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emilielovesbooks's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
davidpaige's review against another edition
3.0
I wasn't sure that I was going to like this book. I had just stopped listening to another Kate Wilhelm book, and just couldn't get into it. The strange thing was that I normally like her work. I persevered, and the story picked up after Van's mother is murdered.
The story tells how Van and her grandmother hired a retired New York City detective to investigate the murder. In the end, I did enjoy the story.
The story tells how Van and her grandmother hired a retired New York City detective to investigate the murder. In the end, I did enjoy the story.
mikolee's review
2.0
Small Oregon artist is murdered and her daughter and a new to town east coast ex cop helps uncover the murder.
carriealibrarian's review
1.0
This book has simple, methodical, and very deliberate writing, and I found that boring. The characters are way too talky; too much of the story is advanced through the dialogue. As far as mysteries go, it is definitely not my cup o' tea.
jillheather's review
3.0
I have nothing against "how we got him" mysteries; I rather like them, though they're harder to pull off well. I don't automatically dislike romance in a mystery, though I think it is not necessary in every book.
But this book just didn't pull either off well enough. There was nothing interesting in how they got him, nothing cleverly plotted or insightfully characterised. The romance seemed tacked on, as if knowing there was a single woman and a single man, they had to end up paired off.Whether or not Tony decides to take care of his health, he's still 20 years older than Van. There is no way that a sane person would believe that, since her grandfather died young of untreated pneumonia, if Tony is married to a doctor he will live forever and the age difference will never matter. It doesn't need to end the relationship, but it has to be treated seriously.
The writing is lovely, though the discussion of the cost of talent was better done in [b:A Grave Talent|104739|A Grave Talent (Kate Martinelli, #1)|Laurie R. King|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320550686s/104739.jpg|2998264].
But this book just didn't pull either off well enough. There was nothing interesting in how they got him, nothing cleverly plotted or insightfully characterised. The romance seemed tacked on, as if knowing there was a single woman and a single man, they had to end up paired off.
The writing is lovely, though the discussion of the cost of talent was better done in [b:A Grave Talent|104739|A Grave Talent (Kate Martinelli, #1)|Laurie R. King|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1320550686s/104739.jpg|2998264].
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