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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
GREAT fun. Reminded me a little of the best aspects of [b:The Martian|18007564|The Martian|Andy Weir|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1413706054l/18007564._SY75_.jpg|21825181] by [a:Andy Weir|6540057|Andy Weir|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1382592903p2/6540057.jpg]: Theo Cray, a computational biologist (Maynes hilariously has his character constantly struggle with how to describe himself to others) SCIENCES the S--- out of hunting down a serial killer. This is a "don't sleep until you finish" read. And Thanks to Tammy Sparks (https://booksbonesbuffy.com/) for recommending it!
The Naturalist fits nicely into the niche of books that, in the moment of reading, are both casual but engrossing. However, after finishing the book, you realize that you probably won't think of the book or it's characters for more than ten minutes after you flip the last page.
The general premise is hard to turn down, and it's honestly begging to be made into a TV show. Theo Cray is our near-genius protagonist who using "science" wraps himself tightly into a murder mystery. Although this is more or less the description of every network crime drama ever, it's presented in a fresh enough format to draw interest. Theo is smart, but is written smart enough to know that he doesn't know everything. And although he is socially inept, he isn't the overplayed semi-autistic-character-is-really-good-at-stuff stereotype. That's not to say he's terribly interesting, at best he's a fairly sterile character that has enough going on to keep up a plot. The real meat of this story is the mystery, and although it gets over the top, it is worth sinking one's teeth into. There are some really great parts that are incredibly satisfying, especially if you are locked in enough to follow the often questionable logic that the protagonist follows.
Logic is not the only questionable part of this story though. The flow of this story is erratic at best: the inciting incident is nearly instantaneous, the 2nd act is a rollercoaster (which can be fun), and the conclusion is so sudden that I found it incredibly unsatisfying. The "grand reveal" has almost no weight to it, as it more or less happens outside of our character's perspective, and concludes almost immediately after. I found it strange that the author would devote 20 pages to a fake computer model predicting the killer's movements, but then spend 20 pages on the final confrontation. This goes into another issue I found with the book, I understand that our main character is smart, but having our main character just mindlessly spout science terms isn't satisfying for a reader. This doesn't happen too often, but enough that I was bugged by it. Somehow Theo has experience or contacts in every single field applicable to murder mysteries. I understand that this is some of the fantasy, using science to solve things that aren't always easy to explain, but it gets ridiculous at times.
Overall, I'm probably complaining too much. The Naturalist is much like Lock In or any other crime thriller, it's a fun read that you can fall into easily. Just because it isn't a literary significant work doesn't mean it isn't worth checking out.
The general premise is hard to turn down, and it's honestly begging to be made into a TV show. Theo Cray is our near-genius protagonist who using "science" wraps himself tightly into a murder mystery. Although this is more or less the description of every network crime drama ever, it's presented in a fresh enough format to draw interest. Theo is smart, but is written smart enough to know that he doesn't know everything. And although he is socially inept, he isn't the overplayed semi-autistic-character-is-really-good-at-stuff stereotype. That's not to say he's terribly interesting, at best he's a fairly sterile character that has enough going on to keep up a plot. The real meat of this story is the mystery, and although it gets over the top, it is worth sinking one's teeth into. There are some really great parts that are incredibly satisfying, especially if you are locked in enough to follow the often questionable logic that the protagonist follows.
Logic is not the only questionable part of this story though. The flow of this story is erratic at best: the inciting incident is nearly instantaneous, the 2nd act is a rollercoaster (which can be fun), and the conclusion is so sudden that I found it incredibly unsatisfying. The "grand reveal" has almost no weight to it, as it more or less happens outside of our character's perspective, and concludes almost immediately after. I found it strange that the author would devote 20 pages to a fake computer model predicting the killer's movements, but then spend 20 pages on the final confrontation. This goes into another issue I found with the book, I understand that our main character is smart, but having our main character just mindlessly spout science terms isn't satisfying for a reader. This doesn't happen too often, but enough that I was bugged by it. Somehow Theo has experience or contacts in every single field applicable to murder mysteries. I understand that this is some of the fantasy, using science to solve things that aren't always easy to explain, but it gets ridiculous at times.
Overall, I'm probably complaining too much. The Naturalist is much like Lock In or any other crime thriller, it's a fun read that you can fall into easily. Just because it isn't a literary significant work doesn't mean it isn't worth checking out.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
dark
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Pretty good book. Some parts were a little far fetched in the sense that it just seemed to be too easy for the protagonist to get info, or get access to something. But otherwise it was action packed and funny
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
medium-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
Really lost interest when I realized it wasn't about a killer Bigfoot