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lucian_childs's review against another edition
3.0
File this book under the category of a romp/literary thriller, not exactly a who-done-it, but a how-does-this-crazy-thing-end.
I confess up front, this kind of book isn’t really my thing. The short chapters, almost always ending on a button, as screenwriters say, or a cliffhanger, grow wearisome over three hundred plus pages. Ferguson’s wordsmithing, delectably noirish and hardboiled, is, often to a fault, itching to please. Aren’t all writers trying, at bottom, merely to entertain, even us snotty literary types? We hide the vaudeville under our vaunted observational prose, whereas the thriller writer is unabashed, inviting the reader to sit back and revel as the gears turn.
Ferguson is a winner of a Giller Prize, no less, and his stylish, inventive prose powerfully delves into the humanity of his characters, into the particulars of the book’s many exotic locations. It’s just all at the service of so much nonsense.
What nonsense, you say? An international mastermind, a finder of lost, and therefore immensely valuable, things, who will stop at nothing and who at times may not even exist, ensnares a raft of characters in his diabolical schemes.
Still, all the international settings, the insights into the worlds of travel writing and conflict reporting, all the buttons and cliffhangers did their duty, kept me flipping the pages until the end, however hastily. In the middle of a one-hundred-year pandemic with a seemingly interminable amount of time on our hands, a good romp may be just what we all need.
View all my reviews
I confess up front, this kind of book isn’t really my thing. The short chapters, almost always ending on a button, as screenwriters say, or a cliffhanger, grow wearisome over three hundred plus pages. Ferguson’s wordsmithing, delectably noirish and hardboiled, is, often to a fault, itching to please. Aren’t all writers trying, at bottom, merely to entertain, even us snotty literary types? We hide the vaudeville under our vaunted observational prose, whereas the thriller writer is unabashed, inviting the reader to sit back and revel as the gears turn.
Ferguson is a winner of a Giller Prize, no less, and his stylish, inventive prose powerfully delves into the humanity of his characters, into the particulars of the book’s many exotic locations. It’s just all at the service of so much nonsense.
What nonsense, you say? An international mastermind, a finder of lost, and therefore immensely valuable, things, who will stop at nothing and who at times may not even exist, ensnares a raft of characters in his diabolical schemes.
Still, all the international settings, the insights into the worlds of travel writing and conflict reporting, all the buttons and cliffhangers did their duty, kept me flipping the pages until the end, however hastily. In the middle of a one-hundred-year pandemic with a seemingly interminable amount of time on our hands, a good romp may be just what we all need.
View all my reviews
jlynnoh5's review against another edition
4.0
I am always happy to read and review Canadian content. Will Ferguson is one author who I find never disappoints. Former winner of the Scotiabank Giller Prize, his newest release, The Finder (released September 1) is a globe hopping, mysterious thrill ride.
From the publisher – The world is filled with wonders, lost objects—all real—all still out there, waiting to be found: the missing Fabergé eggs of the Romanov dynasty (worth millions), the last reel of Alfred Hitchcock’s first film, Buddy Holly’s iconic glasses and Muhammad Ali’s Olympic gold medal.
How can such cherished objects simply vanish? Where are they hiding? And who on earth might be compelled to uncover them?
Will Ferguson takes readers on a heroic, imaginative journey across continents, from the seas of southern Japan, to the arid Australian Outback, to the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, after the earthquake. Prepare to meet Gaddy Rhodes, a brittle Interpol agent obsessed with tracking “The Finder”—a shadowy figure she believes is collecting lost objects; Thomas Rafferty, a burnt-out travel writer whose path crosses that of The Finder, to devastating effect; and Tamsin Greene, a swaggering war photographer who is hiding secrets of her own.
The Finder is a beguiling and wildly original tale about the people, places, and things that are lost and found in our world. Both an epic literary adventure and an escape into a darkly thrilling world of deceit and its rewards, this novel asks: How far would you be willing to go to recover the things you’ve left behind?
I enjoyed this novel overall. Ferguson creates some interesting and dynamic characters and ties them together through their interactions with the mysterious “Finder,” a man who finds missing items of historical significance (Faberge eggs, Buddy Holly’s glasses) and sells them to the highest bidder. The author’s ability to craft engaging and developed dialogue helps the story to move forward and generate interest in the journeys of each individual. All of these characters are searching for their own “lost” things (relationships, memories, personal artifacts). These personal journeys tie in nicely to the overall hunt for the mysterious “Finder.” While it appears the author finds the most connection with Thomas Rafferty (the travel writer) who is given the most text time, I found Interpol agent Gaddy Rhodes to be the most engaging of the novel’s characters and would have loved to learn even more of her background.
Despite my enjoyment of the characters, there were moments while reading where I found my attention wandering. Ferguson combines so many plot points and so many locations that the narrative becomes bogged down at points.
Ferguson’s own experience as a travel writer is evident throughout the novel (Rafferty’s character notwithstanding). It spans several locations around the globe, including Christchurch, New Zealand during the aftermath of the devastating earthquake, Hateruma, a small island on the tip of Japan and the Australian Outback. The reader will appreciate the attention to detail as it transports the reader to each of these locations while the search for “The Finder” intensifies.
Overall, I would recommend this novel if you are a fan of slow burning mystery-thrillers.
From the publisher – The world is filled with wonders, lost objects—all real—all still out there, waiting to be found: the missing Fabergé eggs of the Romanov dynasty (worth millions), the last reel of Alfred Hitchcock’s first film, Buddy Holly’s iconic glasses and Muhammad Ali’s Olympic gold medal.
How can such cherished objects simply vanish? Where are they hiding? And who on earth might be compelled to uncover them?
Will Ferguson takes readers on a heroic, imaginative journey across continents, from the seas of southern Japan, to the arid Australian Outback, to the city of Christchurch, New Zealand, after the earthquake. Prepare to meet Gaddy Rhodes, a brittle Interpol agent obsessed with tracking “The Finder”—a shadowy figure she believes is collecting lost objects; Thomas Rafferty, a burnt-out travel writer whose path crosses that of The Finder, to devastating effect; and Tamsin Greene, a swaggering war photographer who is hiding secrets of her own.
The Finder is a beguiling and wildly original tale about the people, places, and things that are lost and found in our world. Both an epic literary adventure and an escape into a darkly thrilling world of deceit and its rewards, this novel asks: How far would you be willing to go to recover the things you’ve left behind?
I enjoyed this novel overall. Ferguson creates some interesting and dynamic characters and ties them together through their interactions with the mysterious “Finder,” a man who finds missing items of historical significance (Faberge eggs, Buddy Holly’s glasses) and sells them to the highest bidder. The author’s ability to craft engaging and developed dialogue helps the story to move forward and generate interest in the journeys of each individual. All of these characters are searching for their own “lost” things (relationships, memories, personal artifacts). These personal journeys tie in nicely to the overall hunt for the mysterious “Finder.” While it appears the author finds the most connection with Thomas Rafferty (the travel writer) who is given the most text time, I found Interpol agent Gaddy Rhodes to be the most engaging of the novel’s characters and would have loved to learn even more of her background.
Despite my enjoyment of the characters, there were moments while reading where I found my attention wandering. Ferguson combines so many plot points and so many locations that the narrative becomes bogged down at points.
Ferguson’s own experience as a travel writer is evident throughout the novel (Rafferty’s character notwithstanding). It spans several locations around the globe, including Christchurch, New Zealand during the aftermath of the devastating earthquake, Hateruma, a small island on the tip of Japan and the Australian Outback. The reader will appreciate the attention to detail as it transports the reader to each of these locations while the search for “The Finder” intensifies.
Overall, I would recommend this novel if you are a fan of slow burning mystery-thrillers.
smittenforfiction's review
4.0
Hey book lovers! I'm here with a book review for The Finder by Will Ferguson (author of 419 and The Shoe on the Roof). I received a complimentary arc from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
About The Book
jeffrossbooks's review against another edition
3.0
This one felt like it was going to be great and then didn't live up to my expectations. It is 100% a good book. Likely many people will really enjoy it. The motion of it, how quickly it moved around the world, was great for the days we are currently living in. For me, though, I was looking for something that stayed a little more rooted. I always hate to give a book a less than stellar review because I believed it would be one thing and it was something else. That's on me, not the book.
It's well written, interesting, and moves fantastically quickly. I would like to take another read of this sometime, maybe a few years from now, while I'm on a plane. Then this read will be a memory and I imagine I would enjoy it much more.
It's well written, interesting, and moves fantastically quickly. I would like to take another read of this sometime, maybe a few years from now, while I'm on a plane. Then this read will be a memory and I imagine I would enjoy it much more.
melledotca's review against another edition
3.0
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC. I'm left a little confused by this book. It feels very much like a love letter to travel and to the world's places - the renowned and the remote. I particularly liked what was set in New Zealand and Australia, having spent time and having people there.
Place and history feel like the main characters and drivers of this book. The actual people/characters don't. They're not two-dimensional, and almost all could anchor another novel. I just... found myself wondering at times why they're there. I didn't quite get many of their motivations, including the big one ostensibly driving the story along. The premise of the book is super interesting – lost objects of great significance (at least to some) – and who might be the person to recover them. And who doesn't love the romance and drama of an almost Carmen Sandiego-esque international chase? Or chases in this case.
I think this novel could actually have been a gorgeous collection of short stories. I suspect as it settles with me that's more the shape it will take in my brain, each character/plot line/vignette taking up its own space, texture, and colouration.
I also think that having an evening of drinks with Will Ferguson and hearing his stories would provide a great deal of context and drive behind writing the book, which are hinted at at the end. But he's a travel writer, c'mon, you know there are SO many more tales and additional easter eggs he didn't really reveal but for those who'd privately recognize them.
Having started reading Ferguson a million years ago with his Canadian-centric humour work, it's always interesting and surprising to see where he goes now with his novels. This one just didn't really hit for me.
Place and history feel like the main characters and drivers of this book. The actual people/characters don't. They're not two-dimensional, and almost all could anchor another novel. I just... found myself wondering at times why they're there. I didn't quite get many of their motivations, including the big one ostensibly driving the story along. The premise of the book is super interesting – lost objects of great significance (at least to some) – and who might be the person to recover them. And who doesn't love the romance and drama of an almost Carmen Sandiego-esque international chase? Or chases in this case.
I think this novel could actually have been a gorgeous collection of short stories. I suspect as it settles with me that's more the shape it will take in my brain, each character/plot line/vignette taking up its own space, texture, and colouration.
I also think that having an evening of drinks with Will Ferguson and hearing his stories would provide a great deal of context and drive behind writing the book, which are hinted at at the end. But he's a travel writer, c'mon, you know there are SO many more tales and additional easter eggs he didn't really reveal but for those who'd privately recognize them.
Having started reading Ferguson a million years ago with his Canadian-centric humour work, it's always interesting and surprising to see where he goes now with his novels. This one just didn't really hit for me.
emmagrace_'s review against another edition
this will be the year where i actually dnf books i don’t like. premise is cool, just really bored already and can tell i won’t like the rest of this authors writing. already feels a lot like a ‘look at all the things i know about all these places’ more than a solid plot.
chloebug13's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
siobhanchandler09's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
mysterious
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
indielitttttt's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0