Shaking the Tree [Kindle Edition]

Michael Donohue (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Max just wants to make doughnuts. Out of prison, but still on parole, the only thing he wants is to keep his head down, go to work and maybe grab a cold beer at the end of his shift. He doesn't even care that the program stuck him in Essex - a nice, but nowhere small town. With his head already full of bloody and painful memories, he'd like it just fine if his past and future stayed nice and quiet.

Too bad the present just got really messy.

A body in a tree. A missing briefcase. A Russian hit man. A DEA agent bent on revenge. A corrupt mayor. Not to mention a sheriff with dangerous ambition. A meth lab in the woods. And some pissed off bikers. Things are suddenly very interesting in sleepy Essex county. Bodies are turning up. Secrets are coming out. Questions are being asked. Fingers are being pointed. It's not good being the new guy in a small town.

Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 353 KB
• Sold by: Amazon Digital Services
• Language: English
• ASIN: B004K1F8H0
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Lending: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #497,877 Paid in Kindle Store (See Top 100 Paid in Kindle Store)

More About the Author

I live outside Boston with my wife, daughter and dog that thinks she's a cat. By day I work as a web designer. By night, I write or create other things.

I always have a book with me. Always. I don't find it rude or awkward to read during meals. Sometimes I'll pick a book solely for the reason it will lay flat while I eat a bowl of soup.

I'm not one of those people that remember their earliest childhood memories or claim to know they wanted to be a writer from the womb. When I was small I wanted to be Larry Bird or Jim Rice or my Dad. My earliest writing memory is my kid sister constantly winning the Daughter's of the American Revolution Young Author's content. Year after year. I couldn't get by the first plot twist or the heady smell of erasable blue Bic ink. So no, I didn't always want to be a writer. I do remember my Mom was always reading and always taking us the library. I remember the Hardy Boys. And Penguin Reader Biographies. And Isaac Asimov. And Ray Bradbury. So that probably helped.

I try to write a thousand words a day. I'll be honest I don't always make it. Sometimes it seems like I rarely make it. But I've stopped beating myself up about and just learned to try. A little creativity is better than nothing.

If you cornered me at a party, you'd learn a few new things. I like trivia over board games. I like Coke over Pepsi. The Wire over Law & Order. Stephen King over Dan Brown. Pixar over Dreamworks. Cardio over weight lifting. Manual over automatic transmission. Heat over snow and cold. Fiction before non-fiction. Internet rather than newspapers. Time over Newsweek. Google over Bing. Chocolate more than vanilla. BC is better than BU. Vegetable over flower gardening. Boston over New York. The Red Sox or whoever is playing the Yankees.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent First Book, September 27, 2011

By 

Robert S "bugsysegal" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shaking the Tree (Kindle Edition)

I just finished Michael Donohue's novel and really enjoyed it. The colorful descriptions of the bucolic background create a stark contrast to the story as it unfolds. You can feel the tension build as the story progresses and the wide ranging story lines comes together to form an immpressive thriller.

I'm really looking forward to his next effort.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Didn't want this thriller to end, December 4, 2011

By 

Lauren - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shaking the Tree (Paperback)

Shaking the Tree is a dynamic, page turning thriller. But unlike many popular thrillers, Donohue takes the time to carefully develop the characters and the scenery. The reader is taken to the small, quiet town of Essex, and follows the characters through the twists and turns of the plot. As the novel wraps up you're left wanting more and not ready to let the story end.

5.0 out of 5 stars Thrilling Mystery a la King, December 13, 2011

By 

William Donohue (Drexel Hill, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Shaking the Tree (Paperback)

Shaking the Tree is an exciting and well developed story from a new author. Donohue sets his story in rural Minnesota and takes the time to develop most of the characters, much like a Stephen King novel set in Maine. However, just as you come to know Donohue's characters, he literally and figuratively pulls the trigger on them. Who will be left standing at the end? Read this book now so you can be ahead of the curve when Shaking the Tree comes out in theaters. You will be able to brag to all your friends that you read the book years ago and can't wait for them to make the sequel.