Scan barcode
megs_k's review against another edition
2.0
He lived his life at the edge of telling her. ~ Ron Carlson
wsk56's review against another edition
3.0
I would give it 3 1/2 stars if I could. Carlson reminds me of Hemingway at times, with spare writing and wonderful descriptions of the natural world. It is a literary mystery as well. The actual object of the mystery was kind of a mystery to me. I didn't quite understand the criminal aspect of the story very well. But, that didn't stop me from enjoying the plot and the resolution of the story. It's a fast read and satisfying in many ways.
liberrydude's review against another edition
4.0
Read this based on a newspaper review. Was expecting a thriller but it was only 185 pages or so-less is best. It's a gem of Western storytelling much like the works of Annie Proulx, Cormac McCarthy, or Norman Maclean. Vivid imagery and an alternating movement between past and present of the protagonist's life play out during what was supposed to be an introspective annual outing with an ex but turns into something out of "Deliverance."
shimmer's review
4.0
The Signal creates such an evocative, engrossing sense of place that it made me want to stop reading and take a hike. There's great tension between the characters' desire for a pristine, wild place and the realities of needing to work and get by and often needing to leave your preferred landscape to do so, and without getting didactic Carlson raises some powerful questions about how the corruption of a place can corrupt everyone in it (with the exception of the hunting guide Clay, still doing things the way he always has, a character who didn't feel underdeveloped but I would have been glad to read more of), whether it's a marriage that's ruined or a bad deed done for the sake of staying in the place we want be and pretending it hasn't changed (probably too vague, but I'm trying not to give much away). While the ending was fairly disappointing — not in what happened, but in how rushed and underdeveloped it felt after the gradual rise of tension through the rest of the story — overall I still really enjoyed reading this.
wordlover's review
4.0
An intimate, melancholy, sensitive thriller - shades of Straw Dogs and Deliverance.
alanfederman's review
3.0
One of my all time favorite books was an earlier one by Ron Carlson called 'Five Skies', so I couldn't wait to read this one. His writing is consistent, sparse and evocative of the open expanses of the west; however the story came across as contrived and not as powerful as 'Five Skies'. Still a great read nonetheless.
karend's review
3.0
This is set in the area around Jackson, Wyoming, and it was fun to hear places mentioned that I've been on ski trips. The story was not so much fun, but it was interesting and a bit sad yet not depressing. I think it would have been better without some of the more action-adventurey elements in the plot.
More...