Dr. Gideon Box attempts to move his new girlfriend, Trudy Lake, into his Manhattan penthouse and high society lifestyle. Problem is, Trudy’s a backwoods Kentucky girl with more baggage than the Lost & Found warehouse at LaGuardia!
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information. This is the novelist (2x spaces), not the philosopher (1x space).
New York Times best-selling author John Locke is the international best-selling author of sixteen books in four different genres. He is the 8th author in history to have sold one million eBooks on Kindle. Locke has had four books in the top ten at the same time, including #1 and #2. His Donovan Creed thriller series has sold more than 1,700,000 copies since January, 2011, and foreign rights have been acquired by six major publishers for Spanish, Catalan, Italian, Japanese, Polish, Hungarian, and Lithuanian translations. (Amazon's brief biography)
NY TIMES BEST-SELLING AUTHOR!
8th MEMBER of the KINDLE MILLION SALES CLUB!
First self-published author to hit #1 on Amazon/Kindle!
First self-published author to hit Kindle Million Sales Club!
John sold 1,100,000 eBooks in 5 months by word of mouth!
John wrote and published 6 best-selling books in 3 separate genres in 6 months, part-time!
John has had 4 of the top 10 eBooks on Amazon/Kindle at the same time, including #1 and #2! He’s also had 6 of the top 20, and 8 of the top 43 at the same time!
Every eBook John Locke has written and published has become a best-seller.
Get ready for another irreverent ride in Locke's world of zany characters. In this, the third Gideon Box novel, Locke asks us to consider what might happen were we to take a back-woods Appalachian mountain girl (Trudy) and emigrate her to sophisticated New York City as Gideon Box's girlfriend. Will she survive high society when her pedigree is one of being married momentarily to her brother (whom she thought was her cousin) and subsequently thrown by Gideon into high society, mindful that she is not up to sparring intelligently on matters of politics, music, culture and being ever so polite (and incredibly sexy to the point of distracting every male that comes near her and tolerating the raving jealousy of wives) until she's had enough and clobbers refined women hosting million dollar donation dinner parties? Appalachian back woods violence does not go over well in NYC.
Will Trudy be able to withstand high society's revenge? Will Gideon Box remain beside her, loyal and willing? And what about Rose? You know her from the Emmett Love series, how does she suddenly appear centuries later in NYC on an urgent mission to engage Gideon's help in saving an infant about to be born of our lovely prostitute Miranda (she, of the Creed series)? And what about ManChild, is he really dead?
Read on...Locke never ceases to suprise you.
-------------------------------------------------------------------- Series Review
John Locke
John Locke is a writer and novelist who was the eighth author--and first self-published author--to sell over one million eBooks on Amazon.com. Locke is a New York Times best-selling author, and is best known for his Donovan Creed and Gideon Box thriller series as well as the Emmett Love Western series.His works are self-published worldwide. In the U.S., Locke’s books are released through Amazon’s Kindle Direct Publishing service. Locke's books have been translated into over 29 languages.
What life history could have existed to have John Locke become the wildly popular author he is today? Let's see. He was born in Puerto Rico in a military family. Nope, that won't do it. He attended boarding school in Pennsylvania. Ok, that doesn't do it either. Persuing...perusing. But wait! In elementary school he got bitten by an ant. Hmmm...unlikely, but let's read a bit further.
He first became interested in writing during elementary school, after being bitten by an ant. He wrote a short story titled "Ants Aren’t Very Nice," which his teacher enjoyed so much that she read it to his class, and then had him read it to a higher class.
Like a stew bubbling on the stove, it took a while before this seed germinated. First, Locke made his fortune selling insurance and investing in real estate. From there he went on to higher learning where he, at least, considered majoring in journalism. That didn't happen. Like another favorite author of mine, Jo Nesbo,Locke was sidetracked by other ambitions: Locke began singing for a rock band. Still, he sold insurance and rose to the position of area vice president by the time he was 21. At the age of 35 he founded Freedom Life Insurance, a company that rose to nearly 7000 insurance agents in 34 states. Today he has sold that company and has become a private investor owning two insurance companyes and 13 shopping centers.
It wasn't until 2010 that he began self publishing novels he wanted to write (the seed has germinated!). Business savvy, he concluded that for the other 8 eBook best selling authors who charged up to $10 or above for their eBooks and receiving in return 35% royalties, he would sell his for below $2.99 per book, and thus received 70% royalties (most of his books are $0.99). Technologically savvy too, he adjusted his audience to those out there blogging (a method he calls "Loyalty Transference") and through such reader loyalty Locke employs social media to transfer that loyalty to other potential readers.
For myself: I'd never heard of John Locke until I received my Kindle DX in the mail. How can I go wrong with a novel priced at $0.99, right? I was surprised at what I read and hooked from the start. Unlike my other series books, however, there is a difference in the books in terms of ratings...so I have not given them the standard 4 or 5 star ratings across the entire series.
The Gideon Box series (3 novels thus far) employs Locke's Loyalty Transference method. Gideon Box is Donovan Creed's doctor: often unwillingly so. The Creed, Emmett Love and Box series are interconnected tales, a John Locke world spanning centuries, with the Emmett Love series taking place several hundred years ago (Emmett Love is Creed's ancestor) and amazing in itself, one character from the Emmett Love series continues to intrude on the present day adventures of Creed and Dr. Box.
Irreverent, crude, wild, anti-social, exploitative, sexist (in a delightful manner), scoffing at literary rules and preconceptions, these books are definitely not for the PC crowd. Gideon Box is rude, temperamental, a genius who considers himself the greatest cardiothoracic/cardiopulmonary pediatric surgeon in the world (and he is, as he's never lost a patient) both present to the reader a repulsive and attractive hero to relish or denounce.
These books are short but packing a powerful punch, a mixture of excellent humor (left me laughing at the insanity of what I was reading) and the grim reality of a hero who saves lives, works for Creed, and inhales women as if breathing Spring Dandelions. You will find that towards the end of each Box book you will be filled with disappointment that the ride is over...and almost certainly you will hunt down the next Gideon Box thriller.
Redemption - oh joy! After the exhilaration of the first book in this series featuring best-in-the-world cardio-thoracic surgeon Dr. Gideon Box (who also boasts the world's biggest ego) only to be disappointed when the second one came up seriously short, it was a treat when this most recent entry hit the mark.
Well, for the most part, that is. Since I'd landed the first, Bad Doctor free and paid $2.99 each for the second, Box and this one, I was hoping this would be good enough that I'd at least break even in bang for my buck. It was, although I don't think it quite lived up to the first one. And I'll add this as well: While it's not essential that you read these in order, it certainly helps. Characters and circumstances do carry forward from book to book - particularly noticeable between book two and this one, in which backwoods country beauty Trudy Lake, who Box encounters in book two (and falls in love with, as much as Box is able to love anyone except himself) comes to New York to join Box in his world. What transpires from that point forward basically is a cluster you-know-what - including spilled blood and guts, broken bones and a track that would make Rosemary's Baby author Ira Levin cringe, but it's all pretty humorous.
And humor, in fact, is what makes this series fun. I've said before that the situations in which the characters find themselves generally are pretty silly and unbelievable, but there are enough jokes and one-liners to keep things interesting. I'll emphasize, though, that it takes someone with a truly offbeat sense of humor (I plead guilty) to appreciate the funny here. And if you're not fond of reading all sorts of words and descriptions of sex that many would consider pornographic, this isn't for you. As for me, all I'll say is that most aren't words I'd ever consider interjecting into a conversation, but others? I'll take the Fifth.
Additionally, characters from other of Locke's series - the ruthless Donovan Creed and investigator Dani Ripper - show up here in supporting roles.
This one also is filled with way more analogies that I typically want to see, but here again, there are a few corkers, to-wit:
"...skittish as a 12-point buck at an NRA convention."
"...cautious as a porcupine wiping its ass."
"By the time they pull her off me, I've suffered more cuts than the New England Patriots' August roster."
And my personal favorite, "...getting more action than Anthony Weiner's keyboard."
Long story short? If you want to give this series a try, start with the first and go from there if you like that one.
I have read all 3 Dr. Gideon Box books and and have found them all very good. His bedside manner reminds me of an X-rated Dr. House of the TV show House. Very good.
I sure didn't know what I was getting into when I started reading this story! At first, I found it very humorous. Dr. Gideon Box, cardiothoracic/cardiopulmonary pediatric surgeon, 40 years old, considers himself the best in the world. Trudy Lake, a Kentucky country girl, 21 years old, father on trial for drug trafficking and first degree murder and who tried to hang Dr. Box; her sister also tried to kill Dr. Box, who would have been her fifth murder victim. Did Dr. Box say that Trudy came with some family baggage? Trudy comes to Manhattan and lives with Dr. Box in his penthouse condo on Columbus Circle, getting paid $10,000 per month for two years. And, as far as Trudy's baggage, well, it's enough to fill two duffle bags! Bruce Luce, hospital administrator, interrupts a potential love-fest between Gideon and Trudy, reminding Gideon of their audition/interview with TV hostess Jane Fain. While Jane detests the idea of using Gideon as an enticement of women followers, she refers him to another morning show host. That turns into a fiasco and he and Trudy run off the set while Gideon takes a call from Donovan Creed, an assassin. Creed's daughter has been pronounced brain dead and he wants Dr. Box to go to Sensory Medical facility to restore his daughter's brain function! And then there is the private fundraiser dinner where Trudy Lake has taken all the BS from the high and mighty hostess and gives her a picture perfect right cross and the hostess drops on her a.., I mean backside! Again, Dr. Box and Trudy race away from a very, very embarrassing scenic view of the hostess! It's not too further into this story when actions get a little too obscene for my taste. I stopped reading at 35 percent. It's too vulgar for me ... especially when I think the author is getting too much of a kick out of his witty writing ideas. Sorry ... I guess it's time to give up reading anything else from this author. I didn't read his "Casting Call" and "Teacher, Teacher" based on the reviews from previous fans. I did read and review "Promise You Won't Tell," a Private Investigator Dani Ripper novel which I liked very much. But his most current novels are a totally different experience.
Outside the Box, the third in the Dr. Gideon Box series, by John Locke, provides not only a decent amount of entertainment for his usual low "early bird purchaser" price of $0.99, but goes on to provide a ray of hope for future Donovan Creed titles, given the bleak ending of the last title in that series, Because We Can. How? Sorry... spoilers. I can't share that.
What I can share is that Locke's narrative stays with Dr. Box, who further distinguishes himself as a different type of character from Donovan Creed in personality in this installment, about half the time. Box shares narrative duties with Trudy Lake, the woman whom Dr. Box spent the entire second book in his series meeting.
The threads that have been left dangling from several Locke books begin to get rounded up here, moving the plot-elements along, as well as planting a few more for future installments.
There's nothing here in Outside the Box that will change the minds of those who have already decided they don't care for Locke's writing. However, those whose minds are not made up, or who are already among Locke's OOUs, will find this to be a pleasant, if not perfect, installment to his ever-growing canon of entertainments.
Reading some of the reviews, yes, Dr. Box is vulgar and yes, this book is not for people who can't handle bad language. But when it is in context, used by someone with the personality as our favorite "Bad Doctor," what would we expect? This is typical Dr. Box. It starts off with craziness and ends with craziness, and in the middle is filled with, of course, - more craziness! This is what I love about Box and Locke. The book is just fun all around, laughs throughout, and the pictures these scenes put in your head are priceless! There is nothing not to love when you can spend a day in pure bliss, with a smile on your face, forgetting all the problems in your life. As with all of Locke's books, there are cross-over characters and story lines that are advancing throughout his different series- more fun little gems along the way. Oh, the world must be so much fun in John Locke's brain! Thanks again for another great read.
What wild and unpredictable characters! This is one wild and amazing book - there isn't one page for you to take a breather! Locke's writing style is so terrific that you just glide through his books - the words flowing with the non-stop action. If you've read any of the Dr. Gideon Box novels you'll be thankful to know that, in Outside The Box, the Box character hasn't improved any - but that's what keeps these books so fun and entertaining. The hard part of a John Locke novel is having to wait for him to write a new book - hurry John, hurry!
I downloaded this book because I'd hurt my back and needed to lie down and rest ,my concentration level was that of a gnat so I thought this would do. It does require a lot of will power to keep on reading this drivel, I assume outside the box refers to the fact most of the book is without Dr box but is about Trudy his girlfriend, it's a pity because the original box novel has a good character in box who is like Dr House on speed.
Another irreverent sexy comedy from Locke. You've heard of the Marvel Universe, the DC universe or even the J.A. Konrath universe? This is part of the John Locke universe. Dr. Gideon Box, Emmett Love, Dani Ripper and Donovan Creed of course. Every novel is connected to another. It's truly amazing where the pieces fit into the giant John Locke puzzle. This is a very good piece.
I believe all of John Locke's books are out of the box. This character is a Doctor Box who saves and kille alot of people, but he has fallen in love and really gets screwed up. Trudy, his love, is a unique character that adds to the story, but I still like Donavan Creed the best, althought I wouldn't mind reading more about Trudy.
Like all Locke novels (with the exception of one true stinker that I don't entirely blame him for), I read this novel in one sitting. Aside from one lull, it was quick and witty the whole way through. Not the best Locke novel I've read, but even that's better than most other authors.
I just love all of his books. They are so outlandishly funny with great twists. John has a unique was of tying his characters together throughout his different series. I can hardly wait until his next books come out. They are all such quick reads that I am secretly begging for more and soon!
Great read if... you enjoyed the others in the series, short books, quick reads, fun writing, exciting scenes, drama, great humor, dry humor, sarcasm, witty moments, and ongoing story lines with unsuspected endings.
Finished the series and the only thing I wish was different is that it ended. I wish the story could go on another book or two. I can't wait to read the next series.
Another great series. Dr.Box is smart and funny in his own way however he doesn't mess around. Tick him off and all I can say is R.I.P. to you. He's Dr and he's good at what he does.