B.R. Snow

The Duplicates is a very well written book with fully-developed characters who apparently have appeared in earlier books in this series (this is the only book by this author I have read to date). The story takes place in the very near future – it could be tomorrow. The story contains two dramatically futuristic elements – the Duplicates, and the satellite-generated sky images. I might take issue with how the author defines these two items, but since he writes the rules for his own show more near-future, I will give him a pass on his science fidelity.Because I have not read the other books in the series, I am unfamiliar with the main characters’ cocaine habits, but I was somewhat put off by their casual use of this addicting drug. Since it became part of the story structure, I set aside my personal proclivities and went with the story. I would not recommend, however, that an impressionable teenager read this book.Basically, this is a tale of several interconnected people with long histories both in and out of government clandestine service who face a world-threatening problem (for which a couple of them are at least partially responsible in the first place), and who work together (sort of) to find a solution. Sex and violence (and even violent sexuality) fill a significant part of the tale, but without it, the story would be incomplete. The story starts out with a page-turning bang, and never lets up through the entire book. In a sense, it is a modern day Mike-Hammer-kind-of-story – raw, gutsy, vital, and damned hard to put down. show less

cosy-mystery, murder-investigation, dogs, amateur-sleuth, women-s-fiction, friendship*****

This is a great listen while doing mindless tasks! Vanessa Daniels has the perky hyperactive sleuths down to a science and gives personality to the other interesting characters. It's a good cosy complete with twists, red herrings, and misdirection plus a dog boarding service in the beautiful Thousand Island region of Ontario (hockey!). Loved it!

Interesting read about a beautiful place. The dogs are better than the people