead is a prisoner in a secret camp for enemies of the state. As she goes about setting up an escape for Bernie she becomes distant from Sandy and when she learns of Sandy's dark side she is driven further away.

Harry mistakenly identifies a man he should not know that leads to the mans eventual death and Harry downfall as a spy. He meets a local senorita when her brother is injured while spying on him. It is this friendship that leads to his re-evaluation of the world. In a twist of fate Harry and Sophie get Barbara to let them help with Bernie's escape from the prison. The day of the escape comes and just when they are about to get away the trap is revealed and Sophie is killed in the trap is sprung. Harry, Barbara and Bernie manage to escape and return to the embassy where yet more deceptions are revealed.

The three are quickly spirited back to England and we see Barbara and Harry seven years later. Barbara is continuing her efforts to help refugees but Harry is broken and refuses to fight any more.

This is a compelling look at the world through different eyes and shows human nature as it is, flawed yet beautiful. The setting also reveals the great difficulties faced by the Spanish after the civil war and is a very dark and bleak picture. The story grabs you and is interesting.