Shaken (Jack Daniels #10) in Q&A with J.A. Konrath

Nov 16, 2010 Steven rated it it was amazing

Shelves: j-a-konrath

Konrath si so entertaining! There wasn't a boring slow moment in this title. Every scene had my attention and some made me laugh it hurt. I highly recommend anything that has Konrath's name attached to it. ...more

4 likes · Like · see review

Nov 03, 2010 Katie rated it liked it · review of another edition

11/15/10
I'm not sure how to rate this book. Nearing the end I was thinking 4.5 creeping toward 5 stars. There were several things I absolutely loved. Once I "got" the pattern of the time jumps I found them a clever and skilled writing application to illustrate the parallels in the stories and thought they added momentum or urgency that wouldn't have been felt in reading the linear version. The "farewells" had me bawling and exclaiming out loud (the children weren't happy at being woke up at 4am) 11/15/10
I'm not sure how to rate this book. Nearing the end I was thinking 4.5 creeping toward 5 stars. There were several things I absolutely loved. Once I "got" the pattern of the time jumps I found them a clever and skilled writing application to illustrate the parallels in the stories and thought they added momentum or urgency that wouldn't have been felt in reading the linear version. The "farewells" had me bawling and exclaiming out loud (the children weren't happy at being woke up at 4am). The crime fighting team of Phin, Harry and Herb was fantastically entertaining.

Then "something" happened and I thought wow! that was cleverly foreshadowed and I'm only at 49% . . . this is going to be a great book. Then I turned the page and it said "EPILOGUE." I felt ripped off and hurtled my iPod touch at the wall (I am happy to report the iPod Touch will break plaster without breaking itself...apparently only liquid is deadly). The ending was just TOO ABRUPT; there was no RESOLUTION and it was not SATISFYING. What my first reaction had thought was clever foreshadowing morphed into a quasi form of deus ex machina that has jeopardized my trust in the author. I mean come on when you are reading a mystery thriller the reader/author implied contract is the "team" will solve it. When something just drops out of nowhere and erases the central conflict of the main character it IS NOT SATISFYING. Now I wasn't happy about the cliff hanger ending of Fuzzy Navel. Shaken wasn't a cliff hanger, because technically the epilogue told the 'status' of the character, but to me it was empty and unsatisfying. One moment I'm in the thick of the action and the next it just ends SUDDENLY with no resolution. No information on the thoughts or emotions of any of the 4 central characters. There was no resolution. STRIKE ONE.

I have been an avid reader of this series. Unfortunately all evidence points to the fact we are at that contradicting point where the readers are deeply invested in a character the author is bored writing. Meaning all character progression was in fleshing out Jack Daniels' back story. STRIKE TWO.

Now when you combine this lack of character progression with the author's afterword...I am terrified and VERY apprehensive for a character I love. The fact that the last book in a series about a character I love is being co-authored is alarming. Given my impression of the other author's writing (from Serial and Draculas) leaves me very worried that the next book will be more about horror than an enjoyable thriller that concludes a character I am deeply invested in. The morphine shot at a time of critical development for the **t** supports this impending horror trend.

For the first time since discovering J.A. Konrath I am hesitant about if I want to buy the next book.

11/14/10
What do I think? I think I'm exceedingly disturbed about being left on a slippery slope for a character I am invested in.

I mean here's the thing. I read 27% of this book. Then I got the flu and set it aside. Starting to recover I picked it back up and read the last 13% and loved it. The farewells had me bawling...until I realized the cliff hanger ending that my favorite character is left in...

So then I spent an hour thinking about what this could possibly mean for a character I love being at that point where as a reader I am more invested in the character than the author appears to be...and then having to consider the ramifications that morphine shot would have or not have on a fetus I'm clearly invested in...

At which point the Author's After-word leaves me exceeding perplexed, because I didn't care much for Draculas and the tone that sets for the resolution of Jack Daniels well leaves me disturbed and increasingly perplexed about the future of a favorite charter I have followed for 7 novels.

Yes I'll continue reading, but honestly the peak was at Fuzzy Navel and expect for Shot of Tequila it has been all down hill since then. ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Oct 29, 2010 Nikki Wilde rated it it was amazing

I'd like to start off by saying there will be no spoilers in this review. I am not that kind of girl. Shaken starts out with three different time lines for Jack. Jack is working two separate cases that all seem to come together in the third present time.

The first part shows us when Jack was a rookie working prostitution rings. She chases a John into a back alley where they both stumble upon a dead escort. That puts Jack onto a killer.

The second part has Jack looking for a psychotic killer who to I'd like to start off by saying there will be no spoilers in this review. I am not that kind of girl. Shaken starts out with three different time lines for Jack. Jack is working two separate cases that all seem to come together in the third present time.

The first part shows us when Jack was a rookie working prostitution rings. She chases a John into a back alley where they both stumble upon a dead escort. That puts Jack onto a killer.

The second part has Jack looking for a psychotic killer who tortures his victims. In unimaginable ways. It threatens everything Jack knows about good and evil and what some people can do to others.

The third and most important present day time line which is mixed into both others was the hardest for me. I was getting so frustrated jumping back and forth from each time period that I was trying to read faster just to get back to the present day to see how Jack was fairing.

Jack is one of my favorite heroines of any book I have read. Shaken did not disappoint. It had me laughing to myself, laughing loud enough for people to give me strange looks and also had me tearing up. It almost seems like Jack is cursed. Things just start to go right for her and bam they turn around tenfold.

The only thing that bothered me about this one was that it felt like such a quick read. It seemed to go so fast. What I didn't bother learning before I started reading was that in addition to the original story this book also comes with a linear version. I could have read each time line in order had I so chosen. I have to say, honestly, as much as I complained about jumping around in the story, I actually preferred it.

I feel like if I had to do a time line and blend them together I'd fail miserably. Konrath was a master at it. While the time lines mixed together the seemed to go perfectly and seamlessly. I could not ask for more. Well, that's not true. I could ask for Konrath to never ever end the Jack Daniels series but I guess there is such a thing as asking for too much. ...more

1 like · Like · see review

Jul 27, 2011 Kathy Jenkins rated it it was amazing

So, is this really a five star book? Well, in the grand scheme of things, probably not, but in my little world where I'm always looking for the next great thriller book, J.A. Konrath, Jack Kilbourn and Blake Crouch are a great team and have given me a great deal of escape from my everyday life and have raised my blood pressure just a bit. So, I'm rating these books based on my world and not the grand scheme of things.

Shaken is one of the Jack Daniels series. I feel so sorry for Jack! She gets h ...more

Like · see review

Mar 22, 2011 Nick Kelly rated it it was amazing

Former Chicago Homicide Detective Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels has seen it all, lived through it, and has the stories to tell. She’s put away legendary serial killers, like The Gingerbread Man, but every step of the way, she’s paid a price. She’s lost friends, family, relationships, even her partner (no, actually, he’s still around. Harry’s like a cockroach that way.)

Shaken is the seventh official book in the Daniels series (though she’s been the subject of many short stories, and the series charac Former Chicago Homicide Detective Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels has seen it all, lived through it, and has the stories to tell. She’s put away legendary serial killers, like The Gingerbread Man, but every step of the way, she’s paid a price. She’s lost friends, family, relationships, even her partner (no, actually, he’s still around. Harry’s like a cockroach that way.)

Shaken is the seventh official book in the Daniels series (though she’s been the subject of many short stories, and the series characters have found their way into additional anthologies and side projects.) She’s suffered plenty, but Konrath has always been willing to swing his heroine on a pendulum from happiness to suffering, and this story is no exception.

The author continues rolling his familiar characters; Daniels, her partner Herb Benedict, her first partner, Harry McGlade, and others, through a constant swarm of cliffhangers. He does this by bouncing across several timelines; Jack as a rookie cop, Jack and Herb as veterans, and present day – where Jack finds herself facing off with the one serial killer she’s never been able to capture; Mr. K – potentially the most murderous serial killer ever to inhabit the U.S.

Fans of the series get what they enjoy from their favorite characters. Konrath unveils events in Jack’s past that shape the character she was when she first appeared in Whiskey Sour in 2005. He treats readers to the dichotomy of Benedict in his 30’s and his 50’s, and Harry, well, some things never change. Despite the many comic turns, Konrath never lets his characters far from misery, using two decades as his playground to put them through all sorts of unpleasantries.

As always, the devil is in the details, and Konrath spares no expense. He masterfully creates a scene; whether he is describing triggers to a psychopathic killer’s childhood development, laying out the sounds and smells of dismemberment, or describing the tenements of low-rent Chicago. He describes the city as it is now, and as it was 20 years ago, with careful historic detail. Even better are his descriptions of some of the fashion trends of the ‘80s.

Konrath uses the freedom of the eBook format to present the story in its original, non-linear format, and a second time, with the action unfolding according to the story’s timeline. As he says, readers are welcome to comment on which they enjoy more once they’ve compared the two versions.

Shaken is a great blend of in-the-moment horror, and series fan nostalgia. Konrath knows how to put his characters through unimaginable agony, while creating a camaraderie and banter that summons belly laughs. This story is a trip down memory lane, peppered with bits of callback humor that series fans will truly enjoy. Konrath is famous for his ability to promote his work, but not shamelessly. At no time did reading this feel like a cheap commercial to buy his previously released stories.

As mentioned in the author’s afterword, readers can expect another collaboration between Konrath and thriller author, Blake Crouch (check out a review of Crouch’s Run HERE.) Each author brings their own blend of terror and humor to the table, and their previous collaborations, including Serial, and Draculas (along with F. Paul Wilson & Jeff Strand) were very good at what they were attempting to be. (Note: Serial and Draculas were trying to be two very different things!) ...more

Like · see review

Apr 02, 2011 Kaitlyn rated it really liked it

I always like the covers of these books. All of the covers and titles reference drinks to go along with the main character, Jacqueline “Jack” Daniels. It’s funny that this series was one of the ones that got me to read again. I read the first one and Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone both in a few days while on vacation. They really couldn’t be any more different.

You can find my review for the 5th Jack Daniels book, Fuzzy Navel, here. In the Kindle version of Shaken, you can either read the ...more

Like · see review

Sep 15, 2010 Cat rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Really liked this story. It was a real roller coaster ride from chapter to chapter. It jumped back and forth from past to present but was easy to keep track of.
Jack and her partners Herb and Harry and the banter that went back and forth between them all had me cracking up laughing. I mean Stephanie Plum funny here. I really enjoyed it. Then the next chapter would be tense and gut wrenching, literally.
I was disappointed to hear this would be the second to last Jack Daniels story though. I think ...more

Like · see review

Nov 03, 2010 Steven rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: j-a-konrath

This title was so attention grabbing and I didn't stop from reading it once I started. Konrath has some very strong characters here and I know there are other books with them that I will definitely be picking up soon. This story is gritty and dark. It almost has that Frank Miller feel like Konrath should write the next Batman novel. Wow what a great thought :O) ...more

Like · see review

Oct 09, 2011 Tialisa rated it it was amazing

I have yet to find a Jack Daniels book I haven't liked. Shaken takes you back and forth in time with Jack and the crew. You learn little things that made each character the "way they are" I always laugh at Harry and Jack's banter these books are very well written and incredibly read by Dick Hill and Angela Dawe. You'll laugh you may even cry but you will definetly seek out the rest of the books in the series they're just that good. ...more

Like · see review

Jun 04, 2010 Michelle Kampmeier rated it liked it

Shelves: audio, 2010

Holy heck. The next book needs to come out ASAP because this ended in the worst possible way. No resolution, Jack in danger and with other issues, geez Louise! I can only take so much, and Jack deserves bigger and better things than what she was handed in this book! However, it was kind of neat to take a look back into her past. I like the way he did that. Other than that, I need to know what happens!!

Like · see review

Aug 19, 2010 MzDivaDawn rated it really liked it

Another excellent story in the Jack Daniels saga. This one gives you the backstory on how she became a cop and climbed up the ranks. There are still plenty of snickers & nail-biting moments - a trait that Mr. Konrath has perfected

Like · see review