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3.35 AVERAGE
3.35 AVERAGE
challenging
lighthearted
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
If you are interested in sailing, READ THIS(!) Lots of sailing terminology and even maps provided. And if you like that very classic British 'feel' from the early twentieth century - the fact that Childers was embarrassed to put in a love story because his publisher made him kind of says it all - and a spy story. It's two chaps finding themselves together on a decrepit old boat on the German shores and trying to find out what is going on there (espionage). It was just OK for me but it's an early classic in the genre and there is some amusing and charming depiction of how differently the two men experienced the boat. Not to mention prescient about Germany's aims. Russia hello.
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I found the premise of this book interesting and wanted to read it.
But ultimately it wasn't as good of a read as it must have been when written.
The writing of the age about women and loyalty and the like wasn't to my liking and there was a lot of sailing and channels and sand, a lot more than I needed.
I think I am more interested in the effects of the book than the book itself.
But ultimately it wasn't as good of a read as it must have been when written.
The writing of the age about women and loyalty and the like wasn't to my liking and there was a lot of sailing and channels and sand, a lot more than I needed.
I think I am more interested in the effects of the book than the book itself.
Meticulous. Intricate. Charming. These are the words I’d use.
Billed as the first modern spy novel, published in 1903, Childers has achieved a really interesting effect with this book. At first it just seems to be a classic travel adventure, but soon you are piecing together the clues of a larger scheme.
I think what I really enjoyed about this was the relationship between Davies and Carruthers. It is so brilliantly rendered in the early scenes. The differences between the two men are comical and almost lead you into believing that it will be a comedy rather than a thriller.
I know very little about sailing. I’ve been on boats. Small vessels and such. Whilst I lived elsewhere in the country my father owned one for a number of years, but I think I only sailed on her twice. Anyway, the technical aspects are beyond me. What is obvious from casting off is that Childers knew what he was talking about. And that level of expertise is a little infectious, at least to me. You find yourself really interested in it because that passion really fizzes. And it is also really precise in its direction. There isn’t a footstep that isn’t accounted for, where it is relevant (naturally).
I think that I’m not a great audience for the book. The wind just isn’t in the sails here and it is all down to taste. I’m just not a huge spy thriller sort of guy. Thrillers, yes. Mystery, yes. But a spy? I just find it all a little half-baked a lot of the time. And perhaps this loaf is better made than most, but I think beyond an indulgence in the crust, the inner structure just didn’t fill me up.
I think I will read this again though. Either if I develop an interest in sailing for myself (which I have been close to). Or if I suddenly start enjoying spy stories (which most men do after 50).
Pick this up if you’re a sailing fan. But now I’m off to learn more about the author, because his life and his death are really fascinating!
Billed as the first modern spy novel, published in 1903, Childers has achieved a really interesting effect with this book. At first it just seems to be a classic travel adventure, but soon you are piecing together the clues of a larger scheme.
I think what I really enjoyed about this was the relationship between Davies and Carruthers. It is so brilliantly rendered in the early scenes. The differences between the two men are comical and almost lead you into believing that it will be a comedy rather than a thriller.
I know very little about sailing. I’ve been on boats. Small vessels and such. Whilst I lived elsewhere in the country my father owned one for a number of years, but I think I only sailed on her twice. Anyway, the technical aspects are beyond me. What is obvious from casting off is that Childers knew what he was talking about. And that level of expertise is a little infectious, at least to me. You find yourself really interested in it because that passion really fizzes. And it is also really precise in its direction. There isn’t a footstep that isn’t accounted for, where it is relevant (naturally).
I think that I’m not a great audience for the book. The wind just isn’t in the sails here and it is all down to taste. I’m just not a huge spy thriller sort of guy. Thrillers, yes. Mystery, yes. But a spy? I just find it all a little half-baked a lot of the time. And perhaps this loaf is better made than most, but I think beyond an indulgence in the crust, the inner structure just didn’t fill me up.
I think I will read this again though. Either if I develop an interest in sailing for myself (which I have been close to). Or if I suddenly start enjoying spy stories (which most men do after 50).
Pick this up if you’re a sailing fan. But now I’m off to learn more about the author, because his life and his death are really fascinating!
adventurous
funny
informative
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
emotional
informative
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I know nothing of yachting or high society in the 1900s turn of the century UK region, but even so this was a phenomenal read. Its truly a thrilling tale and the constant background of the sea and the constant application of our main characters skill sets really set an adventurous scene. I can almost feel the waves rocking beneath me as I read through this novel. Reading about the worry of a threat of war in a time before the world wars is also a strange concept because in my mind any war nowadays means unthinkable amounts of carnage and crimes and injury to the land, but in this books time a war seemed to be less damning. Sure wars were bad, but one old war only broke political ties and small scores of dead, modern wars seem to do infinitely more damage than they used to. There is also a respect that the main characters show others that we don't always get to see in media, not just for each other but their enemies as well.
dark
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated