Reviews

What do a computer programmer, an ancient college professor, an entitled brat, and an Electric Monk have in common?

Only Dirk Gently would know!

Actually, despite the general Douglas Adams whimsy, it took me quite a while to get through this book. I did learn a lot about Samuel Taylor Coleridge afterwards, and I highly recommend Ian McKellen's reading of "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner" beforehand (or anytime, really) to get some of those somewhat-obscure poetic references.

mkhare's review against another edition

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2.0

Gonna rate this around a 2.5/2.75 stars. Admittedly, I was probably not in a suitable headspace to read this, and read it in too many short, disjointed bursts; but I didn’t really connect with this story at all. I disliked how the story jumped perspectives in a vague manner, and the distribution of attention/detail given to certain ideas/characters felt too erratic for me to feel truly engaged. There were quite a few witty lines thrown in, for sure, but this book left me feeling confused and unsatisfied overall.

katykelly's review against another edition

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4.0

Read this after seeing the BBC adaptation, and having enjoyed Hitchhikers' Guide. VERY different which surprised me, but really good. Loved the way all the complicated and seemingly unrelated strands came together, even if I didn't quite understand everything about the ending! Witty writing and thoroughly original.

gregoryarthur's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted fast-paced

4.5

benhouchen's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

So many people have read Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, but far to few have read the Dirk Gently books. And in my Opinion, those two little books are Adams best writing. If you enjoy Adams, the Dirk Gently books are an absolute must read.

kathrynne's review

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adventurous challenging funny lighthearted mysterious 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? No

4.5

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