M. Louis's Blog

Thanks for all of the great summer reading recommendations! Feel free to send more. Here are the books I’ve read this summer (so far anyway) and what’s on deck for the rest of the summer.

Use of Force, by Brad Thor

Part of the Scot Halvarth series.  Halvarth is a former navy seal, transformed into a spy.  Action packed, interesting insights into the biz of espionage and all the things we think are happening behind the scenes, but don’t want to ask.  4 stars.

Code Name Camelot, by David Archer

Part of the Noah Wolf series.  Noah is a tough dude, with no emotions.  This special characteristic allows him to act violently with no remorse.  But it’s a two edged sword.  3 stars.

Testimony, by Scott Turow

A legal thriller with interesting twists.  Bill ten Boom changes his life and takes a position as a prosecutor for the International Criminal Court.  His first case is the investigation of into the disappearance of a refugee camp.  5 stars

Camino Island, by John Grisham

A gang of thieves steal irreplaceable and priceless items from Princeton University.  An novelist, Mercer Mann, is pulled into the intrigue. 4.5 Stars.

The Stranger, by Albert Camus

An ordinary man, is drawn into a murder on an Algerian beach.  3.5 stars

On my  “To Read” stack:

The Tender Bar by JR Moerhinger – Thanks to Jake Brand PI subscriber Stephanie who suggested this book.

Filed under: Jake Brand Private Investigator, M. Louis Author, Plot Sub Plot Tagged: Book Reccomendation, crime novel, Crime Thriller, Detective Story, free books, Good Books, Private Detective, Reading, Team Jake Brand

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What’s on your stack of books to read over the summer?  M. wants your summer reading recommendations and to spice things up, he’s offering to give away a copy of one of his books for his favorite recommendation (paperback, ebook or audiobook).  Check out what he has been reading lately below and use the form to send him a book recommendation.  If he picks your suggested book, we’ll email you to let you know you’ve won.  And YES there could be multiple winners so suggest away!

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What author M. Louis has been reading lately: 

Currently reading:  “She”, by H. Rider Haggard, I’m lovin it so far.

Recent reads:

An Innocent Client by Scott Pratt. Nice beach read, 4 stars.
Beneath a Scarlet Sky, by Mark Sullivan. Incredible true story about a young Italian man surviving world war II in a heroic fashion, 5 stars.
The Secret Wife, by Gill Paul. I loved this. Parallel love stories stretched over time and entwined, 5 stars. My recent favorite.
Departure, entertaining sci fi about unintended consequences, 4 Stars.
A Criminal Defense, Nice beach read, 4 stars.
I read 6+ John Le Carre books (Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, etc.) all excellent books depicting George Smiley as an unassuming but effective spy for the British during the cold war. 4-5 stars.
The Revenant, by Michael Punke, better than the movie, helped with timeline, 5 stars.
Almayer’s Folly, by Joseph Conrad, Intriguing depiction of an unusual spot in the world where cultures clashed in the 1800s. 5 stars.
Big Little Lies, by Liane Moriarty. One of those books that succeeds on the screen as well. Murder in an affluent neighborhood. 5 stars.
I read several Raymond Chandler books, (Farewell by Lovely). Kind of loses itself in todays world, ie socially insensitive to be mild. 3 stars.

Filed under: Book Reviews, Jake Brand Private Investigator, M. Louis Author Tagged: crime novel, Crime Thriller, Detective Story, free books, Good Books, Reading, summer reading list

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Jake is racking up the stars for his audiobook adventures! ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Reviews

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Below is a message we received from a reader in Portland, Maine.

Dear Jake –

Once again my new year’s resolution is to up my fitness game and walk on my treadmill for an hour a day.  Yes, a whole hour – go big or go home I say.  I even got a jump on things and started the day after Christmas.  I’d forgotten just how totally boring a treadmill is, so I did some research and found this post about how audiobooks help get the best of your workouts.  Searching for exciting audiobooks (I get bored easily) I downloaded Angel’s Devil from Audible and gave it a try.  It was just what I was looking for!  Before I knew it I’d done 90 minutes of walking and just to get to the end of the chapter.  I actually looked forward to the next days workout to find out what happened next.  

Happily I found you had a second audiobook and am in the middle of that.  Really, why are you always tangling with your yoga instructor?  You have crimes to solve!  But anyway I wanted to say thanks for making my workout fun and keeping me on point.  I don’t know what I’ll do when I finish book 2 but I’m glad I found you and look forward to book three!

Gratefully, 

Janet Loomis, a new fan

Jake Brand PI on Audible   |  iTunes  |  Amazon

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Filed under: Book Reviews, Jake Brand Private Investigator, M. Louis Author

A BIG thanks to everyone who took Jake Brand PI on vacation with them.  We hope you had as much fun reading and taking funny photos as we did seeing where Jake ended up.   A compendium of photos is below for your viewing pleasure.

Reading books For The Win! 

And thanks to Jake Brand super fans on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for sharing the love! M. did a live video interview on the Books Go Social Readers Group last month – check it out on Facebook.

The NEWS:  BOTH Secondhand Smoke and Angel’s Devil are available as audiobooks!  #Yay!

 

Filed under: Jake Brand Private Investigator, M. Louis Author Tagged: Angel's Devil, audiobook, crime novel, Crime Thriller, Detective Story, Good Books, Jake Brand, Mystery, Private Detective, Reading, Team Jake Brand, thriller, Travel

Your commute / workout / dog walking / cooking / boring job is about to become WAY more FUN!

Secondhand Smoke (Jake Brand PI 2) is now available as an audiobook!   Over 7 hours of danger, twists, turns and  smart alec repartee are now available to vastly improve some of the more hum drum parts of your life.  (Ok, well some people actually like working out but even so, a rollicking good story with thrills, laughs and a touch of romance is going to level up a workout from “like” to “love” right?)

Secondhand Smoke by M. Louis, narrated by Colin Iago McCarthy

Audible / Amazon / iTunes

Set on the espresso stained streets of Portland, a simple missing person case is just the beginning of a trail of danger & intrigue.

In the midst of peril, Private Detective Jake Brand still finds time to annoy his yoga instructor, and fall for the woman with more secrets than answers.
 
“…endlessly entertaining in any situation, especially the perilous kind.” -Kirkus 

 

Free Sample via YouTube Below


Filed under: Jake Brand Private Investigator, M. Louis Author Tagged: audiobook, crime novel, Crime Thriller, Detective Story, Jake Brand, Mystery, PDX, Portland, Private Detective, Team Jake Brand

A BIG thanks to everyone who took Jake Brand PI on vacation with them.  We hope you had as much fun reading and taking funny photos as we did seeing where Jake ended up.   A compendium of photos is below for your viewing pleasure.

Reading books For The Win! 

And thanks to Jake Brand super fans on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for sharing the love! M. did a live video interview on the Books Go Social Readers Group last month – check it out on Facebook.

What’s up next:  book 2, Secondhand Smoke will be released as an audiobook in October!  #Yay! Get your audiobook of book 1, Angel’s Devil 

 

Filed under: Jake Brand Private Investigator, M. Louis Author Tagged: Angel's Devil, audiobook, crime novel, Crime Thriller, Detective Story, Good Books, Jake Brand, Mystery, Private Detective, Reading, Team Jake Brand, thriller

The Girl In The Ice by Robert Bryndza

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Girl in the Ice, by Robert Bryndz, is the first novel in the Erica Foster come series. Erica is a DCI in the London police. She’s recovering from the death of her husband, also a police officer, who was killed in an ambush of a raid that she was responsible for commanding.

Seriously wounded in the raid herself, both physically and mentally, she’s recovered enough to begin to work again.

Her first case back on the job involves the murder of a beautiful socialite whose father is politically connected. Pressured by her boss, the victims father, competing officers, and her own shaky emotional state, Erica battles to find the killer in spite of opposition from all involved.

Well written and entertaining, the story keeps the reader turning pages all the way to the end. Interesting characters and believable villains help along the way.

4 stars

Mike

View all my reviews

Filed under: Book Reviews

We are totally pumped about the first review of the audiobook version of Angel’s Devil from AudiobookReviewer.com!

4 stars!  Yay!

“M. Louis does an excellent job of making Jake likable by adding in Jake’s devil and angel side-kicks. . . .

The story flows well, keeping the listeners on their toes.  Fast paced but not rushed, Louis reveals just enough keeping the action riveting.  Masterful story-teller, Louis keeps the listener on the edge of his seat.

Colin Iago McCarthy is a wonderful narrator, keeping the action and emotions steady and peaking when it is. . . . ”

-AudiobookReviewer.com

You can read the full review here.

People are loving the audiobook and it’s been flying off the virtual shelves over at Audible.com, iTunes and Amazon.  Inspired by Jake’s enthusiastic welcome to the world of audiobooks we have just started production on the audiobook of Jake Brand PI book 2, Secondhand Smoke.  Stellar voice actor Colin Iago McCarthy returns as the narrator and you can look for this new audiobook to be out in the fall of this year.

We also have a new trailer with a free sample of the audiobook version of Angel’s Devil available on SoundCloud  and YouTube (or listen below and save yourself a click / tap).

Filed under: Jake Brand Private Investigator, M. Louis Author Tagged: Angel's Devil, audiobook, Book Trailer, crime novel, Crime Thriller, Detective Story, Jake Brand, Portland, Private Detective

Crossfire Trail by Louis L’Amour

My rating: 0 of 5 stars

Whenever you want an old school yarn, there’s no one better to turn to then Louis L’amour. Sell described as “…the man in the shadows of the campfire”, his characters are thick with personality. His stories echo an American past as romantic as they are frightening. Men who kill, good or bad. Women who love and wilderness on the edge of being settled. In Crossfire Trail, Rafe Caradec escapes the clutches of a ship captain. A captain who relies on shanghied sailors for labor. A shipmate asks Rafe to help his family and save the ranch, on his death bed.

Faced with unfair odds and the beauty of Ann, the dead man’s daughter, there can only be one outcome. Entertainment.

View all my reviews

Filed under: Book Reviews