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usbsticky's review against another edition
1.0
1 star = did not like it by GR's rating system
I dnf'd this book at 34%. And actually I should have known better since I've read a lot of Thomas Perry's books but this will be my last one. I generally like his books because they're very easy to read and get into. This one was no different.
Spoilers ahead:
Robert Mallon is a rich retired dude. He's at the beach and saves a young woman who tries to drown herself. She seems ok and goes back to his house where she seduces him. He goes out to buy dinner but she disappears. Two days later he finds out in the news that she has successfully committed suicide. He hires a private investigator and together they look into her history to find out more about her. So far so good.
About 30% into the book we are introduced to another character Marcia. At this point I don't know if this is a short interlude or parallel story. I gamely follow along just so that I get back to the main story but after reading a few chapters I'm still in this POV.
Thomas Perry has a habit of splitting his books into different POV's, sometimes it's ok. In the last Perry book that I dnf'd, he split his book into 3 POV's. In fact, he seemed to put so much effort into writing 3 stories that he forgot to put effort into giving character to his 3 characters. All 3 were shallow and I didn't care about them so I dnf'd.
With this book I just liked the original story and I didn't care about this Marcia character. I thought about just fast reading this POV to get back to the main story but I just didn't want to put the effort into it. Ugh. That's it, this will be my last Thomas Perry book.
I dnf'd this book at 34%. And actually I should have known better since I've read a lot of Thomas Perry's books but this will be my last one. I generally like his books because they're very easy to read and get into. This one was no different.
Spoilers ahead:
Robert Mallon is a rich retired dude. He's at the beach and saves a young woman who tries to drown herself. She seems ok and goes back to his house where she seduces him. He goes out to buy dinner but she disappears. Two days later he finds out in the news that she has successfully committed suicide. He hires a private investigator and together they look into her history to find out more about her. So far so good.
About 30% into the book we are introduced to another character Marcia. At this point I don't know if this is a short interlude or parallel story. I gamely follow along just so that I get back to the main story but after reading a few chapters I'm still in this POV.
Thomas Perry has a habit of splitting his books into different POV's, sometimes it's ok. In the last Perry book that I dnf'd, he split his book into 3 POV's. In fact, he seemed to put so much effort into writing 3 stories that he forgot to put effort into giving character to his 3 characters. All 3 were shallow and I didn't care about them so I dnf'd.
With this book I just liked the original story and I didn't care about this Marcia character. I thought about just fast reading this POV to get back to the main story but I just didn't want to put the effort into it. Ugh. That's it, this will be my last Thomas Perry book.
ecari's review against another edition
3.0
Perry never fails - great suspense, can't put it down. Definitely recommend as reading-candy!
claudetteb's review against another edition
5.0
One of his best outside of Metzer's Dog. Fast-paced, great characters, interesting all the way!
mrsboyko's review against another edition
4.0
Solid 4. This story takes a sharp turn in the middle of the book and I didn't see it coming.
hazelbright's review
5.0
Perry is kind of the Stanley Kubrick of fiction. There is always a barrier between the protagonist and the rest of the world. Often, this expresses itself in the form of some sort of identity change, but in this one, Mallon's innocence and uprightness make him the odd man out. It also gives him an edge. I love how all of Perry's characters are fully developed human beings, even the bad guys, who sometimes turn out to be bad guys I can't help liking. Perry also keeps the action at a maximum level and never ever tells instead of showing. Of course, these fundamentals of good writing are all-too-often neglected in many of the novels I read. It is such a joy to read work from a master like Perry.
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