This is -- flat-out -- a great mystery novel, and one of the best mystery novels (among hundreds!) that I've ever read. The pacing is stupendous; the adventure rolls along, gaining momentum and suspense in a way that is, in the end, absolutely terrifying. If that's not enough to whet your appetite, Ms. Lawson succeeds in creating a slew of excellent characters, each of which has enough depth to draw readers in and get us interested in these people. As a measure of how impressive her achievement is in this respect, one can't help but feel some sympathy for one of the "bad guys" -- a sympathy felt, amid the murderous destruction that rains all around them, by the protagonists themselves. As if all the above isn't enough, the author creates a genuinely sexy feel to the novel that will prove accessible to male and female readers alike.

Don't be put off by the fact that the setting is a couple's sailboat journey. You don't need to know ANYTHING about sailing to enjoy this book -- Ms. Lawson clearly realizes that most of her readers don't know the difference between a jib sheet and a mainsail sheet, and aren't about to learn. If you don't know anything about sailing, you can still enjoy this book. If you love sailing, you'll love it all the more. But the sailing does NOT get in the way of the story.

I'm tempted to say that Ms. Lawson writes with a feminine viewpoint, in the sense that she pulls us into the character's relationships -- and does so in a way that elevates this book far beyond the level of your average mystery novel. Still, it's a tough, fast-paced action novel, too -- all the more believable and thrilling, one might add, because the reader begins to identify with the characters.

Be sure to set aside however much time you'll need to read this book straight through!

Excellent mystery with great accuracy in nautical detail. Recommended Easing Sheets to several friends.

Having picked up this book for Christmas as the second murder mystery by this new authoress, I continue to be fascinated with the intricate weave of suspense that she delivers. Having experience with California and Mexican ports, I have thoroughly enjoyed the well researched plot that travels down the California Coast to its conclusion south of the border.

This authoress has a gift for drawing the reader into the unfolding drama, and the precise descriptions of various boat ports brings the story to life. All of the elements of a great murder mystery that I enjoy come into play: real locations, greed, unexpected turns, life at sea, psychological insights, etc. This is a very hard-hitting 200 page mystery!

I highly recommend both of Lawson's books for casual reading at home or as travel companions.

The reading structure allow the reader to visualize and understand American History from outside and inside. Wonderful maps, statistical charts, great photos, and a very good section titled: historical question. If you are the type of person in exploring new perspectives of the American History, do not hesitate to look this book.

This is really a must have. I handled my own chapter 13, start to finish with this one. Even handled the emergency filing to get mean ole nasty pasty creditors that were harassing me intentionally off my case. I was even able to file a complaint with them thru the bankruptcy courts. This book references this, and I called the clerks office, and checked out web sites, and this book gave me the confidence, to file a complaint against these creditors. The interderagatorys are fanstasic. THese really helped me out, at my creditors meetings. I was able to even able to pursue a wage garnishment out of my soon to b X's pay check. This was the only way I was going to keep my stuff. I really enjoyed I must say representing my self. It is really not that hard, and more of u folks out there need to try it. They really don't chew ya up and spit ya out like everyone believes. It was not that stress ful, after everything was filed. Actually, It was nice to bask in the quiteness of the emeregency filing. My phone quit ringing. It was soooo nice. This one belongs rite up there with my bible. It was a thrill I must say to stand in line to file my paper work, schedules, and yes, I even filed a motion.! It was great standing there next to some of my towns high power bankruptcy attorneys. ONly thing, I have to say, when attorneys, start offering free advise, have a pen ready to write. I also learned be nice as pie to the clerks. They are so busy, and swamped with work. U will be glad you had patience. Patience is a virtue on this one as far as filings go. THe creditors meetings went well, I even drafted my own propsals of what I wanted, to happend. I even learned how to contest the amount of my truck, and did so, and requested the interest rate be dropped. I got just what I wanted. It actually was not as a terrible as we are taught in society to think. Oh my she/he file bankruptcy. It was not that bad, and also the bankruptcy court I went to, had a class on how to balance your budget, and it was very informational. Dom't feel bad if you have to do this someday. It happens to the bestest of us. IF you do this is definitely the book you wanna seek. I have compared up to some of the competetions, and I felt this one was the easy one to use. Plainest english. Simplest terms. I didnot feel intimidated at all by this book. This book covered all the bases, and then some. Others books I feel were not as complete as this one was. I researched books and sat down and looked thru them at my local book store. THis one won hands down. I must say, it is flexible, easy to tote with you, easy to put in babys bag, and easy to tote on bike with grocerys, and easy to clean up. I spilled coffee on mine... wipes up great. Later, Betty Hogges. :)

One thing about this book that is good is the cover...it sure looks cool. But that's about it. This book is sluggish and poorly written. The parts don't fit and it's disconnected. I stuggled through about 40 pages and then put it on the discard shelf. The author dwells in minutia..."I stood up...from the chair...put on my slipper....put on the other slipper...straightened my sock...fixed the other sock..." Arrrrggghhhh! That's about the pace of the book. If you just read every fifth word you can still get the point. Might be good test case for Evelyn Wood Reading Dynamics.

Green Flash beckoned me to read it because it takes place in Zihuatanejo, Mexico, a tropical, sunny, ocean community where I have vacationed a few times. It was fun to be able to accurately visualize and "relive" being in the locations described.

As I began reading, the somewhat unsophisticated style of writing was obvious. Time is spent on some unnecessary details; the sentence structure and vocabulary, other than nautical terms, is fairly ordinary. There are some glaring editorial oversights: misplaced punctuation, incorrect word usage, such as "passed" instead of "past", and spelling errors.

In spite of that, I found Green Flash to be entertaining. It's a quick read and easy to follow, partly because of its uncomplicated style. The mystery itself was enticing. After Jessie and Neal discovered a woman's body floating in the ocean, they distastefully tied it up to their boat to haul it to shore. They had removed the video camera from the body, and had been ordered to turn it in to authorities as evidence, without opening it or disturbing the film. As they prepare to take it to Mexico City, they become involved with several of the members of the seafaring community, who create the cast of suspect characters.

It's during their journey to get the camera to Mexico City, that all the excitement takes place. Seemingly unrelated acts of violence and sabotage keep happening to them and the friends that accompany them. Will they make it to Mexico City, and what will the film reveal? Who is attacking them, and why? Who toppled the unfortunate Jennifer over the side of her boat, letting her drown?

I give credit to the author who has used her own ocean-going experiences to create this story, which I believe is her first. It was a fun and entertaining mystery.

We are not sailors, but we loved every bit of this thriller and the insight it gave to the cruising community. Not only did Lawson keep us in suspense as to who did what, but she was adept at making us feel the heat of Mexico, the quality of life in the cruising community, the lushness of the mountain retreat at Alta Linda, the freshness and coolness of the ocean breezes, the love between Neal and Jessie, and the tension and friction that comes not only between them but also between them and their friends while they try to decide what to do with the video camera. A great mystery that will keep you hooked until the last page. We can't wait until the next one!

This book omits several important events in U. S. History up to 1865. But is sufficient for introductory classes in U. S. History. While it does a sufficient job as a survey source, it is not recommended for an in-depth study of any period in U. S. History. Further, Roark seems to emphasize some events that seem less important to U. S. History.

This book is very well written, quite long, though