Book Review: Gone Tomorrow by Lee Child

Gone Tomorrow is the thirteenth book in the Jack Reacher series by  Lee Child. Reacher, an ex-military personnel, finds himself on the New York subway at 2am faced with the scenario of being in a carriage with a suicide bomber. Does he want to intervene because he truly cares for human kind, or whether it’s what he’s been trained to do, or even because he wants to save his own skin, it’s not clear and perhaps not relevant. What he does next leads him to discover a government conspiracy, one which was meant to be locked forever. Finding himself in a position where his own government would prefer him dead, Reacher needs friends he can trust and ones that won’t kill him. A series of twists and turns puts Reacher into a corner where he either kills or be killed.

Lee Child jumps straight into the thick of the excitement from the first page. He introduces us to the main character, Jack Reacher, from the outset and how he recognises a person that matches the criteria of a suicide bomber. The following few chapters reveals a a riveting sequence of events that not only captivates the reader but leaves them wanting more.

After the pulsating, attention grabbing start the story addresses the historical background of the plot. This takes a slow, meandering look at how and why the characters that are revealed later on serve a purpose in the story. unfortunately this resembles a history lesson; one which not all may appreciate. It also deflects the good work of the absorbing start and potentially puts the reader in 'skim-mode'. Having read the book from cover to cover you do realise later on that the gradual revelations are necessary to the final outcome but shouldn't mean that the reader has to wait until half-way through the book for the next significant event. The second half, however, is well written and does the opening few chapters justice. We discover more about the main character and his purpose in the story. Reacher's quest for answers is met by many twists and turns, always leaving the reader guessing until the very end.

A worthy read and despite the slow start Gone Tomorrow finishes strong with an enthralling story that will leave you wanting more from Jack Reacher.

Synopsis:

Suicide bombers are easy to spot. They give out all kinds of tell-tale signs. Mostly because they're nervous. By definition they're all first-timers. Riding the subway in New York at two o'clock in the morning, Reacher knows the twelve giveaway signs to look out for. Watching one of his fellow-passengers, he becomes sharply aware: one by one, she ticks off every bulletpoint on his list. So begins the new heartstopping new thriller starring today's most admired action hero, the gallant and enigmatic loner Jack Reacher.

From the big squeeze to the big freeze

The year of 2007 will be remembered as the worse financial crisis since the Great Depression of the 1930s. The fresh prosperity and optimism that comes with the turn of the year has been almost completely wiped out by a blankets of white snow. The UK and many parts of northern Europe are seeing unprecedented winter weather conditions.

Snow has gripped the UK bringing most parts to a cold standstill. Prolonged snow and freezing temperatures has   already crippled and the lasting cold temperatures will only turn the snow into perilous ice. With roads, rail and air travel already hit by the adverse weather the UK is bracing itself for more chaos. Many thousands of schools around the country will remain shut for the rest of the week, shops and business will be ineffective and everything will gradually grind down to halt.

Funnily enough, the extent of the damage will be decided by the salt and grit supplies. Many drivers across the UK have been left frustrated and stranded due to the roads not all the roads being gritted. The supplies running low, it's only a matter of time before either the cold weather lingers until next week or the roads aren't being cleared quickly enough. Some say the 'green shoot's' of the recovery were appearing, but with the economy taking a freeze like it is, it seems as if the global recession has not quite left the UK just yet!

With temperatures like this you'd be forgiven for thinking that this was Russia.

Lack of Compassion

Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house not even a creature was stirring, not even a mouse. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St Nicholas would soon be there. 

It's finally that time of year once again. Tomorrow is an day that has been many weeks in the planning; culminating in a bravado of gift exchanging, turkey indulging and falling asleep watching the Queen's Christmas message. In Christianity Christianity celebrates the birth of Jesus, but it's appeal of bringing families together is a social aspect that can be celebrated by many. It is perhaps easy to take the 25th of December for granted, something that arrives each year with the usual expected aplomb. Sometimes we forget those who aren't fortunate enough to celebrate Christmas with their families. Whether it be the man that sleeps rough outside the station, or the men and women fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan or even those who have no family we shouldn't take something that seems to be the 'norm' for granted.

For Akmal Shaikh, a British national, this Christmas may be his last. Mr Shaikh is currently sitting on death row in China after being found carrying 4 Kg of heroin into the country. It is believed that he suffers from a bipolar disorder and lacked the mental capacity to perform the pre-meditated offence. To sentence someone to death seems a barbaric act when the defences in the case aren't properly heard. His appeal was rejected by China's Supreme People's Court and a date of execution was set for the 29th December.

This case has received overwhelming support by campaigners and even the PM, Gordon Brown, has stepped in in the hope of reversing the decision of execution. To date, all these efforts have been unsuccessful. An injustice to a person where had he been in any other country he would have been dealt another fate. If the situation doesn't change Mr Shaikh will never see his wife and three children again. So next time you're tucking into your turkey or just celebrating a joyous day, try to also think about those not lucky enough to do the same.

With that thought in mind would like to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!

Sources:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/8425354.stm

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/asia/article6964839.ece

http://www.reprieve.org.uk/2009_12_21_PUBAkmalappealdenied

A Minute for Madeleine

Madeleine disappeared on 03 May 2007 while on holiday with her family in Portugal - Here is a special message

Brace Yourself: The Androids are Coming

The Android mobile operating system has been around for only a few years, but is quickly turning into a real powerhouse in the mobile phone market. It was initially developed by Google and later the Open Handset Alliance. Based on open source software, the progression of Android into the tough mobile phone market has been greatly aided by challenging developers to create innovative and exciting Android Applications.

With the Android concept only coming into existence in Nov 2007, the mobile world saw the first ever Android powered mobile phone, the T-mobile G1 (dubbed the 'Google Phone'), at the end of Oct 2008. The G1 was an unprecedented device. Backed by the pedestal that the giant, Google, is and with it all the ensuing rich Google technology it possess, Android was ready to challenge the competitors. Breaking into any market is not easy but plunging into the mobile phone market where other companies have been established for years is no easy task. The G1, however, were primed with everything they could ask for to compete with the likes of Nokia, Sony Ericson and the protagonist: Apple. And that is infact the market the G1 belonged in, the smart phone market (what is a smart phone), and the success of Apple iPhone was it hoped to emulate. Packed with the ability "to you touch, tap, swipe and scroll your way through all the coolest applications" it had a tough task ahead.

The G1 phone perhaps did not live up to the name of the 'iPhone killer'. A big let-down was undoubtedly attributed to there being limited Apps for the G1 compared to Apple's huge Apps store and also it’s synthetic chunky build. The iPhone also outperformed the G1 when it came down to media playback and build quality. A valiant try nonentheless.

Since G1's introduction Apple have released a 3Gs version of the iPhone. Whilst Android has, quite remarkedly, exploded onto the scene, with succesive release since the same milestone. The plethora of Android handsets released in a short time span showed successive improvements. The the open source nature of the OS a big contributing factor to this.

There have been eight Android handsets on the market since the arrival of the technology two years ago. A staggering further 10 handsets have been announced/rumoured for the next quarter. This can only emphasise the intention of Android and the phone manufacturers willing to adopt the technology. It's also a sign of rising popularity and perhaps the prospect of finally producing a mobile handset that will become crowned as the 'iPhone killer'. HTC is at the forefront of Android phones having released the first ever Android device (T-mobile G1) it has continued with successful smart phone devices accumulating in the most recent one: HTC Hero.

HTC Hero

Following it's Europe release in July 2009 the handset has made great in-roads, grabbing the Phone of the Year and the Gadget of the Year acolade at the T3 Gadget Awards. Coming as a surprise to some, the HTC Hero has for a good while been compared to iPhone's repertoire, and whilst for many, would seem to be equal to the iPhone's brilliance others would say that the Hero surpasses the iPhone in every area. The Hero owes it's success to the new Sense technology, which is something that can’t wholly be described in words. It needs to be observed:

Android marches on to stamp it's newly found authority with the highly awaited, and elusive, Motorola Droid phone. Motorola has been responsible for releasing adverts specifically promoting a mobile device that not only is rich in features but also makes up for the iPhone’s shortfalls.

Moto Droid

High-speed Web browsing, voice-activated search, customizable large screen, access to thousands of Android applications and hundreds of widgets are just a small selection of the selling points of the Droid. A sturdy handset and despite it being thin Motorola have managed to fit a QWERTY slide keyboard to accompany the touch keyboard. The Droid makes it the first handset to be preloaded with Android 2.0 technology and delivers a quicker and slicker feel to the OS than previous Android versions. This notable feature is matched by a 5MP camera with dual LED flash; something the iPhone lacks. The signs are clear that this phone was built with the iPhone in mind: to match it and surpass it in every section.

Droid Fact Sheet and Specifications

The ball is now in Apple’s court. If they wish to maintain their dominance in the smart phone industry they will undoubtedly have to produce something that can be said to be an ‘Android killer’; for that appears to be the new benchmark. Apple cannot surely rest on their laurels with their achievements thus far and their vast array of iPhone applications. Android technology is always evolving, it’s open source technology has given it a head-start over Apple’s.

Will iPhone’s longstanding reputation save it or will the exciting offerings of Android technology swoon users over to the new ‘iPhone’? Only time will tell.