skip to main |
skip to sidebar
JAG is one my favorite TV dramas, so I when I found this series - The Navy Justice Series - I was intrigued. It also didn't hurt that they were free downloads on my Kindle for iPhone app.
The books follow the trials and tribulations of Navy JAG officer Zack Brewer. He becomes the Navy's star prosecutor with his winning performances in two trials. The first is the result of three radical Islamic clerics who are members of the Navy Chaplain Corps being charged with inciting other service members to commit acts of terrorism. The second is against a Muslim Navy aviator who bombs the Dome of the Rock on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem, a Muslim holy site, as part of a worldwide plot by an Islamic terrorist network to create one united Islamic state in the Middle East.
All three book are good reads, though they didn't contain the depth of character that I typically prefer. The books also have a definitive undertone of Christian values, as many of the characters rediscover God as part of the storyline. I was halfway through book 2 before I realized that was a major point to the series. By that time, I felt that I was committed and wanted to see it through.
But these books portrayed Islam in a very negative light, which was completely unwarranted. For certain believers, I fear that these books could potentially reinforce existing negative perceptions of Islam - those that have already caused enough division and misunderstandings between Christians and Muslims. For that reason, this series disappointed me.
Just for the hell of it
Treason
Don Brown
325 pages
Just for the hell of it
Defiance
Don Brown
336 pages
It seems additionally ironic that these books fulfill my "just for the hell of it" book genre. I wanted to classify them under "historical fiction," but that felt dishonest and not true to the mission of the original list.
Just for the hell of it
Crybaby Ranch
Tina Welling
307 pages
I picked up this book on the discount table at Borders. Pretty much wish I had left it there. Not sure what it was about the concept that attracted me - woman leaves a loveless marriage, moves to Wyoming, continues to make jewelry as an artistic outlet, meets cute male neighbor, they fall in love. And as with any good love story, there are obstacles thrown up in front of the destined couple: mother with alzheimers, crazy in laws, a vixen trying to get the man.
If I wasn't participating in this challenge, I wouldn't have finished the book, but by the time I made my final determination, I was over half way through. Figured then, that I might as well finish it.
While I didn't really enjoy the book, I still had to pull a quote or two that piqued my interest.
"He said in boot camp he was taught to think FIDO: Fuck it, drive on. I use it now when I get stuck. The idea is to just keep the flow going."
I can't help but appreciate this approach.
Hopefully, I'll have better news from the next book. I guess I can't love every book I'm going to read in this coming year.
Just for the hell of it
