Book Review Dakota by Gwen Florio

I have added Lola Wicks to the list of characters whose adventures I hope to follow for a long time.

Lola, a former foreign correspondent, relocates to Magpie, Montana, and starts a relationship with the local sheriff. That relationship, however keeps her from being able to report on police matters for the local newspaper. But when a girl missing from the Indian reservation Magpie is built in is found dead not far from home, Lola doesn't let the technicality of not being on the police beat stop her from trying to get the story.

She believes the girl's death -- and the disappearances of other girls from the reservation -- is related to the oil boom near Burnt Creek, North Dakota, 500 miles away. The oil fields are drawing men from all over the country for the good-paying jobs. The problem is, with no family to go home to, or reign them in, many of the oil field workers have turned the small town of Burnt Creek into a haven for prostitution, sex-trafficking and all kinds of unseemly behavior.

Lola manages to get herself right in the middle of the action after telling her editor she wants to do a story on men from the Indian reservation who travel all that way to work in the oil fields.

Because we're -- I hope! -- nearing the end of a very rough winter here in the northeast I'd also like to mention that the weather in Dakota should be considered a character as well. After working in Kabul and Baltimore Lola is not ready for a brutal Montana and North Dakota winter but she must deal with it the same as she deals with the people who become obstacles on her path to the truth.

Dakota is the second book in the Lola Wicks series and, while waiting for the third, I'll put Montana on my reading list and Gwen Florio on my list of new authors I like.

4 of 5

I received this book from Goodreads First Reads in exchange for an honest review.

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Influx By Daniel Suarez

In Influx, best selling author Daniel Suarez imagines that current human technology is vastly more advanced than commonly believed. Cold fusion, the cure for cancer and greater-than-human artificial intelligence are among the discoveries that have been kept under wraps by the Bureau of Technology Control.

Scientist Jon Grady, who has discovered mirror gravity, is picked up by the BTC shortly after his discovery and, because he won't work with them is put in the most high-tech jail you could possibly imagine. His escape and the consequences are a page-turning adventure you won't soon forget.

Listen to my conversation with Daniel Suarez by going to http://www.wesb.com/listen/, clicking on the "Local Programs" tab, and scrolling down to today's date (02-27-14).

For more information you can go to Daniel-Suarez.com

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Eliot Ness: The Rise and Fall of an American Hero By Douglas Perry

Award-winning writer Douglas Perry not only chronicles Eliot Ness's legendary pursuit of Al Capone, but continues the largely unknown story of Ness's time as Public Safety Director in Cleveland, where he achieved some of the greatest successes of his career, including rooting out corruption in the police department and taking on the Mob, and instituting what is today considered textbook policing.

And, yes, Perry writes about Ness's time in Coudersport, where he died at the age of 57.

You can hear my interview with Douglas Perry by going to http://www.wesb.com/listen/, clicking on "Local Programs," and scrolling down to today's show (02-27-14).

For more information you can go to http://DouglasPerry.net.

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Dancing Through It By Jenifer Ringer

Former New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Jenifer Ringer gives a behind-the-curtain look at the world of classical ballet, along with her private -- and sometimes public -- struggles.

She writes about her faith, an eating disorder, getting fired from the ballet and "Sugarplumgate," when -- after she'd conquered her eating disorder -- a critic reviewing "The Nutcracker" wrote that her Sugarplum Fairy looked as if she'd eaten one sugarplum too many. But that opened up a discussion on weight issues and got her an appearance on "Oprah."

She also writes about her family and, in our interview, talks about her future plans now that she has retired from the ballet. "Dancing Through It: My Journey in the Ballet" also includes many beautiful pictures any ballet fan will love.

You can listen to my chat with Jenifer here.

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Detroit: An American Autopsy By Charlie LeDuff

"Detroit can no longer be ignored, because what happened here is happening out there," says Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Charlie LeDuff. His bestselling book, "Detroit: An American Autopsy," details his quest to uncover what destroyed his hometown, but also to show that there are people who still care enough to make a difference.

You will be outraged at how the city treats its firefighters. During my interview with Charlie I said, "It's almost immoral." He corrected me and said, "It is immoral."

If someone tried writing a novel about the downfall of Detroit using the stories Charlie used, no one would buy it, saying it wasn't credible because it goes too far. That's the thing. It's all true -- from the firebombing of his mom's flower shop to the man who was found frozen to death in the basement of an abandoned building to the firemen who got in trouble for taking a screen door from a condemned house because the city wouldn't provide their fire station with a screen door.

You can listen to my chat with Charlie LeDuff here.

Note: I received a free copy of the book from the publisher.

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Hammett Unwritten By Owen Fitzstephen (Gordon McAlpine)

What if the character in The Maltese Falcon were based on real people that Dashiell Hammett had met and dealt with while he worked as a private investigator? What if the black bird really did have some kind of mystical power? What if giving up the bird is what caused Hammett's decades-long writer's block?

That's the premise behind Hammett Unwritten, a noir mystery that will keep you riveted from the first page until the "Afterward" by McAlpine.

You can listen to my conversation with McAlpine go here: http://www.wesb.com/listen/. Click on the "Local Programs" tab and scroll down to #61.

For more information: http://GordonMcAlpine.net/

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George Washington's Secret Six By Brian Kilmeade

Stories like those found in "George Washington's Secret Six" are what make American history so interesting. A spy ring that helped trick British troops into abandoning a plan to ambush French reinforcements sent to help the Patriots? How can you not love that?

One of the most amazing things about everything the Culper Ring did is that this was -- obviously -- before telephones (let alone cell phones!), computers, even radio. And, the CIA still uses some of the practices George Washington and his spies used during the Revolutionary War.

You can listen to my conversation with Fox News Channel's Brian Kilmeade by going to http://www.wesb.com/listen/, clicking on "Local Programs" and scrolling down to #9. Listen until the end and Brian will tell you how to get a signed copy of the book.

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