Tag / Brad Meltzer

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Prolific Authors – Thirteen Books

It is time once again to take a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, I’m once again on pace to set a new record for books read in a year, so I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through August of this year. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 114 books, so there should be some movement over the past two years.  Without further ado, it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much over the years.  We continue today with the three authors I’ve read thirteen times, one more than two years ago.

The House of Last Resort – Christopher Golden

Christopher Golden

The prolific author first entered my bookshelf in 1998, thanks to a Buffy the Vampire Slayer tie-in, but his latest was an original concept.

Brad Meltzer

I was originally exposed to Meltzer through his comics work for DC, eventually trying out his prose work in 2002, when I read both The Millionaires and The First Counsel.  Since then, he has been a pretty steady presence as new work is released, last seen in 2022 with The Lightning Rod.

Bravo – Greg Rucka

Greg Rucka

I first became aware of Greg Rucka through his prestigious comic book work.  In 1999, I read the first entry in his Atticus Kodiak series, Keeper.  I followed up with the next three entries the following year, bringing my up to date with his work.  From that point on, I picked up each of his original works as they were released, including three more entries in the Kodiak series, three novels based on his Queen & Country comic book series, one standalone work, and, most recently, the two books in the Jad Bell series.

by admin

Prolific Authors – 13 Books

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, since I’ve far surpassed my reading output of any year on record, I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through October. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 118 books, so there could be some movement over the past two years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  Today, we continue with the two authors I’ve read a total of thirteen times, an increase of one over the past two years.

The President’s Shadow – Brad Meltzer

Brad Meltzer

I was originally exposed to Meltzer through his comics work for DC, eventually trying out his prose work in 2002, when I read both The Millionaires and The First Counsel.  Since then, he has been a pretty steady presence as new work is released, last seen in 2022 with The Lightning Rod.

Greg Rucka

I first became aware of Greg Rucka through his prestigious comic book work.  In 1999, I read the first entry in his Atticus Kodiak series, Keeper.  I followed up with the next three entries the following year, bringing my up to date with his work.  From that point on, I picked up each of his original works as they were released, including three more entries in the Kodiak series, three novels based on his Queen & Country comic book series, one standalone work, and, most recently, the two books in the Jad Bell series.

 

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Book 18 (of 52) – The Lightning Rod

The Lightning Rod – Brad Meltzer

Brad Meltzer returns with his first adult work of fiction since 2018.  The Lightning Rod starts with the death of a reservist Colonel, and the military calls in one of their former morticians to work on him for his funeral.  When some mysterious figures show up for the funeral, Zig, said mortician, decides to dig deeper and try to figure out what is going on.  Meanwhile, Nola conducts her own investigation while trying to stay one step ahead of her twin brother, who has teamed up with Zig.

Truth be told, when I first saw the cover of this book, which declares it “A Zig & Nola Novel,” my first question was “who the hell are Zig & Nola?”  It has been a long four years since Meltzer released the first entry in this series and I had very little memory of these characters.  Because of that, it took me a while to get in to this one, but the action eventually picks up enough to carry the reader along.  This is now the thirteenth Brad Meltzer novel that I’ve read, not counting his comics work, and I am looking forward to the next one, assuming I live long enough.

by admin

Prolific Authors – 12 Books

Way back in December of 2011 (and again every other December since), we’ve taken a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  This year, since I’ve far surpassed my reading output of any year on record, I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into those books I’ve read through August. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 60 books from 54 different authors. There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  Today, we continue with the two authors I’ve read 12 times.

Christopher Golden

The prolific author first entered my bookshelf in 1998, thanks to a Buffy the Vampire Slayer tie-in.  Eleven more of those over the following seven years leave him here.

Brad Meltzer

I was originally exposed to Meltzer through his comics work for DC, but eventually tried out his novels work in 2002, when I read both The Millionaires and The First Counsel.  Since then, he has been a pretty steady presence as new work is released, last seen in 2018 with The Escape Artist, with a new entry due out in March.

by jim

The Decade In Books

The 2010s have drawn to a close and its time to take a look back at the previous decade. Today, we move on to books, specifically the 229 books I read between 2010 and 2019. This decade coincides completely with my starting the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge, which I have never really come close to completing.

2015 was my best year, with 31 books completed.  2010 was by far the worst year in terms of finished books, with only 7.  Over the course of 10 years, those 229 books totaled over 77,000 pages.


152 different authors contributed to the books I’ve read this decade, 35 of which I’ve read multiple times.  The ghost writer for Richard Castle leads the way and is the only author I read more than 10 offerings from over the last 10 years.  The most surprising entry is Erle Stanley Gardner, who passed away in 1970. Continue reading →

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Prolific Authors 2019

Way back in December of 2011 (and again in the Decembers of 2013, 2015, and 2017), we took a look at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school. Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 48 books from 50 different authors. There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span. Once again, we will be limiting ourselves to the now 70 authors from whom I have read more than one book.

 

Author Name Current Total 2017 Total Difference
Nancy Holder 16 15 1

Nancy Holder adds 1 new book over the past 2 years to maintain her lead.

Richard Castle 15 14 1

The writer (or writers) using the nom de plume of the main character from the television show Castle sees a slight increase, despite the show being off the air for well over 3 years now.

Stephen King 13 12 1
Greg Rucka 13 13 0
Christopher Golden 12 12 0
Brad Meltzer 12 11 1

Very little movement in the next tier the past 2 years.

Jeffery Deaver 11 8 3

We round out the double digits with Deaver, who will be going up again soon, as I’m currently reading one of his books. Continue reading →

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Book 11 (of 52) – The Escape Artist

The Escape Artist – Brad Meltzer

Brad Meltzer returns with his first solo work since 2015.  The Escape Artist tells the tale of a military mortician who teams up with the army’s artist in residence, who he knew when she was a child, to figure out what, or who, caused a plane crash that killed a friend of the President.  Can they figure out the truth before the past comes back to haunt, or kill, them?

Meltzer leaves behind his Culper Ring series to focus instead on two new protagonists, who are connected by an event in their past.  Meltzer again weaves obscure historical facts in to his tale, this time about the magician, John Wilkie, who once ran the Secret Service.

This is the 12th Brad Meltzer novel that I’ve read and I am looking forward to the next one, whether it takes 2 or 3 years.

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Book 7 (of 52) – The House Of Secrets

The House of Secrets – Brad Meltzer and Tod Goldberg

Brad Meltzer is back, along with new co-writer Tod Goldberg, for this mystery about the children on a television host who was secretly working for the government.  When he dies in a car accident, his daughter tries to piece together her, and his, past.

Meltzer, along with Goldberg, takes a break from his Culper Ring series with this work, though star Beecher White makes a brief appearance.  Together, they spin a tale of intrigue that feels like Meltzer’s work.  I look forward to further collaborations between these two, should they choose to work together again.

by admin

Book 22 (of 52) – Dead Even

Dead Even - Brad Meltzer

Dead Even – Brad Meltzer

Brad Meltzer’s second novel, Dead Even, revolves around a married couple who find themselves on opposite sides of a court case, with each one being threatened with the death of the other if they do not win the case.  After they finally confide in each other, they manage to survive the ordeal, though not without casualties.

Somehow, when I first discovered Meltzer’s work in the early 2000s thanks to his run with DC comics, I missed this book.  When I stumbled upon it earlier this year, I bought it and decided to rectify that decision.  While enjoyable, it certainly is missing some of the polish and sheen that comes with Meltzer’s later work.

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Prolific Authors 2015

bookshelfWay back in December of 2011 and again in December of 2013, we took a look back at the authors I have read the most, dating back to high school.  Since our last check-in, I’ve read an additional 51 books from 42 different authors.  There shouldn’t be much movement over the past 2 years, but it’s time to take another look and see if my “favorite” authors have changed much in that time span.  Once again, we will be limiting ourselves to the now 54 authors from whom I have read more than one book.

Author Name Current Total 2013 Total Difference
Nancy Holder 13 13 0
Greg Rucka 13 12 1

Greg Rucka moves into a tie for my most-prolific author, thanks to his latest which I read last year.  Assuming he stays on the same schedule, he should take the lead by himself sometime next year.

Christopher Golden 12 12 0
Stephen King 12 10 2

After years of being ignored, Stephen King adds 2 new titles to his total over the past 2 years.

Richard Castle 9 5 4
Brad Meltzer 9 8 1

The top 5 rounds out with Brad Meltzer and Richard Castle, who put up the largest increase in the last 2 years. Continue reading →