The Sentry--A Joe Pike Novel****

INSPIRATION. To ingrain yesterday's message of the Great White Egret, I repeated "the pace is perfect" as I drove to work today. Slowly...steadily...to the beat of its wings.

OBSERVATION. Yesterday, I was happy when I woke up singing Skippity Doo Dah. I was happy as I drove to working singing Skippity Doo Dah. I was happy as I walked down the hall toward my office humming Skippity Doo Dah. Then I saw Ben and asked him how he was.

BEN:  I'm very busy.

ME:  Oh, busy is good.

BEN:  Not this kind of busy. I'm shipping machines to China.

ME:  Oh.

By the time Bill stopped by my office to say good morning, I was very subdued and felt a little sad.

Gosh, darn it! It took me about half an hour to figure out I must have picked up Ben's energy.

I really gotta figure out how to stop doing that!

Well, the good thing is that I'm getting faster at noticing it's not "me."

REALIZATION. Shawnda has moved to a new job in a new area. I bequeathed her my Train-the-Trainer course materials and party decorations. As I was pulling things out of drawers and cabinets and putting them into bags and boxes, it felt good.

Really.

Like the feeling you get when you're going through the stuff you have in the house you've lived in for 30 years before moving into your brand-new house.

It felt like freedom...letting go of the dusty and old.

FOR THE LAST YEAR OR SO, I HAVE BEEN EXTRA CAREFUL TO READ MORE POSITIVE books and less negative books.

But I am crazy for Crais.

Maybe it's his characters. So real you'd recognize them on the street. Joe Pike, ever in sunglasses, red arrow tats on his arms, a man of much action and few words. His best pal, wise-cracking Elvis Cole (with a name like Elvis, you better be funny).

Maybe it's his writing. Clear. Colorful. Real. Set in Los Angeles around people and places we know.

Maybe it's the story. Funny. Fast-paced. Powerful.

In this latest book, Joe stops at a gas station and then notices two guys walking into a sandwich shop. He follows them and it's downhill from there. A woman. Lies. Big money.

I adore Crais and I have a secret crush on Pike so I would love to give the book five stars. But I deduct 1 star for the too graphic first chapter (it's almost like someone told Crais he had to have an evil, gorey opening because it's the lastest thing to do) and because I just don't get Pike's attraction to Dru.

Despite this one's flaws, I will read every book Crais writes.

Always entertaining and good for a few laughs.

May good books surround you,


Catherine