Reviews

Slow Horses by Mick Herron

Only show reviews with written explanations

ptstewart's review against another edition

5.0

My biggest complaint is that despite marketing with horses, there are no horses. Absolutely insane choice. Ten points off.

However, excluding this abysmal reality, Slow Horses is genuinely great. There are what feels like a million characters, and while none exactly stand out, they never really melt together either. Rather, they all become spokes in a wheel: do we need all of them? Maybe not. Does it run better with all of them? Yeah, it does. Lamb is not the rough leader who becomes lovable due to discovering his undercurrent of loyalty and care for his people. He never really stops being a little gross and a little too tough. But we grow to appreciate him because he’s good. Where in some novels there are multiple storylines happening and we just can’t figure out how they’ll converge, Slow Horses follows a cast that splits apart, regroups, and goes right back out on separate paths of the same mission, so we know that everything is tangled.

The story itself, while not quite fast paced, is gripping and confusing in a way that makes the reader think rather than become frustrated. It takes a while to really fully understand what’s going on because the characters themselves don’t quite know (excluding Lamb, which makes him more likable), and once they figure it out, we’re still in a race to fix it all.

This was great; well done and highly enjoyable; I’m excited to come back for more.

shelleyannh's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

theogb451's review against another edition

Go to review page

5.0

I saw the Slow Horses TV show before I read this but still found myself gripped. The series is pretty much page-to-screen, barring slightly more action in the final section of the adaptation.

There's not a huge amount of deep stuff to say about this, it's good modern spy tale and Herron really has a way with dialogue that is snappy, but NOT archly full of quips, which grounds it.

It may have aged a little in terms of how nuts politics had drifted since it was written, or possibly one could argue that Peter Judd's assessment of the electorate's willingness to tolerate fascism is a little too on the nose. But otherwise a fun read all the way through.

EDIT: had to edit for missing an important 'NOT' up there in the 2nd paragraph. Good grief, one day I'll learn to properly proof read these before I slam them up to the ether.

katdid's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense 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

Tightly plotted and with great character development, this was exactly what I wanted to read right now. Honestly there were bits that were so satisfying they made me want to punch my fist in the air. Anyone who was/is into the Robert Galbraith Cormoran Strike series would probably enjoy this. The best part is there's already another seven or so books in the series!

grdaneault's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

lex24's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I found it challenging to keep track of all the characters, and the countless twists made the plot feel convoluted and difficult to follow. While the book isn't bad, it just wasn't for me.

Content Warnings