Invisible armies - jon evans (4/5)

Exotic travel, international cartels, rogue French mercenaries and hackers - this potent blend comes together in Evans' capable hands to create his latest highly enjoyable novel. From the very beginning I found myself drawn into the story, following from India, through France then onto America with a cast of characters who leave you wanting to find out more at every twist and turn. And twist and turn the story does in a manner slightly reminiscent of a good Bond tale, with modern (read: not sexist) sensibilities. This is a solid, enjoyable romp of a book which would be enjoyed by anyone with a mind to adventure, travel of hacking - especially if you have a nice sunny beach to enjoy it on. Wait. Is that something happening in the tropical forest next to me? I must go and investigate...

Disclosure: Jon Evans is a friend of mine and a lovely chap he is to. That said I don't think that's coloured my review, especially since he didn't feature me in there as a cameo character unlike the best book in the world ever which for some reason is now out of print! Hmm. Guess I'm not the box office draw I thought I was.

Self - yann martel (5/5)

Having read Martel's very enjoyable Life of Pi a while back I was happy to find his latest in a Montreal second hand store. Turns out that synchronicity is relevant, as Martel is based in Montreal now as is a large chunk of this story of a boy who loses his parents, then one day wakes up as a woman. Martel writes with a sense of poignancy that grabs you and takes you underneath the skin of his main character. There is distance between the character and his/her life but over-ridingly a sense of joy and life. As she/he moves from place to place, person to person you get a sense of the slowness of life and growth as it can sometimes exist - a slowness that does not exist for the book, where every page pulls you forward to the next. A great book.

Blink - malcolm gladwell (4/5)

After reading the amazing Tipping Point, Gladwell's famous first book, I have been avidly waiting reading his latest. Having tackled the growth of information in social contexts, Gladwell now turns his incisive and explanatory mind to the subject of split-second judgements. That moment when you see someone and fall in love. The way you can prejudice your decisions from a glance. Why the Pepsi taste challenge could never be won by Coke. Every chapter offers a new set of stories backing up a central premise, and each story is fascinating and engagingly written. However at the end of the book I felt like I had eaten a light snack rather than something filling and satisfying. True, I now have a great set of stories to relate in marketing situations, but ultimately I was a bit disapointed. Still a must read book.