Henry Wood Perception

Henry Wood Detective #3

by Brian D. Meeks

As spring winds down there is only one thing on Henry's mind...baseball. Opening day, 1955, is just around the corner and foremost in Henry's thoughts. He just wants to watch his beloved Brooklyn Dodgers and relax. Is that too much to ask?

The CIA, KGB, and a cabal of businessmen have their own agenda, and soon Henry stumbles into their world when he agrees to look into the open and shut case of suicide by Daniel Kupton.

Genres: Mystery, Historical Fiction, Fiction, Amazon, Detective

283 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 3, 2013

About the author

Brian D. Meeks is a graduate of Iowa State University with a degree in Economics. He is the author of the Henry Wood Detective Series, a satire series, Underwood, Scotch, and Wry, and has some stand alone YA, a science fiction series, and in 2019 is working on a 10 book Epic Fantasy series.

He lives on the Las Vegas strip.

And really loves people who post pictures of guinea pigs on Facebook.

They are adorable!

Reviews

[Judie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'm being generous with a 2 star review. Mr. Meeks has published several novels and yet this one is so poorly edited. There are gramatical, spelling and use of language errors - all of which should have been caught before publication.

The "closet" is very confusing and since there's no explanation for it, it was useless as far as this story is concerned.

At times the dialogue seemed so shallow and so tedious that I just wanted Mr. Meeks to get on with the telling of the tale. I did finish reading the book because I wanted to see the mystery solved, but the ending just sort of fizzled out.

I really can't recommend this book

[Janine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Like a 2.5 star book.. it was an easy read, entertaining enough.. but a little editing goes a long way. There were enough blatant typos to make it seem like no one ever read the book through before it was released. Also, the whole sub plot with the closet from the future went nowhere. The book would've made sense without including it, and since it never really lead to anything, I'm not sure why it was included at all.

[Rashmi Pant · Rating 2 out of 5]

A book set in the 1950s. An investigation into a suicide leads to the unraveling of a major plot involving KGB, CIA, police and of course, the private investigator Henry Wood. Throw in a closet where things from future "appear" and in this particlular plot.. no need or use was established :P. The plot is very Bollywood like where things larger than life happen for no apparent reason.

[Daniel Ace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoy this series a lot but this story didn't click well for me. Henry is a solid character as always but the way the story moved so fast between the individual arcs of these people. It was complex to follow plus even though the closet has been a help in the past, I don't follow how the gift this time helped.

[Ann Speichinger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perception

Perception

I thought the book was just ok. I was engaged enough to finish it, but not enough to pick it up every day. That is probably why I had trouble keeping track y the names. I thought there were too many characters to keep track easily.

[Whitebeard Books · Rating 2 out of 5]

This series has some really good story lines, but the quality of the writing and editing leave much to be desired. There is an entire chapter about opening day of baseball season that has absolutely nothing to do with the story itself.

[Cyndi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confused

It was pretty good but there were too many characters to try to keep track of, it got sort of confusing

[Ken Finlay · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Henry Wood Perception”, third in the series, again features time travel but I'll be damned if I can figure out why.
For those who aren't up to date Henry finds things in his closet that are from the future. Sometimes they contain a clue but, mostly, it's things like a DVD player with a helpful documentary on woodworking or a Billy Joel CD.
As far as the central mystery is concerned the future proves completely unhelpful this time out.
And there's still the problem with Bobby, the talkative little man. Who is he? Why does his office in the Flatiron building seem to be completely different each time Henry sees it? He's generally helpful, exceptionally so in this novel, but seems to stand outside the story.
The plot is convoluted and involves international espionage, murders, blackmail, deception on a grand scale, betrayal, etc. The narrative switches between characters almost at random and it was difficult to keep up at times.
The book is dotted with odd mistakes. I wasn't taking notes but the one that stood out was “Bobby is going to call in the Calvary while you watch my back.”
As with the first two books it is interesting but flawed.
3 Stars.

[Charlene Roberson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to confess I didn't like this as well as the other books I have read in this series. It was very hard to figure out what was going on, how all the LARGE groups of people were related to the crime, or even what crime had been committed. FINALLY, about 80% in, I was able to- sort of - keep the characters straight.

Someone has committed suicide by jumping from a building he seemingly had no relationship to, at a time when no one was supposed to be in the building, from a suite of offices occupied by a group no one knew. Was it really suicide or was he murdered? And why should anyone, except his secretary, even be interested?

I didn't know the answer to any of that until the very end, and even then I am not so sure. The mysterious objects in Henry's closet didn't seem to have anything to do with the problem (was "The Stranger" really a clue?), and that is what sets Henry apart from every other detective in the 1950s, so this was not a very good read for me.

[Susie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third book in the series. I've enjoyed all three of them. A fun part is that they take place in the 1950's and Harry's apartment has a closet where occasionally, items from the future are deposited. I suspect one of his friends may be from the future and responsible for giving these items to him. On to the fourth book and hopefully more illumination about his mysterious and magical closet.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really want to like this series, and overall I do. I like the characters. However, I fear we’re never going to get an answer as to “the closet”. That sort of bums me out because it’s a significant enough plot point I’d like some resolution. That aside, the stories are good and move at a nice pace.

[Dwight Burgess · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shades of "The Americans"

While some of the wording is juvenile, I thought the plot and story was very good. Same ruthlessness, drops, long time living in America, etc as the now ended t.v. show.

[bex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Weird, which is expected here, but quite good really. 3.5*

[Meg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Better than the second book. I was right, I do like Celine and her addition to Henry’s office and I especially like Buttons. I am glad that we are also learning more about Bobby and his quirky ways.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book

You people should just read this book yourselves and write your own review on this novel yourself and I really enjoyed reading this book very much so.Shelley MA

[Michael M. Wolfe · Rating 2 out of 5]

A bit less enjoyable than his other Henry Wood’s books. The author can’t seem to decide if this is a hard boiled detective story, a spy novel, or a science fiction tale.

[Randy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third book in the Henry Wood series that I've read, and I think it's the best one so far. The main characters are the same, a cat has become Henry's boss, and the dialog is good and sometimes funny. The closet in Henry's home continues to provide him with stuff that's from the future and important to the case he's solving. This plot involves the U.S. Navy, submarine parts, and Russian spies, and the FBI and CIA are also there.

I enjoy the 1950's words and history that are in Mr. Meeks' books since the stories are really taking place in the mid-50's. I will continue to read other books in this series.

[Jbaes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow! Billy Joel saves us from the Russians in 1955

Another thriller at the Henry Woods Detective Agency. This time the Russians are up to no good and it causing havoc needed to be explained by Henry. Naturally he does a good job aided by his new secretary and her clever cat. Being a cat lover I particularly enjoyed the cat's participation in solving the crime. Still don't get the Billy Joel clue but I am not sure I want to hire Henry to explain it to me. Sigh.

[Rebecca · Rating 1 out of 5]

I gave up on this book. Maybe, just maybe, if I had started with the first one in the series, I would have been happier with it, but I just couldn't stand to finish it. The characters were not interesting and the plot was ridiculous. A magical time machine closet that sends Billy Joel CDs to help solve the mystery? Come on! I enjoy SciFi but when I buy a mystery, I want a mystery, and I want it to move along at a good pace.

[Dave · Rating 5 out of 5]

A 5 star book with tremendous writing, The book is a page Turner

A 5 star book with tremendous writing, The book is a page Turner

The book should be on everyones list of mystery novels they should read. The book will not let you put it down until you have read the last page. I give it a 5 star review.

[Jeremiah Cunningham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Parts of the book were unrealistic and that combined with the science fiction took away from the enjoyment of the book. The author also failed to wrap up some of the story lines and ideas in the book.

Overall though the book was enjoyable with good character development. I would check out another book in this series.

[Robbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

My second book in the Henry Wood series and I have to say - I'm really enjoying them. The protagonist is extremely capable, likeable and very intelligent. The people he surrounds himself with add much to the story. I'll read more of these soon. My rating is 4.7 stars.

[kenneth h. robinson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mystery, Murder, and Intrigue

Mystery, Murder, and Intrigue

Henry Woods has some interesting cases come in through the door of his detective agency that he's just getting started. He gets help from some unexpected sources.

[Kristi | Hidden Staircase | · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very fun mystery series. I enjoy that Henry Wood is a private detective in the 1950's, doing his work the old fashioned way, without our modern conveniences of the internet and cell phones. This book featured Russian spies and the cold war intertwined with Harry's case.

[Wendell H Howell · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Good Read

That is up to chapter 70. After that the plot gets thin, at times amusingly so. Some editing is spotty, i, e., "mouth over the phone", hand over the mouth piece makes sense.

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alluring

I found the author to be intriguing the way he developed his story line. This was definitely a page Turner and I was anxious to learn just what the detective seemed to have in the back of his mind.

[Shaun Anderson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I hadn't read the previous books. It it was a good mystery novel with a little suspense. There's a little miss in some of the connections. For instance, I think they are reaching with the whole Billy Joel angle from the future. I'd read more of the series

[Tim Shepperson Shepperson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Exceptional

This is my first time reading Brian Meeks and I am very impressed. I liked the time period and the fact that it kept me interested from start to finish. The closet incident was a nice touch and not overdone. I will be reading more of his books.

[Starlene Ralbovsky · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great read!

This story kept me entertained. I can't wait until Mr. Meeks fleshes out the odd character of Bobby. When will his next book be available?

[Erin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun, old-fashioned detective novel.