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John Dedakis

Auteur de Fast Track

6 oeuvres 39 utilisateurs 6 critiques

Œuvres de John Dedakis

Fast Track (2005) 19 exemplaires
Bluff (2010) 4 exemplaires
Fake (2019) 3 exemplaires

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Membres

Critiques

Picking up where "Bullet in the Chamber" left off, "Fake" pushes its protagonist harder, further, and faster than ever before. Still reeling from recent events in the last novel, Lark Chadwick presses forward in her true-to-form way only to find herself fighting against the ugly side of modern journalism. Unfortunately for her, it's only the beginning as the career field she's loved and thrived in for so long suddenly becomes fraught with falsities, fiction, and frenemies. Why bother reporting the truth when fake news leads in the viral headlines?

DeDakis brilliantly combines the hot subject of fake news - one we can't seem to get away from any more - with a high intensity plot full of scandals, secrets, and international incidents (...or are they fake?) that we've come to expect from his Lark Chadwick series. While his previous novels have concluded with the subtle insinuation that more would be coming, this one leaves the reader SCREAMING for what's potentially unfolding in the next book. "Fake" is exhaustingly suspenseful - I had to walk away from it a few times just to breathe and the ending left me shell-shocked. I hope to hell the next novel is already well on its way.

There is a facet of DeDakis' writing style that I especially enjoy when he combines a real world topic and a fictional narrative. In "Fake", he chronicles the disastrous effects of fake news on Lark's life. However, he's also discreetly highlighting the very serious, real-world implications of fake news on our society and its conditioning of future generations. For someone like me who stopped watching the news because I don't know what to believe anymore, a reevaluation of that stance is in order. Even if ignored by a portion of the population, fake news ruins real lives, real careers, and can have irreversible effects on real people. It's a complicated problem, yes, but it needs to be taken much more seriously by our culture which feeds on information-overload 24/7. While "Fake" is a work of fiction, it isn't purely for entertainment purposes only. It's smart writing and it makes you think long after you've finished the last page.

"Fake" is a must-read for thriller fans and well as those who love political fiction. I'd also recommend it for those looking for diversity and inclusion in the story line as the novel tips its hat to the #metoo and LGBTQ communities. Finally, I'd highly encourage those looking to read and follow a strong female protagonist to pick up any of the Lark Chadwick novels. It's refreshing to find that healthy balance of 'confident', 'smart', 'not sexualized', and 'not a man-hater' in her. She's relatable, believable, and just vulnerable enough to make female readers completely empathize with her. Years ago, I was overly skeptical (and yes, maybe even a bit offended) when I read the Acknowledgements section at the beginning of "Troubled Waters" and realized its male author was writing in the first person as a woman. But skepticism and offense quickly dissipated with each gripping page turn. The struggle is real and in "Fake", DeDakis still gets it. Very well done!
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Signalé
travelvic | 1 autre critique | Aug 10, 2019 |
Again, author John DeDakis manages to get inside a woman’s complicated inner workings and write a convincing – and utterly thrilling – first person perspective from his female protagonist, Lark Chadwick. The fourth installment of the ‘Lark Chadwick Mystery’ series, “Bullet in the Chamber” is locked and loaded with current, hot topics – heroin use and drones – and promises to be just as much of a rush as the previous three novels.

“Bullet in the Chamber” begins by finding Lark on the way to the White House, her first day as a White House Correspondent for the Associated Press. In true ‘Lark Chadwick form, it doesn’t take long before she finds herself dead center in an explosive drone attack on the White House itself. While she desperately works to unravel mysterious leads and questionable clues as a professional journalist, she’s emotionally pushed to the core when a close friend’s heroin use threatens to alter the personal side of her life. The heroine versus heroin. Lark struggles to balance them both but the answers she starts getting back aren’t exactly what she was hoping for.

DeDakis brilliantly draws from his career as a Senior Copy Editor at CNN and a former White House Correspondent for CBN News to put Chadwick convincingly at the White House and in the middle of the action. Only someone who’s been there, worked the interviews, knows the specific processes and the real-world lingo, can write about ‘the way it all works’ with such vivid detail and believably recreate it all in the pages of a mystery novel. He further utilizes his own excruciating family tragedy – facing the unimaginable and losing a child to heroin use. Reading the Acknowledgments and Author’s Notes section at the very beginning of the book first puts a unique personal perspective on the plot itself so as I read, I was able to see some of the ‘real’ intermingled with the ‘fiction’. Without giving away any of the story in making this point, I actually had to put the book down and walk away for a few days after chapter 34. But the suspense was also killing me so I was back, deep within its pages before too long.

“Bullet in the Chamber” provides a hold-your-breath, finger on the trigger plot throughout every single one of its 351 pages. It will hit its target with mystery and thriller fans, newsroom fiction readers, and those who enjoy current event/topic novels alike. The book also serves as an intelligent, impactful voice on the real world dangers of heroin use – the plot, the title, and even the cover go to further that important public message. A kinetic, Russian roulette of a read!
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Signalé
travelvic | 1 autre critique | Oct 1, 2016 |
Ok, I admit it – when I read the first line of the ‘Acknowledgements’ section in author John DeDakis’ latest novel, “Troubled Water”, I was an immediate doubter. He begins the section by saying, “I’m frequently asked how it is that I’m able to write as a woman.” Seriously, how can you read that line and not become challenged to find the book’s shortcomings? As an avid reader and as a woman, I took that challenge with all seriousness and fervor.

It didn’t take long for me to completely forget that first line’s challenge and get swept away in the plot’s strong undertow. “Troubled Water” is an addictive page turner, plain and simple. The protagonist’s personality, character, and feminine nature area never in question throughout the duration of the book – she’s believable, relatable, and entertaining to follow. The various red herrings that swim in and out of “Troubled Water” keep the reader guessing…and then guessing again and again. Each potential antagonist hooks the reader and reels them in but in the end, you will be blown out of the - you guessed it - water.

DeDakis is not only able to write convincingly as a woman, but he writes in such a way that makes the reader completely forget he’s a man. I’m usually mildly irritated when a man presumes to understand the way a woman thinks but in DeDakis’ case, he actually gets it and he conveys that brilliantly in his writing style. In addition to this ability, he keeps his storyline moving with plenty of action and suspense to push the reader into the addictive ‘one more page’ syndrome. Whether DeDakis writes about a real place in Georgia or he is making his setting up as the story moves along, I don’t know. But it’s believable based on the ample detail provided for in the pages. Even the heat is palpable as you read.

“Troubled Water” is a rush of a read and will be enjoyed by mystery/thriller genre fans as well as those who enjoy newsroom fiction. DeDakis’ whirlpool of multiple murders, backstabbing colleagues, mysterious new acquaintances, a hot and humid setting, and a young go-getter with a knack for finding herself at the wrong place at the right time will have you reading well past bedtime.
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Signalé
travelvic | May 24, 2016 |
Fast Track - Review by Martha A. Cheves, Author of Stir, Laugh, Repeat

'I prefer to see the world not in blacks, whites and grays, but in rainbow colors. The contrasts can be stark, and there can still be room for individual expression, but there are boundaries, too. Choosing the right colors for the painting of your life can be an adventure.'.... But what if the painting gets messed up?... Color over it. Try something new. Don't just let the problem sit there. And for God's sake, don't destroy the canvas. Rework what's on it.'
(This is a quote from Fast Track that I feel we can all learn from.)

Lark Chadwick grew up knowing that her parents had been killed in an auto accident but no one would talk to her about the accident. So, when her aunt Annie, who had raised her, died of what the police decide to be a suicide, Lark goes on a quest to find the truth about not only her aunt's death but also the story behind the death of her parents. To her astonishment, she learns that they were killed when hit by a train and that she had been in the car too. Her escaping the accident left her with the nickname "The Miracle Baby." But how did she escape and why were her parents sitting on a railroad crossing with a train coming full speed ahead, lights and horn blowing? These are the questions that lead her to the truth and whys of the accident.

As I read Fast Track I didn't have the feeling that I was reading a book, but Lark's personal story was being told to me by Lark herself. It was as if she was sitting with me, telling me everything that happened to her as she searched for her past. I could feel her emotions and sense her fears. She became a person that I felt I actually knew.

The format of Fast Track in paperback is different due to its magazine size. I wasn't sure that I would like this concept at first but as time went along, I found it to be very practical and convenient. It stores nicely and is easy to slip into my bag without being bulky. I've grown to actually like the style and really loved the story within. But for the more traditional-minded readers, Fast Track also comes in hardback.

John DeDakis is a Senior Copy Editor at CNN in Washington where he edits and writes on "The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer." It has been a pleasure to read and review his book Fast Track and I've just learned, through an email from Mr. DeDakis that his next book "Bluff" which is a sequel to Fast Track, is due to be published soon. Follow the progress of this next release through John DeDakis's website. I, for one, am glad to hear that he will continue with more stories featuring Lark.

ISBN #978-159507-102-6
ArcheBooks Publishing
97 pages
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Signalé
marthacheves | Jan 6, 2010 |

Prix et récompenses

Statistiques

Œuvres
6
Membres
39
Popularité
#376,657
Évaluation
½ 4.6
Critiques
6
ISBN
11