A well written murder mystery that is rich in atmosphere and detail. I thoroughly enjoyed following along on the adventure.
Many thanks to Mandevilla Press and to NetGalley for providing me with a galley in exchange for my honest opinion.

Saving Paradise is set in the Hawaiian islands and features a surfer and Special Forces veteran, Pono Hawkins, who gets involved in fighting corporations and politicians wanting to change parts of the islands into giant windmill farms.

Pono discovers the body of Sylvia, a journalist covering the island windmill deals, and vows to find her killers, thus putting himself in danger from those involved in national and international interests threatening his beloved islands.

The suspense of chases across the islands and on the ocean separating the islands made the book entertaining. Some armchair travel and an intriguing plot with unusual characters made this book one I was able to really enjoy.

Saving Paradise by Mike Bond
Rating 3.8/5

Synopsis: To tourists Hawaii is an air-conditioned tanning booth with shopping, booze, bikinis, and lots of smiling low-paid help. The real Hawaii is something else…”
When a beautiful journalist drowns mysteriously off Waikiki, former Special Forces veteran Pono Hawkins, now a well-known Hawaii surfer and international surfing journalist, quickly gets embroiled in trying to solve her death. What he learns soon targets him for murder or life in prison as a cabal of powerful corporations, foreign killers and crooked politicians focuses the blame on him.
Haunted by memories of Afghanistan, and determined to protect the Hawaii he loves from dirty politics tied to huge destructive energy developments, Pono turns to Special Forces buddies and his own skills to fight his deadly enemies, trying to both save himself and track down her killers.

Saving Paradise in the 1st in the Pono Hawkins thriller series. Set in the Hawaiian Islands, Saving Paradise certainly gives you an insight into the history, which I loved. Parts of the novel were quite complex and had me rereading sections but it was worth the effort.
Mike Bond is a very talented author. All in all, a worthwhile read and gives the reader a lot to think about.
Thanks to Mike Bond, Big City Press and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this novel. I have written a totally unbiased and honest review.

I received a free copy from NetGalley along with two others by the same author and this was the best of the three. The "real" Hawaii and the political corruption that is ruining the environment is the background for this thriller/conspiracy theory story. Fast paced it reads like it is written for a movie. The first in the series, it is a good starting point for the main character.

I received a free copy of this book from the author. I had the opportunity to review or not.

While the murder mystery and some of the side stories were interesting, I found the constant negativity of everything associated with Hawaii, except for the innocent natives, to be overwhelming and extremely off-putting. I struggled through this book and that is not what I read for. If I am looking for non-fiction, I will buy a non-fiction book. I would not recommend this book.

I love Mike Bond's books but this one is not his best. I did not find Pono Hawkins either believable or particularly sympathetic as a hero. The plot was a little shallow, and parts of it read like a Lonely Planet guide to Australia. Having said all of that, Mike Bond is an outstanding writer and this book is a pleasant way to spend an afternoon.

A thriller/mystery set in Hawaii! Yes, please! The premise sounded better then the actual execution. It ended up being too political and preachy for my taste and to top it off I didn’t care about a single character except for the dog!

The setting was great though.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for allowing me to read and review this book.

I have received this ARC book from NetGalley to provide an honest review. The story is a pretty good thriller with action and suspense and there are several twists in the plot The story is different than your usual average murder mystery which kept me engaged. I would try the author again.

Saving Paradise is a mediocre thriller in which the hunter becomes the hunter as a Hawaiian PI/surfer searches for a murderer while being stymied by a corrupt corporation.

(4.5 stars)

Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest feedback.

This was a very interesting read indeed. While it was not as fast-paced as I had expected it to be, it provided a thrilling, thought-provoking and entertaining experience. I loved the main character, Pono Hawkins, with his military background and how despite being a chick magnet was also considerate of others' feelings.

It was also interesting to acquire some knowledge of Hawaii's history. It made me think about the possibilities for Puerto Rico, my hometown. But I digress.

Anyway, the characters are well-developed as is the story. When I thought I had the mystery figured out, a turn of events would make me reevaluate.

The ending... well, as decent as it was, this is an aspect I'm not entirely happy with. I will not go into the details, but I will say it felt sort of forced on one hand, too easy on the other. Regardless, I am glad to see how Pono grew up through this experience, which hopefully prepared him for the next one.

This was my first Mike Bond book, and needless to say, it will not be the last.

I didn't end up finishing this book so I can't give a fair review. It just didn't hold my interest.

But how did he make money for all the snooping he did? It seemed to be more a political mystery to me. So much of the book makes me say drain the swamp. The corruption was awful. So many lies too. Made for an interesting book that could really be any location. But Hawaii does allow for water escape which came in handy. A good story with plenty of action.

Saving Paradise by Mike Bond
Book Review by Dawn Thomas

350 Pages
Publisher: Mandevilla Press
Release Date: November 19, 2013

Mystery, Intrigue, Hawaii

Pono is about to have a really bad day. He has more women in his life than you can count but the one he is about to meet will bring him nothing but trouble. Sylvia is a young woman he bumps into while he is out surfing. The bad thing is Sylvia is dead. Her death is ruled a suicide but Pono does not believe it. He begins an investigation to find out who killed her and why. This decision may cost him more than he bargained for.

The story is written in the first-person point of view in the present tense. There are several stories within the main story involving corruption, big business and politics. This is a fast-paced story with a cast of characters. I was fooled a number of times trying to figure out who was the killer. This was the first book by this author that I read but it definitely will not be my last.

Very good descriptions of the setting, Hawaii, including the dialect. The plot is OK, but it's messy and not easy to follow. Added to that is lots of repetitions on the subject of corruption, and that makes it a little hard to read. On the positive side is the great storytelling, like the one about Mojo.

This is a good story, but it did take a while to read due to how the story flowed and the dialogue. I found the idea and the intrigue/action quite interesting and was entertained for the whole book wanting to know who was at fault. The characters were colorful and quite strong in their delivery. The jumps from scenes and the dialogue did trip me up through the whole story though as I could not tell if it was on purpose or editing matters. I also was still confused on some of the connections when I finished the book. However, I enjoyed the story as I love reading books that combine politics, views of government, action, romance and some type of military service!

Thank you for the chance to read this book and share my opinions!

What a pleasant surprise. This was a good read and a little different from many others. I must thank#Netgalley and #Mandevilla Press for giving me the opportunity to try Saving Paradise the first book about Pono Hawkins. Now I have to buy some more books by Mike Bond to see what adventures he will write.

The premise of Saving Paradise sounded good. Big Wind in Hawaii, great setting, probably action packed. It just didn't hit with me. The book came off as a bit too partisan and after the first third, I lost interest, al though I did finish the book. I thank Net Galley and the publisher for providing an ARC of this title.

This was a a great surf ride discussing the corruption in hawaii. As a resident, I can't wait to read what he writes about next.

Pono is a good person, an ex special forces soldier, excon and a great surfer. When he finds a body of a beautiful woman reporter while surfing, he can’t resist the urge to figure out who killed her. Sadly, this leads to a giant conspiracy to build windpower on Molokai and Lanai for the sole purpose of enriching backers from Hong Kong to the mainland. These backers are determined not to have the truth come out. Pono is a great character, as the other books are showing, and these have some wonderful insights into the Hawaiian ethos.

Amazing story. I'm sure that this picture of politicians, big business, and mafia-types is true to a certain extent. Politicians and big business connive to ruin the islands with hundreds of turbines for "clean" , "inexpensive" electricity. Trouble is, there is no wind to speak of where they plan to put these wind turbine. However, there is billions of dollars to be made by politicians and big business. They will stop at nothing to get their money. Really great, well written book. Recommended highly. Mike Bond is an author to take note of.