Where Tobie Sees Bad People

The Babylonian Codex by C.S. Graham
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I'm bummed there are only three of these. I guess they didn't totally catch on, but I found these mysteries very entertaining, and I like the characters. Some other reviewers didn't love them; that's fine. They worked for me. And the pacing is great, especially compared to the other books I'm slowly working my way through. The author (by whichever name she's using at the moment) is very good at making a thriller with exciting action that keeps you reading.

The hook in the series is the "remote viewing" that October can do, seeing things at a distance, maybe even out of time. It's not quite reliable, giving hints of nefarious activities going on without giving every detail needed to put a stop to it. It takes Jax and a few of his buddies to do the sleuthing and world traveling to track down the people doing the bad thing (here, it's political assassinations) before they get away with it. I'm enjoying how Jax is coming around on the ability Tobie has, starting to trust her more. A fourth book would have been awesome.

Sometimes when I read airport thrillers/beach reads/ bestsellers, I don't care too much about the characters, and the "exciting" part just falls flat. That happens even with big names, even when I'm actively trying to enjoy them. But I always connect with Candace Proctor's characters and want to know what's going on, what's in the next chapter. She's written a bunch of books, but I wish she could write twice as many. Alas.

Anyway, I came here from the regency mystery series she wrote. I still like those more, but these were almost as good, IMO. Recommended.

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Where Tobie Sees Bad Guys

The Solomon Effect by C.S. Graham
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This is the second of three books in a series written by Candice Proctor and Steven Harris under the name C. S. Graham. The premise is that Tobie Guinness, a young navy vet, is able to do "remote viewing" under certain circumstances. The CIA agent assigned to work with her from time to time finds it hard to believe she can do what she can do, even though his experience shows that she really can. And when there is something dangerous going on in the world with too few leads, her ability becomes really important.

In this novel, someone has floated a sunken German U-boat from the end of WWII, looking to take possession of something important on board. The details are sketchy, but Jax and Tobie learn they have only a few days to solve the riddle and track down whatever was on the submarine before something catastrophic occurs, and they are nearly on their own, being hunted the whole time by men with guns everywhere they go.

If you can accept this one rather fantastic premise, that Tobie can see and describe a scene somewhere distant, somewhere she's never been, the rest of the series is believably realistic in a "best-seller action thriller" kind of way. It's not meant to be fantasy (though even if it was, I'd be cool with it), but instead focuses on the way intelligence agencies really work, telling a dramatic and exciting story. Just with that one twist. I think it works great.

The pacing is very good, almost as good as C. S. Harris's (another Candice Proctor alias) Sebastian St. Cyr mysteries, and this also has likable, interesting, sympathetic characters. I'm gonna grab the third book, all the while lamenting the lack of books #4-infinity.

If you like fast-moving globe-trotting spy mysteries, you've gotta give these a look.

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Where Tobie Sees Too Much

The Archangel Project by C.S. Graham
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I don't often read thrillers; they're really hit or miss with me. And I started to think lately that I just don't really like them, with only a few exceptions, after finding so many similar novels not to my taste.

My new theory is that I've just been reading boring thrillers. *This* one was one was great, and I loved it.

I got to this series from Jane Austen--as so often happens. My love for P&P and S&S, etc., led me to the Jane Austen mysteries by Stephanie Barron. (Love them.) That led me to C.S. Harris and her regency mystery series with Sebastian St. Cyr. (Also great.) Then I learned that "C.S. Harris" was actually Candace Proctor, and that under another name (with a co-writer), she had written this series. This is book 1, and I was very entertained. I shouldn't be surprised, but I'll admit I was.

Like her Sebastian St. Cyr series, this book has a well-plotted mystery, excellent action, high stakes, fantastic pacing, and, crucially, characters I quickly learn to care about. TBH, I think that's where I find other books and authors of this genre miss the mark, at least for me--I usually don't care very much about the main characters. I can't say exactly how she has done it, mind you, what the secret ingredient is. I can just point to it as something that worked for me here, like in the other series. (Sebastian is cool in that one, and I adore Hero. His doctor friend is great, too, and there are several other recurring characters I enjoy.)

In this book, I find I really like October Guinness, who is really easy to root for. And it took a few more pages, but I warmed up to Jax Alexander, too, who was cool by the end. I'm psyched for sequels.

The plot: October (Tobie) is gifted at "remote viewing," and accidentally uncovers a conspiracy. The conspiracy involves powerful, violent men and women who want to kick off a war that would be costly and destructive in every possible way, and they need to silence her. From the first page, she is in danger and overmatched. Luckily, she's not helpless. She is intelligent and brave and has skills from her years in Iraq, and she also has friends. Later, she has the support of Jax, a CIA operative.

The feel and tone of the novel is familiar to me from her other series, but this is set in (near) modern day. (Phones and spy tech have changed so much in about 15 years!) I don't usually love stories set in the present, or near the present, but this was a lot of fun. It's just a matter of time before I track down the rest of the series and get myself caught up.

Recommended for people who like fun things.

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