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justjacq's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Holy schmokes - this bugger is long, a 16-hour audio book, full of twists, alternating timelines, and a handful of characters to keep track of. I was hooked through the first 4ish hours, hit a slow point by 12ish hours, but enjoyed the conclusion that took up the last 3ish hours. The narrator is awesome, but ultimately, this could have been shorter. I still really enjoyed it, though! It almost comes off in a screwball-type way. It's a little old timey, and some bits have Agatha Christie vibes. The timeline bounces a lot, so you do have to pay close attention, but the chapters do a good job of announcing the time period and I felt like the characters were memorable enough that I could keep track of who was doing what and when. The twists are pretty dang good - I started thinking one thing, then another thing, only to realize it was none of those things. I had no idea where the conclusion was headed. I'm not 100% sure I loved the ending, but it was entertaining and kept me engaged for the most part. Would probably be a good listen for a few long car rides!
sparkarie's review against another edition
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide and Suicidal thoughts
teodorabookfluent's review against another edition
5.0
Mini review “Enigma camerei 622” de Joël Dicker ❤️
serenereader9's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-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
4.0
This book was really intelligently done. I always find 500+ page books daunting so I struggled a bit at first, but I do recommend it was really well done. To be honest I don't enjoy writers writing themselves into books as the protaginist we follow (like in Anthony Horowitz's 'The word is murder'). But because there were so many layers and stories within the story that we didn't dwell on him too much. I thought all the nods to Bernard were very sweet and clever. I found Lev's dad and Anastatia's mom so infuriating! But for the most part I liked all the characters. I thought the three main characters are well potrayed as not all good or all bad but very much in between which isn't always the case with books. There were some good twists I knew there had to be a reason the book kept stressing the acting! But my jaw dropped when I figured 4 characters were Lev! Another good twist was that the mystery was another layer deeper into the book. So not just a book within a book, but a book within a book, within a book within the book. I also liked how we kept moving throughout the various timelines in a non-linear way. This just kept me on my toes and we never stopped moving so nothing got boring. I also appreciated that we never really ended a chapter of a timeline with 'and little did we know the lies that awaited us' or 'little did we realize the trouble ahead'. That irks me all the time. The grief that is dealt with by many of the characters is also beautifully illustrated.
Life is a novel whose conclusion we already know: in the end, the hero dies. The most important thing is not how our story ends, but how we fill the pages. For life, like a novel must be an adventure. And adventures are life's vacations.
There were so many beautiful messages in this book about living your life to the fullest, and setting your priorities straight because in the end it's not the job or the reputation. It's the people that are important to chase after. That is what truly makes us happy. The parallel between the day he wants to forget: 6/22 and the room # and it's story that the hotel wants to forget: 622 was very interesting to me.
I very much enjoyed the setting of the hotel and Switzerland. If you're looking for a complex, escapist, espionage/thriller then this is for you.
flotg's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
alcame's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
jedbird's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
I read this for a challenge that asked for a mystery or thriller in translation. Had it not been for this challenge, I wouldn't have bothered finishing this book. The translation seemed off, but I think it is just a bad book. The characters are all inane and frequently in hysterics. The narrative veers around in time and lurches from one POV to the other without warning. The mystery was unbelievable and I couldn't care about its resolution. I hated this.
treniseferreira's review against another edition
5.0
Wowowow I loved the CRAP out of this book! The audiobook performance is terrific and I couldn’t turn it off! This was a terrific whodunit, certainly my favorite one of all time. If you like murder mysteries, authors as MCs, conspiracies and stories that question the meaning of life, this is for you!