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jessie_fleur's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
books_inthewild's review against another edition
3.0
My first of this series, book five continues to follow private investigator (ex-military police) Jackson Brodie has he somewhat inadvertently stumbles head first into a terrible crime ring.
The first 1/2 of the book had me so confused, trying to keep up with & connect a lot of different characters. Like a complicated puzzle, a new set of characters are introduced every chapter and you really can’t figure out how they are connected or whether they’re important to the plot.
I found the writing was good, but I just really felt lost and wondered where this story was going. Once the connections started to be made, I skimmed and flipped pages to find out what would happen. I also found the crimes were so horrible that I would flip past many scenes as they were just too upsetting to read.
So although I can appreciate the writing, the depth & uniqueness of the characters, and the great finale of the ending- the rest of the book left me skimming to just finish it.
I think this style of mystery/detective novel just isn’t for me.
The first 1/2 of the book had me so confused, trying to keep up with & connect a lot of different characters. Like a complicated puzzle, a new set of characters are introduced every chapter and you really can’t figure out how they are connected or whether they’re important to the plot.
I found the writing was good, but I just really felt lost and wondered where this story was going. Once the connections started to be made, I skimmed and flipped pages to find out what would happen. I also found the crimes were so horrible that I would flip past many scenes as they were just too upsetting to read.
So although I can appreciate the writing, the depth & uniqueness of the characters, and the great finale of the ending- the rest of the book left me skimming to just finish it.
I think this style of mystery/detective novel just isn’t for me.
wondernikel's review against another edition
2.0
2....Honestly would have a 3, except the constant references to Agatha Christie's character, Hercule Poirot AND the constant use of the phrase "little grey cells", ruined this novel for me. Using these things once...Nostalgia...over use makes me think some originality is needed. I am glad AG is so close to this author's heart BUT...overdone!
jimbowen0306's review against another edition
3.0
Oh for goodness sake. This book is a whole heap of a mess. It sees Jackson Brodie (a former cop) investigate a wife who suspects she's being followed, and wants to know why. At the same time, a friend of hers is getting divorced, only to find out his soon to ex-wife has been murdered. While we're at it, 3 of the husband's friends are up to no good.
The book itself irritated me. It starts with 4 or 5 strands going at once. It jumps from the first through to the last, before returning to the first again. It eventually merges into a more... linear narrative, but even when we get this, elements of the story repeated from multiple viewpoints.
The other thing that irritates me is that I wasn't sure that the author knew how to finish the book. As a kid in English class, I was told that it was never a good idea to end a story with "and he woke up to find it was all a dream." This book felt like that. We got to point where there had to an ending, and the ending... just felt forced.
The story itself isn't bad. It speaks to what was happening in Britain at the time. It's well written. Other people will probably enjoy it better than I did.
The book itself irritated me. It starts with 4 or 5 strands going at once. It jumps from the first through to the last, before returning to the first again. It eventually merges into a more... linear narrative, but even when we get this, elements of the story repeated from multiple viewpoints.
The other thing that irritates me is that I wasn't sure that the author knew how to finish the book. As a kid in English class, I was told that it was never a good idea to end a story with "and he woke up to find it was all a dream." This book felt like that. We got to point where there had to an ending, and the ending... just felt forced.
The story itself isn't bad. It speaks to what was happening in Britain at the time. It's well written. Other people will probably enjoy it better than I did.
trin's review against another edition
4.0
I was disappointed by Atkinson's last standalone novel, Transcription, so it was a relief to find her back on form with a new Jackson Brodie book. For a novel that has to do with a horrific topic--sex trafficking--this was an oddly comforting read; as dark as Jackson's world gets, it's underpinned by a sense of justice, a Sherlockian view, even, of justice over law. And Atkinson's women are never helpless, and in fact often more fundamental than her male protagonist in rescuing themselves. A refreshing antidote to most crime fiction.
plibrarian's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
sweet_sakura's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
4.0
laurene99's review against another edition
dark
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
cljeff19's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
bookhound's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.5
I ended up really liking this 5th installment of Jackson Brodie (though I can't believe he wouldn't talk to his soul mate after a 10-year gap since the events of the last book! You're running out of time, dude!). It did take a solid 37% of the book for things to get moving plot wise, and there were so many characters, though, so many readers will not tolerate that.