I’d enjoyed two books written by this author (The Burning Girls and The Drift), both were mysteries that were somewhat different to those I normally rI’d enjoyed two books written by this author (The Burning Girls and The Drift), both were mysteries that were somewhat different to those I normally read - but in a good way, they surprised me and challenged me. So when I started reading this one - without first reading the blurb, just relying on my previous experiences with this writer - I quickly realised that there was a fantasy element here. Now, this is something I try to avoid. It’s something that really switches me off. But I pressed on, for a while…
Set in a small town in Alaska, a detective arrives to investigate a murder. But the twist is that a colony of Vampyrs have recently descended on the community and housed themselves nearby, outside of the town. Twenty-five five year, ago there had been a murder attributed to such a c, lony and the residents of the town had been uneasy about this new group’s arrival, to say the least. This death has all the hallmarks of the previous event. The town residents have already made up their minds andhell-bent bent ‘culling’ the Vampyr community. The visiting cop, though, isn’t so sure.
The characters introduced in the early part of the story are generally strong. I particularly liked the police officer sent to investigate the latest death, a Vampyr specialist - a doctor, in fact. Others, such as the police chief and ex-police , hief are interesting too. But I just couldn’t get past the fact that the book was essentially about Vampyrs and their relationship with humans.
I feel like I’ve cheated the book somewhat as it’s not something I’d have picked up had I read the blurb. So I’m going to award it three stars, even though I usually award only one star for any book I fail to finish. The reason for this is simply that, based on the portion I read, I think for the right aud, ence this story might work well. It’s just not for me.
My thanks to Penguin, Random House for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review....more
I’d been a fan of Jack Reacher for a long time, having read and enjoyed Lee Child’s books for years. But then the very average Night School (#21) was I’d been a fan of Jack Reacher for a long time, having read and enjoyed Lee Child’s books for years. But then the very average Night School (#21) was followed, a few episodes later, by the truly terrible Blue Moon (#24). I left him alone after that. That is until I spotted a cheap Audible deal on this one. Perhaps I was being too harsh, every author is due a misstep or two aren’t they? And this book is the first joint undertaking with Lee’s younger brother, Andrew. Perhaps it’ll herald a return to form.
Unfortunately not. This tale is dull from the start. Reacher does his normal thing: turning up in a small town, helping out a man who’s in a spot of trouble, getting into an argument with local law enforcement and then sticking around to try to fix a problem he doesn’t yet understand. Conversations are completed in short, awkward sentences and sometimes ‘Reacher said nothing’. Yes, it’s the same old same old. But less interesting than before.
I gave up quite early on and I’m annoyed I wasted a couple of quid on this one. I won’t be going back....more
My first DNF of the year. I’ve enjoyed Deaver’s Colter Shaw novels, featuring the son of a survivalist who earns his living by collecting rewards offeMy first DNF of the year. I’ve enjoyed Deaver’s Colter Shaw novels, featuring the son of a survivalist who earns his living by collecting rewards offered for missing people - he’s an expert at finding them. The stories tend to be complex and surprising even if the action does tick the ‘unlikely’ box. But in short form (as this one is) it all feels too cramped and as a result way too confusing. I gave up about two thirds of the way in and one star is my standard for any book I fail to finish....more
Ellory is one of my favourite mystery/thriller writers. Born in Birmingham, England, he typically sets his stories in America and presents them with aEllory is one of my favourite mystery/thriller writers. Born in Birmingham, England, he typically sets his stories in America and presents them with an authentic voice. He’s written some of the best books in this genre I’ve ever read - and I’ve read quite a few. But this one…
I grabbed an audio version read by the normally reliable Jeff Harding and quickly realised that it was a big mistake. Reason one: Jeff’s lazy, monotone delivery is the worst performance I’ve come across in quite a while, a real shock. Reason two: the story crawls along at a snails pace with dull characters punctuating just about every sentence with Southern wisdoms they’d clearly had passed down from their grandma. After a couple of hours I could stand no more.
I’ve stopped trying to wade through it - I might go back to it, but I doubt it.
If you want to read/listen to Ellory at his best, try one of these:
I’ll keep this short. I found the whole thing a battle, and I gave up less than a quarter of the way in. In some ways it’s a pity as I think the book I’ll keep this short. I found the whole thing a battle, and I gave up less than a quarter of the way in. In some ways it’s a pity as I think the book started well, with enough mystery surrounding the meeting of a man and a woman to draw me in. But then – for me, at least - it deteriorated into tedium, as descriptions of mundane events and dull interactions started to make me ever more reluctant to read on. I tried several times to re-engage, but I just couldn’t find anything to engage with. Sorry, but this one just didn’t float my boat.
I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in return for an honest review....more
At school I was required to study two of the Bard’s plays: the one known as The Scottish Play and Twelfth Night. I found the former a real struggle anAt school I was required to study two of the Bard’s plays: the one known as The Scottish Play and Twelfth Night. I found the former a real struggle and way too grim but rather enjoyed the humour in the latter. But I’ve never returned to Shakespeare’s work, in truth I just find the language rather impenetrable, just too much like hard work to battle through. But I am somewhat curious about the man considered perhaps the finest writer of them all and I’ve long admired Bryson’s ability to tell a story, so why not give this exploration a go.
The first thing I noted is that not much is actually known about the man, not much at all. A good deal of what has been written or spoken about him by others is essentially based on supposition or is even pure guesswork. Therefore the story of his life here is very slim pickings indeed. There’s then quite a lot about his work: the order it was written (also not really known), how it was staged (cheaply and with very few frills) and some context on the London he lived in and other writers who might be considered his rivals.
At this point, perhaps half way through or maybe a little less, I started to feel about this book as I did about the play you’re not supposed to name - i.e. it was failing to pique my interest sufficiently to motivate me carry on ploughing through it. I gave up. It’s not that it’s a bad book or that I feel that it won’t suit others – I really think it will for those that have a real interest in the man or his work - it’s just that it wasn’t working for me.
I’ve upped my standard one star award for books I fail to finish as I’m blaming myself here for picking a book that really wasn’t suited to me. ...more
I have mixed history with Scalzi: I loved The Dispatcher but hated Lock In. In fact I’m a bit picky with sci-fi generally, having a penchant for timI have mixed history with Scalzi: I loved The Dispatcher but hated Lock In. In fact I’m a bit picky with sci-fi generally, having a penchant for time travel (I know, some consider this a different genre) and stories I can get my limited imagination around. Generally, monsters and too clever gizmos turn me cold. So perhaps I made a mistake in choosing this one – it’s big on monsters.
I’m not going to delve too deeply into the plot, suffice to say that an unemployed sci-fi ‘expert’ finds himself transported to a parallel Earth in which humongous flying creatures are considered a species heading for extinction and therefore worthy of treatment that in this Earth are afforded to Giant Pandas. There’s a lot of science here, a good deal of humour and a posse of characters with PhDs.
I only made it a third of the way through: the humour didn’t work for me - I prefer my sci-if to be on the serious side - but mainly it was the monsters, I just couldn’t buy into them or, in fact, the overall premise of this tale. I’ve seen some reviews from readers who absolutely love this book and I’m tempted to say that I made an error on picking a book that included elements I was never going to appreciate. My bad, so I’m awarding this one an extra star (I normally award only one star to any book I fail to finish).
My thanks to Pan MacMillan for providing a copy of this book via NetGalley in return for an honest review....more
**spoiler alert** Full disclosure – I didn’t finish this book, and I only award one star to books that fail to engage me enough to get me to the end.
T**spoiler alert** Full disclosure – I didn’t finish this book, and I only award one star to books that fail to engage me enough to get me to the end.
This book is a sequel to The Circle a tale focussed on ‘the world’s most powerful internet company’. Well, now that company has been swallowed up by an even bigger concern and Delaney Wells is on a mission to destroy this big-tech behemoth from the inside. I got through the part where she’d been through a tortuous recruitment process, and she was now undergoing her induction, and it’s here that I pulled the plug. In fact, I rested it for a bit and tried to pick it up again but got a little further before setting it aside once more.
The introduction seemed interesting enough, if not eerily familiar from the first book. But the next section just seemed to consist of lists of required behavioural compliances for employees and details of the comprehensive surveillance they would be subjected to. Mainly, I was put off by a mix of the awkward humour employed and the sense that just about every vaguely controversial element currently doing the rounds had been thrown into the pot: from overt wokeism to big-tech seeking to monopolise the marketplace - and all stops in between. I’m concerned about these things, of course I am, but I didn’t like the tone of the story and didn’t fancy working through a further 15 hours of audio with a group of characters I already disliked.
Sorry, Mr Eggers, a worthy and clever tome this might well be, but it’s not my cup of tea....more
I’m a huge fan of Paul Theroux’s writing, both his fiction and his non-fiction, particular his many travelogues. I’d recently read, and loved, his latI’m a huge fan of Paul Theroux’s writing, both his fiction and his non-fiction, particular his many travelogues. I’d recently read, and loved, his latest novel Under the Wave at Waimea, also set I Hawaii. I expected to like this book, possibly to love it. But it just didn’t work out that way.
The story of a writer who takes a job managing a down at heel hotel started off well enough but, for me, it quickly ran out of steam. There are some interesting characters, such as the irascible and uncouth the hotel owner, and it seems the each of the hotel’s eighty rooms spawns its own story. And yet there just wasn’t anything tangible for me to hang my hat on. The stories of the guests weren’t really grabbing me and I didn’t find enough here to invest in the writer or his family either. I stuck with it for about the first quarter of the book and then called time.
I won’t be giving up on Theroux but I consider this book a rare failure. A single star is my standard award for any book I fail to finish....more
I was worried about picking up a book centred on a pandemic, I mean the timing is interesting isn’t it. But two things quickly became clear:
1. The panI was worried about picking up a book centred on a pandemic, I mean the timing is interesting isn’t it. But two things quickly became clear:
1. The pandemic here is different - it only kills men 2. The whole thing feels completely tongue-in-cheek and is impossible to take seriously
Cole and her son Miles escape a camp in California set up to protect and exploit some of the few remaining males - semen is gold. We’re not yet clear on the details but it seems that during the escape Cole may have killed her sister, Billie.
Young Miles become Mila (i.e. he takes on the identity of a girl) as they make a Wacky Races style run for Canada, or maybe somewhere else if that won’t work. The early scenes are actually pretty good aided by flashbacks that allow us a glimpse of their previous lives and how the pandemic got a hold. And now we learn that Billie is alive (barely) and in hot pursuit.
Early on, my issue was that I found the exchanges between Cole and Miles/Mila irritating: the attempts at humour in their banter failed to hit the mark for me and the whole mood of the dialogue just felt off. I battled on, but when I came to a section where the pair became part of a travelling circus of saviour nuns I began to skim and soon after that I gave up at around two-thirds of my way through the book.
In truth, I’m not sure what audience this book is aimed at – young adults perhaps? And maybe I'm just struggling to see the funny side of a pandemic at the moment (my bad if that's the case!). Either way, this story definitely wasn’t what I was expecting and though I had a decent go at working through it I’d actually been tempted to set it aside from quite early on. Sorry, this one really wasn’t my cup of tea.
My thanks to Penguin UK and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review....more
I’ve so enjoyed Robert Wilson’s books featuring Seville based detective Javier Falcon that I thought I’d try another of his series, this time followinI’ve so enjoyed Robert Wilson’s books featuring Seville based detective Javier Falcon that I thought I’d try another of his series, this time following the adventures of a British kidnap recovery specialist, Charles Boxer. Ex-army and ex-police too, Boxer is recruited by Indian tycoon Francisco D’Cruz to retrieve his daughter who’s been grabbed by members of the London underworld. In fact, the early sections of the book set up things pretty well, with a good mix of action and enough background to provide a base for the protracted negations I’d assumed would follow.
Unfortunately, the author clearly thought more would be more and began introducing enough additional characters to befuddle my (admittedly fragile) memory. I just couldn’t keep up: an ex-wife comes in to help Boxer, then a copper who’s about as welcome as flu at Christmas is added to the cast, quickly followed by more members of the London underground, some Indian mobsters and religious fanatics. And now the kidnap victim is getting moved around like a kiddie’s game of pass the parcel. Way too many people and way too many twists for my appetite.
It probably didn’t help that in the audio version I listened to a couple of the London criminals were played out in voices that made them sound like a southern imitation of the Chuckle Brothers. After a dozen or more hours one final twist did me in, I couldn’t cope with yet another unlikely and, frankly, unwelcome surprise intervention. I was done.
My own rule is to provide a standard rating for books I fail to finish, so one star it is. ...more
It starts off with a bang, well quite a few bangs actually: a Day Trader goes gun crazy in a Melbourne office building, shooting the place up and killIt starts off with a bang, well quite a few bangs actually: a Day Trader goes gun crazy in a Melbourne office building, shooting the place up and killing a bunch of fellow traders. Ok, so this might be interesting…
Next we’re introduced to a pair of investigators who, we assume, will be dragged in to work on the case in some capacity. Gentle is the brains and Tusk is the muscle. They’re not exactly established PI’s, but we learn that they came together, somewhat by accident, to work a prior case - this story having been told in an earlier book. And it’s this preceding book that is to haunt events here as multiple references are made to people and events from earlier times. I found this a little confusing and somewhat frustrating; it felt like I was watching a television series from episode two and had missed key bits of the action and I couldn’t quite work out the dynamic in some of the relationships.
But back to the story, and almost immediately the narrative felt somewhat fractured and jerky, I just couldn’t settle into rhythm of it. There are loads of characters here and I kept getting lost (a particular issue for me when there is anything more than about half a dozen names to deal with). I didn’t particularly warm to the two investigators either, especially the geeky Gentle. But I stuck with it for a while hoping that I’d adapt to it’s flow and start to appreciate something here. Unfortunately, that didn’t happen and I eventually gave up, something less than half way through.
I’ve gotten into Aussie authors lately, having really enjoyed Jane Harper and Liane Moriarty particularly. And the setting here promised more of the same, with some straight talking characters and just a different feel to that experienced when reading British and American based crime fiction. Unfortunately, this one just didn’t work for me. Would I have felt differently if I’d have read book one of this series first? Possibly, but there wasn’t really anything here that grabbed me enough to prompt me to look that one up. Sorry, but one star is really all I’m able to offer any book I fail to complete.
Book supplied by Reedsy in exchange for an honest review....more
I’ll start by saying that I only ever award a one-star review to books I fail to finish, and I didn’t manage to get all the way through this one. I diI’ll start by saying that I only ever award a one-star review to books I fail to finish, and I didn’t manage to get all the way through this one. I did try, in fact I got to almost the half-way point before it defeated me. It was the style of writing as much as anything, it just didn’t grab me: too much talk and too little action and I felt that the semi-comic verbal jousting between the main characters dominated the pages and got in the way of the story.
So what of the story? Fans of this series (this is the twelfth book) will be aware that Lydia Chin is a Chinese born private detective living and working in NYC. Her partner is a big white Southern boy called Bill Smith. Lydia is advised by her mother that an unknown (to her) cousin has been arrested for the murder of her equally unknown uncle. She’s dispatched off to a small town in the Mississippi Delta to solve the case and free her up the cousin, who is presumed to be innocent by Chin’s mother.
Now I like crime fiction stories and I prefer these to be played out in an American setting. I’m also fascinated by the Deep South, so this book really should really have been right up my street. But it never really got off the ground. At the point I closed it down and reached for an alternative offering very little of any consequence had happened and I’d tired of the yarns regarding why the Chinese had set up grocery stores across the Delta and how the tensions between the various racial groups who populate the area continue to play out. No tension was created and it just seemed to be meandering along, going nowhere. I found the whole thing unconvincing and dull. And I confess that I found Chin and Smith irritating. I’m sure that there are many readers who will lap this one up, but it’s not my cup of tea I’m afraid.
My thanks to Pegasus Books and NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review....more
I really admire this writer. I’d go as far as to say that a couple of his books are amongst my all time favourites: Dirty Love and Townie. But I just I really admire this writer. I’d go as far as to say that a couple of his books are amongst my all time favourites: Dirty Love and Townie. But I just couldn’t get on with this one. Yes, it’s lyrical and gritty and the characters are interesting – what more could you want, I hear you ask. Well something that doesn’t read like a long monologue for starters. Take a breath, Andre! Give me some dialogue, I love dialogue. And what about a change of mood every now and then – this book is just so remorselessly depressing.
I listened to this on audio, read by the author. His decision to read it himself was probably not the best, he has a dreary and somewhat monotone delivery. I’d already given it ten hours but I just couldn’t face it any more (there’s something like nine hours left). I gave up. I might go back to it but I doubt it.
Biggest disappointment of the year. I was so looking forward to this one....more
I confess that I really struggled with this book. It's not that I think it a bad book, rather I think it's a book I was incapable of fully appreciatinI confess that I really struggled with this book. It's not that I think it a bad book, rather I think it's a book I was incapable of fully appreciating. Not my style, too outlandish? No, not really either of these. I like books that commence with an event that so disturbs our world that it is forever significantly changed (in this case it was a disease, of which more later). It does require a leap of faith to accept the new world, but I was up for that too and fully willing to jump in neck deep and determined to go with the flow.
A disease that starts off with flu-like symptoms has swept the world and millions of people have been infected. Many have died but some have survived. Of the survivors, a proportion have been locked-in. That is to say, their minds are intact but they are unable to use their bodies. But it's not quite as disastrous as this sounds as the locked-in people are able to use one of two options (or maybe both of them) to live a life much closer to normal than one could imagine. Option one is to effectively live life through a robot which has humanoid-style body. But this gets better because they can swap robots like we can exchange hire cars and in this way can leap about the globe with some ease and at rapid pace. Option two is to effectively inhabit the body of a willing survivor of the disease for periods – i.e. one that hasn't been locked-in – and in this way experience life through a borrowed body. I've left out some of the fine detail here, but I'm sure you get the drift.
We follow one locked-in survivor from his first day as an FBI agent – yes, that’s right they can hold down jobs too – and a very busy day it is. And up to this point I was still with it – hanging in a bit, but still there. But then it started to get much more complex as things happened and more and more characters entered the frame. I began to have my doubts as to whether my imagination could accept the ever growing list of skills available to our lead man. But more disturbingly I realised that I didn't really care where this was going because I hadn't really become invested in the outcome for any of the characters. I hung in a bit longer but it just wasn't working for me. I gave up.
So what was the real problem here? Well two key issues for me were: 1) my personal dislike of stories with over-complex plots and a cast of thousands, and 2) it was starting to feel like one of those books where every problem is resolved by the disclosure of yet another new invention that just happens to fit this precise scenario. I hate both of these. The other problem was that it just became boring.
I'm afraid my rigid scoring system only allows one outcome for an unfinished book – so one star it is....more
I only got about 20% of the way through this one. But do keep in mind that it’s a big book: over 500 pages or 21 hours of listening. I don’t like giviI only got about 20% of the way through this one. But do keep in mind that it’s a big book: over 500 pages or 21 hours of listening. I don’t like giving up on books and I’d really enjoyed her 2014 novel Night Film so I did try to stay with it. The problem is that though there’s a relatively enticing story here, the telling is just so protracted, so tiresome that I lost the will.
It kicks off by introducing 24-year-old Blue van Meer who’d lost her mother early (car accident) and is now touring America with her father, moving from one academic outpost to the next. At the point I gave up, Blue had already flagged another death and had introduced us to the fated lady. The story was working its way – very slowly – the the point of her demise.
I think it’s the style as much as the pontification that got to me. It really is like listening to the ramblings of a twenty-something: chuntering on, using lots of words - far too many for the point being made. The whole thing is just blathering away without making any significant progress.
Some reviewers have compared this book to The Secret History. I can see the similarities, but Donna Tartt’s book, although flawed, did grab me more and made me stay with it. This is a book that readers will either love or hate, I feel. I think I’ve nailed my colours to the mast on that one....more
The tale of a machine that mysteriously writes a message on your arm – a message that alerts you to something significant, a message thaUpdate 15/1/18
The tale of a machine that mysteriously writes a message on your arm – a message that alerts you to something significant, a message that is seeking to steer you. Well that sounds interesting enough. The trouble is that the idea here is better than the execution. Well, in truth, I base this view on the first 50 pages only as this is as far as I got before something - no, not a tattoo on my arm - told me enough was enough.
Maybe it’s that I’ve got no staying power on maybe it’s just that this book is a load of drivel – I’m not sure. There are some good lines here and one or two interesting characters, but it all keeps jumping around and it’s full of literary references that are way too obscure and tangled for my uneducated brain.
I’ve picked it up read a few pages and put it down again half a dozen times, but eventually I didn’t want to pick it up again. It’s a pity, because there just might be a good story in here somewhere. No matter, time to move on. My first DNF of the year. ----------------------------------------- 31/12/17
Some years ago I read Pollock’s novel The Devil All the Time and loved it. The darkness of it was so different to anything else I’d read and the storSome years ago I read Pollock’s novel The Devil All the Time and loved it. The darkness of it was so different to anything else I’d read and the story of this rural southern American town with its cast of bizarre characters really appealed to me. I subsequently picked up his first book Knockemstiff which I liked but didn’t love. But I knew that Pollock definitely had something, an ability to give life to a cast of underdogs and strugglers who strive for the opportunity to drag themselves out of the lives they currently live, to attain something a little better for themselves.
In truth, I’ve had this book sat on my Kindle for two or three years and something has stopped me from opening it up – a sense of foreboding, perhaps. But I eventually succumbed and was immediately immersed, once more, in the world of the downtrodden and the desperate. I was introduced to two families who are experiencing hard times, in the early 1900’s. And when I say hard times I mean really hard times, family members dying and barely enough food to sustain those who have survived hard times. In fact, if they are to pull through then things would have to change, and change dramatically. This was all being played out against a backdrop of WWI kicking off in a far distant country few have ever heard of and of America starting to recruit troops in order to play their part in combat.
It was at this point, about a quarter of the way through the book, that I came to the conclusion that I just wasn’t enjoying it. Maybe my reluctance to pick up another Pollock book had been driven by the knowledge that I needed to be in a certain frame of mind to properly appreciate it, or was it just that the grim mixed in with a good dose of black humour is a combination that doesn’t really float my boat? I could appreciate the skill being demonstrated in the way the story was being woven but I just couldn’t settle to the themes and the overall atmosphere of it. I found it depressing. I gave up.
My standard rating for a book I fail to finish is one star, and that’s what I’ve awarded here. However, I know that many readers – those who appreciate the elements whose charms I found myself impervious to – will find much to enjoy and admire here. Good luck to those readers, but this one was not for me....more
I was attracted to this book by a number of rave reviews. And it was cheap (Audible daily deal). And I like time travel and apocalyptic tales – both bI was attracted to this book by a number of rave reviews. And it was cheap (Audible daily deal). And I like time travel and apocalyptic tales – both boxes this one purported to tick. For a while I thought I'd struck gold, as three tales concerning people executing extraordinary deeds of bravery were told in quick succession. I loved these vignettes – each character was brilliantly brought to life and the accounts of the deeds themselves were expertly told. I was sucked in big time. Each of these episodes ended ambiguously: did our heroes survive, will they live to fight another day or to enjoy the life they plainly deserve? I’ll leave you guessing on that one, suffice to say at this point the story changed tack - and mood.
The next section – the final section I endured – featured a man, who had appeared in a cameo role previously, and his team of gormless assistants. The premiss of this change of direction was good but the execution was terrible. We'd gone from gripping scenes filled with tension and high drama to slapstick humour and barely credible actions. This team – a team who were out to save the world, no less – were like something out of the Keystone Cops! It was bizarre and not remotely funny.
I ploughed on thinking that it had to get better, that brilliant start surely couldn't be wasted, could it? It could. It was. I simply can't understand why such a taught, gripping start was allowed to drift into this dross. As the saying goes: less is more. That is, less of this rubbish and more of something else. A DNF for me....more
Let me be clear, I only award one star to books I fail to finish. I failed to finish this book. In fact, I’d barely started it – I was probably no morLet me be clear, I only award one star to books I fail to finish. I failed to finish this book. In fact, I’d barely started it – I was probably no more than an hour into this chunky seventeen-hour audio version. And I don’t think I’ve ever given up any book that early.
The problems for me were:
1. I didn’t understand much of it 2. I didn’t like the bits I did understand
I’ve subsequently tried to read a couple reviews of the book, published in newspapers I respect, to see what I am missing out on. But it seems that the learned journalists whose observations I fell upon were keen to engage in erudite discussion that left me as cold as the book itself.
I do believe that many readers will find much to admire within the pages of this novel, but I’m done with it. I’ve filed it away on a shelf marked ‘life is too short’....more