Ken Bruen's THE GUARDS

My comments as posted to DetecToday:

I've just finished this, my first Bruen, and can't say enough about it. It's the novel with a bit of everything--mystery, noir, hardboiled, humor, poetry--delivered at the right times, in just the right amounts.

Bruen's chosen narrative style brings us right into Jack Taylor's head. I pitied him as I do most noir protags. But while some of these protags depress me to the point of detachment, Jack kept me rooting for him. He seemed to know his own low points so well as to not let any of them *keep* him down. He finds self-worth not by happy accident, but by plain persistence. His journey felt entirely genuine.

AP: Michael Jordan's Brother Deploying to Iraq

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. - Army Command Sgt. Maj. James R. Jordan has asked to stay in the Army for a year beyond his mandatory retirement date so he can complete a full yearlong deployment to Iraq with about 500 other members of the 35th Signal Brigade.

Good luck, Sergeant Major.

Final Plots with Guns

After five years, Neil Smith and Victor Gischler's Plots with Guns is going out in a blaze of glory. I always appreciated the way PWG was put together. Unfortunately, I didn't feel my work was dark enough to try submitting. I would have liked to get feedback from Neil, Gischler, or Maviano. Best of luck to them on future projects.