Woody
I found this long out of print novel in a hotel in Switzerland.
This is lightweight fiction, somewhat in the style of the English crime novel. The story moves from Paris to London to Venice. A fast entertaining read.
Benaquista's first novel. The plots have surreal/magical/fantasy elements that are not very believable, but you are so taken with the author's naive charm and warm style, that you don't mind too much.
Much like the first book in the Adamsberg series, this book is full of wacky characters in unlikely circumstances. The werewolf theme and the rustic settings in eastern France add to the charm of this book.
The book is slow in the middle, as the characters (and perhaps the author) thrash around looking for the villain. The book ends with a clever twist, which seems to be standard for Vargas.
I'm looking forward to reading more of her odd detective stories.
Proto-feminist book which critiques French and Western culture through the eyes of a Peruvian princess.
Great fun from an amazing mind! Perelman has an intimidating vocabulary and a masterly command of the English language.
Very frothy vacation reading. Plot holes big enough to drive a truck load of incredulity through. Sometimes florid prose. Still, an entertaining read.
This is a great adventure story and it offers insights into the culture and history of this region.
Very entertaining. Full of dark humor and wry wit. Le Carré if le Carré had a sense of humor and was 30% less depressed.
A mad, confused, masterful work. It's hard to find anything to compare this to. Nabokov intimidates with his inventiveness and his mastery of a language that is not even his first tongue.
This is the second book in the Rebus series, and much better than the first. With this one, the author has really gotten it right. I look forward to reading more books in this series.
One of the funniest books I've ever read. Thompson highlights the absurdity of politics. A great read.
Worst mystery book ever written. I did not know that a book could be this bad.
The characters in this “novel” are one-dimensional and razor-thin. The depictions of Paris are so full of silly stereotypes that it's hard to believe that Cara Black has actually been there. This book reads like a very badly-written postcard from a tourist.
Her characters are straight out of a comic book. Leduc is a caricature of a Frenchwoman; we see her constantly eating croissants, while smoking, drinking espresso, etc. The only thing she lacks is a beret and a poodle. What can I say about her assistant, who is an actual dwarf? In the hands of another writer, that detail could be turned into an interesting quirk. Here, it's just another WTF that the author seems to have thrown in for no good reason.
Black obviously didn't take the time to develop any of the background of the story. Leduc's computer skills have no basis in reality. Black throws in lots of made-up technical mumbo-jumbo that indicates she has absolutely no idea what she's talking about.
As far as the plot, it features Nazis. Really, Nazis, in contemporary Paris. Let's see.. Marais, traditional Jewish neighborhood... I know, we'll make it about Nazis! That must have taken about 2 minutes of thought.
This book should be used in writing classes as an example of what bad writing looks like. I would recommend that you read the first third of the book (you don't need to read any more), just for a laugh. But look for it at the library, don't pay for it!
This is a very good first novel, but laced with a lot of old-fashioned melodrama. I found the SAS/torture-as-training interlude to be very implausible. I'm eager to see where Rankin takes this character in future books.
A strange book. Not always gripping, but haunting. I think it's a book that I will remember and think about for a long time.
Another masterful book from Tana French. This book was gripping from start to finish, dark and tense in all the right places, and tender when it need to be. They don't get much more entertaining than this.
I'm a Hiassen fan, but this is not one of his better books. It might be time for Hiassen to switch it up and write something different. I feel that he's exhausted the Skink/crazy Floridans/corrupt politician space.
I didn't get far into the book before I bailed out. The writing was really awful. The characters were tissue-thin stereotypes with no hint of vitality. The plot quickly veered into laughably silly pseudoscience. This author seems to have a lot of followers, so maybe some of his other books are better. Not recommended if you are looking for a well-crafted novel.
This book had a slow start, but picked up the place midway through. The ending left a lot of unfinished business, but I assume this is by design. Translated books always lose a bit of their effectiveness. I assume that this is a good translation, but I found some of the language a little awkward. Otherwise, an entertaining read.
I read this book back in the 1970's when it was first published and I still remember it. It was a groundbreaking book with a gay protagonist. The fact that I remember it after so many years speaks to how memorable it is.
I thought this book was slower-moving than the earlier ones in the series. There are a lot of characters and several parallel plot lines. The ending is satisfying, but it took a while to get there.
This is not a good book. I don't know why the reviews are as positive as they are. The book is plodding and lacks character development. The characters are colorless and one-dimensional. You will find many better choices for books in this genre. I lost interest about a third of the way through the book and abandoned it.