The Morgenstern Project by David S. Khara

Le French Book (April 9 2015)
265 pages

David S. Khara writes here the third and final part of his trilogy about projects (The Bleiberg Project - which I really liked The Shiro Project - not read yet - and The Morgenstern Project).

We meet back Eytan with pleasure, the Mossad giant, who this time doesn't come alone but with two accomplices who are part of his family... sort of... but I leave you the pleasure of discovering how and why. This is one of the parts that I liked the most in this third installment: discovering Eytan story. Having not read the second book, I don't know if we learned more about him and his story but here! it's really interesting and it makes him even more human (proof that GMO can be good for humans. Mouhaha!) The book is divided into two parts, like in the first book but if the discovery of History let us understand the plot in The Bleiberg Project, this time it helps us to understand Eytan and his rage to remain free. Because this time, Eytan is the project.

Once again, the author captivates us with a Historical thread- always well documented - that not only will interest all the history of the war and particularly its lesser known parts (Polish resistance, manhunt, medical tests on Jews, etc.) lovers , but also helps us to better understand the present. I'm thinking that this is a topic of interest for the author who brilliantly highlights the saying that one cannot know his future without knowing one's past. Khara proves this through his stories full of adventure and that, in itself, is already great.

Along with the knowledge of History, we discover Eytan's story: where he comes from and how he became who he is, and we also experience an incredible story, always at a steady and flawless pace. We don't read this book, we watch it like we would watch an amazing action movie. (Probably why the Hollywood studios are interested...) Eytan, accompanied by his two accomplices Eli and Avi meet back with Jeremy and Jacqueline, and finds himself hunted and hunter. Well certainly, the outcome is a little easy but there is no shortage of nervousness, suspense and humor, which is always nice in a thriller.

Again, Khara speaks of modified men and, thanks to his extensive research, mixes reality and almost science fiction. Almost, because one wonders if it's not already a reality somewhere... It's about members and particularly powerful prosthesis that bring the quest for superior man even further.

The blurb

When you kill a legend, it becomes inspiration, and you can't kill inspiration. Jeremy Corbin and Jacqueline Walls lead a calm life in a New Jersey suburb, when one day everything changes. Eytan Morgenstern returns to save them, and this improbably team must take on the Consortium, leading them on an epic journey from London to Tel-Aviv, from the Polish forests to Manhattan high-rises, from the shameful past to the threatening future. After a lifetime of bringing Nazi war criminals to justice, the Mossad operative is once again fighting those who wish to study his superhuman body. The self-sacrificing secret agent must rely on the help of his friends to finally free himself of the physical and emotional scars of his past.

In a nutshell 

Another success for David S. Khara who perfectly completes his trilogy. It's action packed with captivating History details and interesting characters. This is to read and it's a 4.5 / 5 for me.

Disclaimer: An e-galley of this title was provided to me by the publisher. No review was promised and the above is an unbiased review of the novel.

Falling in love by Donna Leon

(Commissario Brunetti #24)

256 pages

Atlantic Monthly Press (April 7, 2015)

Donna Leon is well known - especially thanks to her character Guido Brunetti (and his love of good food) - yet I had not read her books. The fact that her novels take place in Italy has played in favor of the book when I chose my next reading. A little sunshine and Italian warmth could only be beneficial in these months of endless winter!

Donna Leon, is all about good taste in every sense of the word! Good musical taste (especially the opera) but also historical, architectural and gastronomic. Reading Falling in Love is like roaming the streets of Venice, meet great (and a bit posh) people, listen opera, looking at beautiful stuff and enjoy some great food... With all that, it's already quite a trip!

For those of you (and I know there's a LOT of you) who have already read everything written by Leon, you'll have the (great or not great) surprise to meet back Flavia, the opera singer who this time is not a culprit but the victim. So it's a return in the - let's say bloody - milieu of the opera, with a too many great amount of yellow roses, to Flavia's displeasure. Brunetti, skeptical at first, will eventually be convinced of the twisted and dangerous aspect of the world of opera and especially of fans.

This novel will appeal especially to those who love the atmosphere in police novels. Here, no great violence, no hard to read scenes, everything is about good education, good manners, Venice, music and great food. The mystery will be resolved by Brunetti, with the help of his colleagues who are doing a big part of the job and the culprit who leaves big enough clues for the police to found him/her (mwahaha, no you won't know if it's a she or a he!) You should easily - and more quickly than Brunetti and his colleagues - solve some puzzles where they will take a too much time for my taste. I admit to having a preference for characters with vivid intelligence.

The blurb

Donna Leon’s Death at La Fenice, the first novel in her beloved Commissario Guido Brunetti series, introduced readers to the glamorous and cutthroat world of opera and one of Italy’s finest living sopranos, Flavia Petrelli—then a suspect in the poisoning of a renowned German conductor. Years after Brunetti cleared her name, Flavia has returned to Venice and La Fenice to sing the lead in Tosca.

Brunetti and his wife, Paola, attend an early performance, and Flavia receives a standing ovation. Back in her dressing room, she finds bouquets of yellow roses—too many roses. Every surface of the room is covered with them. An anonymous fan has been showering Flavia with these beautiful gifts in London, St. Petersburg, Amsterdam, and now, Venice, but she no longer feels flattered. A few nights later, invited by Brunetti to dine at his in-laws’ palazzo, Flavia confesses her alarm at these excessive displays of adoration. And when a talented young Venetian singer who has caught Flavia’s attention is savagely attacked, Brunetti begins to think that Flavia’s fears are justified in ways neither of them imagined. He must enter in the psyche of an obsessive fan before Flavia, or anyone else, comes to harm.

In a nutshell

A preppy novel for a relatively easy plot without much violence. It is a 3.5 / 5 for me.

Disclaimer: An e-galley of this title was provided to me by the publisher. No review was promised and the above is an unbiased review of the novel.