All the Ms: MacDonalds and Macho Guys

MacDonald, George: George MacDonald produced classics! My mother read me Sir Gibbie. I read Phantastes. My favorite, however, is The Golden Key, which I review here.

MacDonald, Hector: The Mind Game is about, well, people playing mind games with each other. I read the first chapter because that’s the challenge here. I don’t care for this type of novel, and I disliked the narrator almost immediately. When I start shouting in my head, “Walk away!” to every character, I couldn't imagine going through 19 more chapters. 

MacDonald, John: Travis McGee mysteries. Hard-boiled with a tan Lothario-type narrator. As if Michael Weatherly’s Dinozzo was narrating a P.I. adventure. John MacDonald wrote The Executioners upon which the 1962--and 1991--movie Cape Fear was based, reminding me that Gregory Peck, in 1962, had a reputation for tough guy action roles though he went on to magnificently play Atticus Finch the same year.

MacDonald, Malcolm: Dancing on Snowflakes is a historical romance with a female heroine–proving that yes, men do write romances! 

MacDonald, Marianne: Death’s Autograph starts with an antique dealer, which is interesting, but also with a car stalking, which isn’t–for me. I’ve decided that a whole slew of readers apparently enjoy I could have almost been killed literature. And the book does have a gripping opening! 

MacDonald, Maryann: Odette’s Secrets is a book about a young Jewish girl during World War II written in free-verse. I must admit–I am one of those people who, ah, doesn't appreciate poetry. 

MacDonald, Patricia: Like John MacDonald and Ross MacDonald, Patricia MacDonald’s books appear to be suspense thrillers rather than mysteries. Cast into Doubt starts with a shooting at a convenience store. Unlike with police procedurals, the focus appears to be on the victims or family rather than the police. Not my style.

MacDonald, Siobhan: Speaking of which...there’s a genre of literature that falls under suspense. Call it the Cape Fear genre in which someone or other is terrorized and the story gets darker and darker.

It is not a genre I have the remotest interest in. 

Twisted River appears to fall into this category: contemporary family life where ordinary people are visited by more and more suspenseful happenings. Well-written but not my cup of tea.

MacDonald, Ross: The detective is Lew Archer. I had heard the name before but didn’t connect the name to a particular author. Ross MacDonald is the author! I read “Guilt-Edged Blonde.” 

P.I. Guns. Mafia-type relationships. Etc. etc. Again, not my type of thing but the popularity of this literature through the 1970s explains shows like Rockford Files and Simon & Simon–which I also never really cared for. 

Paul Newman played Lew Harper, based on Lew Archer. Doesn't he look like a P.I.?! I said so in my review of Torn Curtain.

It's always nice to have links link up again.