Divine Justice (A Guest Review)
Published June 4, 2010
Well, my reading peeps, today marks the final guest post by Jeanette Morris in her series of man book reviews. Last month, she offered up her thoughts on Patrick Lee’s “The Breach.” In March, it was Michael Connelly’s “The Scarecrow.” Today, she wraps things up with “Divine Justice” by David Baldacci. And let me say THANKS, Jeanette, for delving us into the world of your husband’s reading material. It’s been fun. You’ve been brave. We’re the better for it… Right? 
Divine Justice (2009) (# 4 in the Camel Club series) by David Baldacci – Ex Viet Nam sniper and former government assassin Oliver Stone (no, not the film director) commits a pair of “necessary” assassinations and goes into hiding in Divine, a coal-mining town in rural America. Not where he intended to run, but where he ended up after rescuing a kid getting mugged on the train to New Orleans. Stone soon discovers that something is awry in Divine—something equally as dangerous as he encountered in his previous life as a hired killer. It’s a “Fugitive” knock off in ways, as Stone is always just one step away from his nemesis, Macklin Hayes, who is obsessed with finding Stone and eliminating him. Also looking for Stone are his friends, members of the former “Camel Club,” who know that Hayes is on Stone’s trail and want to find him first. In the meantime, Stone is busy falling in love with the bus kid’s mother and digging into the mystery surrounding the string of murders in Divine. This plot is actually one that kept me turning pages. The characters are interesting and the dialogue realistic. Of the three man-thing books, I enjoyed this one (mostly) and could actually relate to the female characters, who were brainy and beautiful, but not quite the super-heroines of the other two stories. Baldacci is a good storyteller and I might find myself reading another of his books . . . the next time I’m sick in Las Vegas on a rainy afternoon.
All right, guys and gals. What are YOUR reading plans for this summer? And might they include Divine Justice?
This commercial parody from Baldacci’s website made me (Mary) laugh!
Here’s a brief explanation from it’s creator– nateonjesuslane (you tube): “ This is a parody of an ad that I saw for one of Mr. Baldacci’s books, not a parody of him or his writing. The ad said, ‘David Baldacci is a master of plot, character, and dialogue’ which seems like a selling point for a book, but really, when you think about it, that should be a prerequisite for any published author.”
Jeanette Morris is a freelance writer and editor who has helped over 30 clients achieve their publishing dreams. You can find her at any of these places: www.firstimpressionswriting.com www.worddivas.com www.ministryofwords.wordpress.com
Tags: book parody, Camel Club series, David Baldacci's books, Divine Justice book review, Editor Jeanette Morris
06.5.2010 / 4:47 am
Man, I hope all those glowing reviews will be said about my work someday! Where do you find these clips, Mary? Hilarious.
Nice review, Jeanette! As my dear husband says, I read everything, so if I come across this book, I’d be delighted to read it.
As to Mary’s question, my summer reading list just keeps getting longer and longer. I’m currently waiting for someone to finish “Lament” and get it back to the library. =) http://daniellaindie.wordpress.com/book-list-2010/
06.5.2010 / 7:38 am
Dani, your reading list is HUGE (and rad). I admit I’ve not actually made a list–my goal is to get through The Idiot at the moment
. As to the youtube clip? David Baldacci has it up on his website–which I think is very cool. Authors with a sense of humor rank high on my “like” list. And I agree about Jeanette’s review. It intrigued me! But all of hers do. She’s an amazing writer…
06.5.2010 / 10:11 am
I enjoyed Divine Justice during a mental vacation recently. Great review, Jeanette. I agree with your evaluation and can I borrow a few more of Ken’s man books for some summer reading?
Other books lined up for the summer:
The Lights of Tenth Street by Shaunti Feldhahn
The Accidental Tourist by Anne Tyler
The Virgin of Bennington by Kathleen Norris
06.5.2010 / 4:28 pm
What can I say… I THRIVE on lists. In fact, I have a rather odd quirk: I’m addicted to Excel and it’s sweet little boxes that organize my life (at least on paper). XP
06.6.2010 / 1:18 pm
Thanks again, Mary, for the opportunity to invade your blogosphere and to contribute. It’s my pleasure to share my thoughts (and Ken’s books). I never imagined these “man-thing” novels would intrigue so many women.
Dani…Sue…thanks for the nice compliments (you too, Mary.) Let someone at the New York Times know about my work, okay? (LOL)
06.7.2010 / 7:44 am
Jeanette, my theory is that the “man-thing” novels are so intriguing to women because there’s a serious lack of “female-thing” novels which can hold their own on the same andrenaline-pumping level. Sad really. Not enough awesome female espionage action out there in fictiondom
. Again, thank you for joining in (and for giving me a blog break once a month). I’ve so appreciated it.
Dani: I admit to thriving on hand-written lists. But only when it comes to things I might forget. Which…is a lot. I’m notorious for getting up at 1am to jot notes in the dark (but not so good at reading them the next morning).
Mom, those books sound really interesting. Let me know how you like them…in other words, let me know if I should beg to borrow them
.
06.7.2010 / 10:17 am
wow..i mean , i never read anything from david baldacci! i wonder why, but i think i might read him soon.. ;p
06.11.2010 / 8:59 am
Thanks for stopping by, Darlyn! Everyone: this is a recent blog friend, and this is her blog:
http://darlynandbooks.blogspot.com/