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ohnopatrick's review against another edition
5.0
A fantastic book, [book:The Somnambulist] is a delightful mix of mystery/intrigue and the supernatural.
bookysue's review against another edition
1.0
UGH. I couldn't even finish this book. And I HATE not finishing a book. I made it like 3/4 of the way through and just wanted to hurt someone. I would rather have someone cut off one of my pinky toes than read one more page of this crap.
To make matters worse, a friend gave me the book as a gift, so I had to lie and tell him I finished it and loved it and all.
I guess the only way to explain why I hated it so much is that it's Da Vinci Code-ish. Like, it tried to have cliffhangers and be cool and all, but it was really poorly written. I think it literally said, "It was a dark and stormy night" at one point, and it wasn't meant to be tongue-in-cheek. It reminded me a lot of some really crappy short stories I read in a short story course I took one time in college. Except, it was really long. And just kept going and going.
A pity, really, because I like the title. But that's it. That's as far as I can like in relation to this book.
To make matters worse, a friend gave me the book as a gift, so I had to lie and tell him I finished it and loved it and all.
I guess the only way to explain why I hated it so much is that it's Da Vinci Code-ish. Like, it tried to have cliffhangers and be cool and all, but it was really poorly written. I think it literally said, "It was a dark and stormy night" at one point, and it wasn't meant to be tongue-in-cheek. It reminded me a lot of some really crappy short stories I read in a short story course I took one time in college. Except, it was really long. And just kept going and going.
A pity, really, because I like the title. But that's it. That's as far as I can like in relation to this book.
hobhouchin's review against another edition
4.0
Unter dem Titel kann man sich ja allerhand vorstellen. Was man bekommt ist eine selbstironische, skurrile Fantasykrimigeschichte mit einer Prise Mythen und Legenden und London um 1900 als Schauplatz. Das Buch wimmelt von sonderbaren und eigenartigen Charakteren, die trotz ihrer etwas blutrünstig anmutenden Macken alle auf ihre Art und Weise sympathisch, tragisch oder hassenswert sind. (Der Autor hat einen aber vorher gewarnt.)
Was mir ein wenig fehlte war der rote Faden. Der tendierte zwischendrin zu einem leicht pastellrose angehauchtem Bändchen und atmosphärisch hätte das für meinen Geschmack etwas dichter sein können. Allerdings bin ich durch Neil Gaiman, Christoph Marzi, etc. ein wenig verwöhnt, was das betrifft. ;)
Alles in allem sehr lesenswert.
Was mir ein wenig fehlte war der rote Faden. Der tendierte zwischendrin zu einem leicht pastellrose angehauchtem Bändchen und atmosphärisch hätte das für meinen Geschmack etwas dichter sein können. Allerdings bin ich durch Neil Gaiman, Christoph Marzi, etc. ein wenig verwöhnt, was das betrifft. ;)
Alles in allem sehr lesenswert.
scheu's review against another edition
4.0
I liked this book but unlike a number of my friends the resolution didn't QUITE live up to my expectations. The narrative felt rushed - somewhat like being on a trip but moving too quickly to really see any of the interesting sights blurring past you.
I think Barnes has talent, and I'm eager to see what he does next, but I think that his work has room for improvement.
I think Barnes has talent, and I'm eager to see what he does next, but I think that his work has room for improvement.
dantastic's review against another edition
4.0
My only complaint about this book was that it was too short. It had all the things I look for in a story: interesting characters, good dialogue, and unexpected plot twists. I really enjoy a book when I'm not sure what direction the story is going in.
fluffyturtle's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
3.25
dozylocal's review against another edition
Reasons I decided to read this book: (1) I was desperate for something to read (2) It was on sale (as were all the books in the store) and (3) I liked the title (couldn't even get past that). From page 1, this felt like one of those rich narratives filled with words that had lives of their owns. You know when you feel like they're rolling off your tongue? That kind of feeling. One never quite knows where the story is going and it's an odd mix of 'real' and 'fantasy'. In the end, I found it an easy well written read and a fair story. Definitely not the worst book one could pick based on a title :)
joelkarpowitz's review against another edition
1.0
Maybe 1.5. It was unreasonably strange, not particularly comprehensible, and mostly unsatisfying.
mazloum's review against another edition
5.0
An interesting novel. At certain points whimsical and nonsensical, but the plot makes it a page-turner, at least for me.
dontpanic42's review against another edition
3.0
Well-written and highly engaging, this book would easily have rated five stars for me had it not petered out so feebly. Barnes certainly has a sense of the entertaining, and his creation of this story reminded me in many ways of Ray Bradbury in its casual incorporation of the supernatural into the storyline. I wonder, though, if Barnes bit off more than he could chew on this one. He adds more and more interesting characters and conundrums as the story advances, and as I got towards the home stretchh--the last 60 pages or so--I started to wonder how on earth he was going to pull it all together. Alas, he did not. The uninspired solution to the great mystery threatening London, and the quick and easy wrap-up to the plot, are an unsatisfying way to end what had been such a good yarn.
The main character, Edward Moon, is presented as a Sherlock Holmes figure towards the end of his career and with some recent and grave stain on his record (we keep hearing of the Clapham incident, though Barnes fails entirely to hint at what might have occurred). And the great logic and detection of a Holmes story never develop; Moon ultimately ends up where he needs to be but he never really solves the big puzzle and there is no explanation for his various investigatory steps along the way. Moon's sidekick--the Somnambulist--might have been expected to gain some limelight in the story, given that it's named after him and also that he is a figure of great mystery: a hairless giant who can apparently be stuck with swords with no ill effect. But he ends up almost uniformly being left out of the action, and when the story closes, we are still missing any sort of enlightenment about who the Somnambulist is or what his role in this whole thing was supposed to be (the narrator repeatedly hints at the Somnambulist's view of the bigger picture, but we never see that develop either).
Ultimately, I give Barnes great credit for his imagination and his story-telling. The book had me rapt from the get-go and racing through to the finish. But the ending only disappoints, leaving loose ends, unanswered questions, and a general feeling of anticlimax. I hope that Barnes improves on his ability to wrap up a story in future efforts.
The main character, Edward Moon, is presented as a Sherlock Holmes figure towards the end of his career and with some recent and grave stain on his record (we keep hearing of the Clapham incident, though Barnes fails entirely to hint at what might have occurred). And the great logic and detection of a Holmes story never develop; Moon ultimately ends up where he needs to be but he never really solves the big puzzle and there is no explanation for his various investigatory steps along the way. Moon's sidekick--the Somnambulist--might have been expected to gain some limelight in the story, given that it's named after him and also that he is a figure of great mystery: a hairless giant who can apparently be stuck with swords with no ill effect. But he ends up almost uniformly being left out of the action, and when the story closes, we are still missing any sort of enlightenment about who the Somnambulist is or what his role in this whole thing was supposed to be (the narrator repeatedly hints at the Somnambulist's view of the bigger picture, but we never see that develop either).
Ultimately, I give Barnes great credit for his imagination and his story-telling. The book had me rapt from the get-go and racing through to the finish. But the ending only disappoints, leaving loose ends, unanswered questions, and a general feeling of anticlimax. I hope that Barnes improves on his ability to wrap up a story in future efforts.