Tag / Lee Goldberg

by admin

Book 3 (of 52) – Mr. Monk Goes To Germany

Lee Goldberg – Mr. Monk Goes to Germany

When Dr. Kroger heads to a conference in Germany, Monk suddenly finds himself unable to function.  He decides the only way forward is to head to Germany himself so he can continue his sessions.  While there, he comes across a man with six fingers, who he immediately suspects of having murdered his wife. But when a real-life murder takes place, Monk and Natalie work with the local police to find the killer in exchange for their help in finding the six-fingered man.

Mr. Monk Goes to Germany is the sixth of 18 novels based on the USA Network dramedy that ran from 2002 to 2009 from series writer Lee Goldberg. This outing once again over exaggerates Monk’s reactions everyday occurrences way beyond what would be seen in the show and adds in a pair of local German detectives who are thinly veined copies of Stottlemeyer and Disher.  I’ve got twelve more of these books waiting for me and, unfortunately, they seem to be trending in the wrong direction.

by admin

2025: The Year In Books

As 2025 comes to a close, my fifth full year of remote working, I managed to once again surpass my previous records by completing a whopping 66 books, five books more than my previous high set last year and my fifth consecutive year completing the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge.  I completed the challenge in mid-October and surpassed last year’s total in early-December.  I read 25,279 pages, by far my highest total of all time and just the third time I’ve managed to surpass 20.000 pages.

Of those books, only two were non-fiction and, of the remaining 64 novels, only six were tied to a TV show, either as the source material or as a tie-in.  None of the books came out of my dwindling “to-read” drawer, with two hard covers, three paperbacks, 61 e-books and no audiobooks.  I was forced to switch my library card from the Chicago Public Library to my local library, which slowed me down a little but still led to 55 of the books I consumed throughout the year.

Over 71% of the books I read this year were by authors I had read before. The 21 authors that I read for the first time this year were:

Coco Mellors Aisling Rawle Stephen Graham Jones
Liz Moore Natalie Sue Kaliane Bradley
Max Brooks Mary Shelley Paul Tremblay
Nathaniel Hawthorne Kelly Bishop Tanya Pearson
Liane Moriarty Benjamin Stevenson Ashley Winstead
Ashley Elston Alison Espach Alice Feeney
Ali Land Lindsay Jamieson Jeneva Rose

Karin Slaughter, Laura Lippman, Kathy Reichs, Lee Goldberg, Stephen King, Emily Henry, Elin Hilderbrand, and Rebecca Forster were the authors that I read multiple titles from during 2025, accounting for nearly 35% of my total.

22 of the books I read were released this year, while none were released during the 20th century.  Two came from the 19th century, with the oldest first published in 1818.

Finally, the breakdown by month, which was fairly consistent across the entire year. Continue reading →

by admin

Prolific Authors Wrap Up

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, I’ve far surpassed my previous record for books read in a year, so I thought it would be nice to take a deeper dive into all of 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.  Today, we wrap things up with a look back at the 109 authors I’ve read more than once.

Largest Increase (since 2023)

Pieces of Her – Karin Slaughter

Karin Slaughter – 7
Stephen King – 6
Laura Lippman – 6
Jeffery Deaver – 4
Lee Goldberg – 4
Elin Hilderbrand – 4
Kathy Reichs – 4

Largest Increase (since 2011)

Solitude Creek – Jefferu Deaver

Karin Slaughter – 19
Jeffery Deaver – 18
Erle Stanley Gardner – 14
Richard Castle – 13
Stephen King – 12

by admin

Book 45 (of 52) – Mr. Monk In Outer Space

Lee Goldberg – Mr. Monk in Outer Space

When the creator of a legendary cult science fiction show is murdered outside of a hotel convention center, Monk is brought in to solve the case.  Thanks to some unexpected help from his brother Ambrose, Monk is able to tie this murder to another case and identifies the true killer.

Mr. Monk in Outer Space is the fifth of 18 novels based on the USA Network dramedy that ran from 2002 to 2009 from series writer Lee Goldberg. Once again told from the perspective of Natalie, the book over exaggerates Monk’s reactions to some everyday things beyond what would be seen in the show but also hits close to home as an attendee at many comic cons in the past.  I’ve got thirteen more of these books waiting for me, which I’m sure I’ll get to sooner rather than later.

by admin

Prolific Authors – Four 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 fourteen authors I’ve read two times, up four from two years ago.

Scott Adams

The now-cancelled creator of Dilbert, who can’t seem to help himself from spouting racist takes on Twitter, Adams used his famous character to write a number of humorous business books, the most recent of which I read in 2012.

Suzanne Collins

A return to the world of the Hunger Games brought Collins back to my reading list in 2024.

James Ellroy

The author of the L.A. Quartet, which I finished off with The Big Nowhere in 2014.

Gillian Flynn

The former Entertainment Weekly writer turned into one of my favorite authors, though she still hasn’t written a new full-length work since 2012’s Gone Girl.

The Book of Lost and Found – Lucy Foley

Lucy Foley

A recent favorite, Foley, a New York Times best seller, has shown up annually since 2021 until this year, although there are still five months to go.

Diana G. Gallagher

The author, who passed away in 2021, can credit the world of Buffy the Vampire Slayer for all four of her entries, the most recent of which I read in 2011.

Lee Goldberg

A writer for the Monk television series who went on to pen a series of tie-in novels about the show.

Megan Goldin

The former Reuters correspondent first appeared on my radar in 2021 with her debut, The Escape Room.

The Blue Hour – Paula Hawkins

Paula Hawkins

The best-selling author of The Girl on the Train, her latest novel was released last year and read in early 2025.

Greer Hendricks

After spending two decades as an editor at Simon & Schuster, she has teamed up with Sarah Pekkanen for four novels, which I’ve read one annually starting in 2020 until this year.

Grady Hendrix

Winner of a 2018 Bram Stoker Award, the horror novelist debuted on my reading list with The Final Girl Support Group in 2021.

Carrie Soto Is Back – Taylor Jenkins Reid

Taylor Jenkins-Reid

I first came her work thanks to her smash Daisy Jones & The Six.  Her latest is currently on my waitlist at the library, so she will continue to move up this list.

Minka Kent

Two new reads in 2024, The Stillwater Girls and Unmissing, push her up this list.

John Vornholt

Three fourths of his works that I’ve read come from the world of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

by admin

Book 25 (of 52) – Mr. Monk And The Two Assistants

Mr. Monk and the Two Assistants – Lee Goldberg

Monk learns that Sharona has moved back to San Francisco after a chance encounter in an emergency room after Julie breaks her arm in a soccer game.  Fearing for her job, Natalie tries to convince Monk to take the case of Sharona’s husband, who is in jail in Los Angeles having been charged with murder.  A quick trip overwhelms Monk’s senses, so he returns home hoping to make a breakthrough remotely.  Another case, looking like an alligator attack, takes over Monk’s time, at least until another consultant, brought in by Disher, solves both murders, leading to the arrest of both Sharona and Natalie.

Mr. Monk and the Two Assistants is the fourth of 18 novels based on the USA Network dramedy that ran from 2002 to 2009 from series writer Lee Goldberg. Once again told from the perspective of Natalie, the story shares the bones of the plot, with Sharona returning and causing friction with Natalie, with an episode from the final season of Monk, aired two years later.  With the remaining fourteen books waiting for me, hopefully things start to gel more as the series goes forward.

by admin

Book 3 (of 52) – Mr. Monk and The Blue Flu

Mr. Monk and The Blue Flu – Lee Goldberg

When negotiations with the police union go south leading to an unofficial strike, the mayor offers Monk his badge back and promotes him to captain, leading a rag-tag group of detectives who have also been rehired despite some issues that led to them losing their jobs in the first place.  His task: find the  Golden Gate Strangler and deal with other murders that come up along the way.  While Monk and his team crack the Golden Gate Strangler case and track down another murderer, the real police return when one of their own is gunned down.  Working again with Stottlemeyer and Disher, Monk helps to solve that case, but once again loses his job in the process.

Mr. Monk and the Blue Flu is the third of 18 novels based on the USA Network dramedy that ran from 2002 to 2009 from series writer Lee Goldberg. Once again told from the perspective of Natalie, the story shares the bones of the plot with an episode from Monk‘s final season, aired two years later.  With the remaining fifteen books waiting for me, hopefully things start to gel more as the series goes forward.

by admin

2024: The Year In Books

As 2024 comes to a close, my fourth full year of remote working, I managed to once again surpass my previous records by completing a whopping 61 books, two books more than my previous high set last year and my fourth consecutive year completing the 52 books in 52 weeks challenge.  I completed the challenge in mid-November and surpassed last year’s total in mid-December.  I read 22,622 pages, by far my highest total of all time and just the second time I’ve managed to surpass 20.000 pages.

Of those books, only five were non-fiction and, of the remaining 56 novels, only five were tied to a TV show, either as the source material or as a tie-in.  None of the books came out of my dwindling “to-read” drawer, with two hard covers, two paperbacks, 53 e-books and no audiobooks.  I continued to take advantage of my library card, which helped me procure 46 of the books I consumed throughout the year.

Over 69% of the books I read this year were by authors I had read before. The 19 authors that I read for the first this year were:

Jessica Knoll Isabella Maldonado Kathleen McGurl Lisa Taddeo
Lisa Jewell Millie Bobby Brown J.M. Dillard Lee Goldberg
Avery Cunningham Margot Douaihy R.F. Kuang Jessica Simpson
Jeffrey Lang Dayton Ward Holly Wilson Karin Smirnoff
Walter Beede Michael Connelly Rob Harvilla

Karin Slaughter, Jeffery Deaver, Laura Lippman, Elin Hilderbrand, Jessica Knoll, Michael Connelly, Minka Kent, Lee Goldberg, Rebecca Forster, Stephen King, and Sarah Pekkanen were the authors that I read multiple titles from during 2024.

17 of the books I read were released this year, while only three of them were released last century, with the oldest first published in 1997.

Continue reading →

by admin

Book 49 (of 52) – Mr. Monk Goes To Hawaii

Mr. Monk Goes To Hawaii – Lee Goldberg

When Nataile heads to Hawaii for her best friend’s wedding, Monk, afraid of being left alone, tags along.  After stopping the wedding, Monk gets involved with a local murder, helping the police solve multiple other crimes along the way.  While Natalie tries to enjoy her time away, Monk focuses on the murder and on proving a famous television psychic is a phony.

Mr. Monk Goes to Hawaii, the second of 18 novels based on the USA Network dramedy that ran from 2002 to 2009 from series writer Lee Goldberg.  Once again told from the perspective of Natalie, the book tried to stay close to feel of the show, but still felt just a little off.  With the remaining 16 books waiting for me, hopefully things start to gel more as the series goes forward.

by admin

Book 41 (of 52) – Mr. Monk Goes To The Firehouse

Mr. Monk Goes To The Firehouse – Lee Goldberg

While Monk is staying with Natalie while his house is being fumigated, he is hired by Julie to find out who killed the dog at the local firehouse.  HIs investigation leads him to two other, human murders and determines the same man is behind all three.  The only problem is going to be finding the evidence to prove it.

Monk was a dramedy that ran for eight seasons on the USA Network from 2002 to 2009.  Starting in 2006, series writer Lee Goldberg started a series of original novels based on the show.  Mr. Monk Goes to the Firehouse is the first entry in that series.  Told from the perspective of Natalie, the book stayed close to feel of the show, but still felt just a little off.  There are 18 more books in the series, so hopefully that starts to gel more as it goes forward.