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lnatal's review against another edition
3.0
Enough is enough, just finished this series!!
Inspector Lynley series:
4* A Great Deliverance (Inspector Lynley, #1)
5* Payment in Blood (Inspector Lynley, #2)
4* Well-Schooled in Murder (Inspector Lynley, #3)
5* A Suitable Vengeance (Inspector Lynley, #4)
5* For the Sake of Elena (Inspector Lynley, #5)
4* Missing Joseph (Inspector Lynley, #6)
4* Playing for the Ashes (Inspector Lynley, #7)
4* In the Presence of the Enemy (Inspector Lynley, #8)
4* Deception on His Mind (Inspector Lynley, #9)
4* In Pursuit of the Proper Sinner (Inspector Lynley, #10)
4* A Traitor to Memory (Inspector Lynley, #11)
4* A Place of Hiding (Inspector Lynley, #12)
4* With No One as Witness (Inspector Lynley, #13)
4* What Came Before He Shot Her (Inspector Lynley, #14)
3* Careless in Red (Inspector Lynley, #15)
4* This Body of Death (Inspector Lynley, #16)
4* Believing the Lie (Inspector Lynley, #17)
3.5* Just One Evil Act (Inspector Lynley, #18)
3* A Banquet of Consequences (Inspector Lynley, #19)
Inspector Lynley series:
4* A Great Deliverance (Inspector Lynley, #1)
5* Payment in Blood (Inspector Lynley, #2)
4* Well-Schooled in Murder (Inspector Lynley, #3)
5* A Suitable Vengeance (Inspector Lynley, #4)
5* For the Sake of Elena (Inspector Lynley, #5)
4* Missing Joseph (Inspector Lynley, #6)
4* Playing for the Ashes (Inspector Lynley, #7)
4* In the Presence of the Enemy (Inspector Lynley, #8)
4* Deception on His Mind (Inspector Lynley, #9)
4* In Pursuit of the Proper Sinner (Inspector Lynley, #10)
4* A Traitor to Memory (Inspector Lynley, #11)
4* A Place of Hiding (Inspector Lynley, #12)
4* With No One as Witness (Inspector Lynley, #13)
4* What Came Before He Shot Her (Inspector Lynley, #14)
3* Careless in Red (Inspector Lynley, #15)
4* This Body of Death (Inspector Lynley, #16)
4* Believing the Lie (Inspector Lynley, #17)
3.5* Just One Evil Act (Inspector Lynley, #18)
3* A Banquet of Consequences (Inspector Lynley, #19)
philantrop's review against another edition
1.0
Sodium azide? Just take it and be done with it, George.
This book was so extraordinarily bad, I don't even know where to start criticizing it.
I've read all the Lynley novels and enjoyed them greatly until one of the protagonists was killed off. From then on, not only a life derailed but the entire series and its author.
It looks like George would much prefer to become known for "serious" books instead of mysteries but doesn't understand she simply doesn't have it in herself to ever really succeed at that.
Instead, she keeps writing horribly bad books that deserve no praise at all because they fail at being mysteries and serious social criticism both.
Just calling it a Lynley novel doesn't really make it one and this certainly was the last sham I've fallen victim of.
This book was so extraordinarily bad, I don't even know where to start criticizing it.
I've read all the Lynley novels and enjoyed them greatly until one of the protagonists was killed off. From then on, not only a life derailed but the entire series and its author.
It looks like George would much prefer to become known for "serious" books instead of mysteries but doesn't understand she simply doesn't have it in herself to ever really succeed at that.
Instead, she keeps writing horribly bad books that deserve no praise at all because they fail at being mysteries and serious social criticism both.
Just calling it a Lynley novel doesn't really make it one and this certainly was the last sham I've fallen victim of.
jooniperd's review against another edition
3.0
2 ½ stars, if we could do that here.
i truly wish i was getting as much enjoyment out of this series as so many others have. as much as i adore havers, nkata, and lynley, i find george to be an erratic and inconsistent writer.
in this 19th book in the series, the plot is a bit more straightforward than in previous stories, and the tangential arcs don't get quite as minutely detailed - though they are still present. but it all felt sloppy to me and the sense of frenzy is once again present through the character of caroline goldacre. (she's an exhausting and horrible 'person'.) before we even begin the novel, the book jacket tells us of the suicide of william goldacre (who turns out to be one of caroline's two sons). very early on, it is clear a something significant has affected william deeply, and his mental health is quite fragile. as the story unspools and all the players' secrets come to be known, there ends up being multiple nearly insurmountable traumas. this is definitely a tough read. and yet, as seems to happen frequently in George's stories, some threads are left hanging. not so much the intentional ambiguous endings, but more the didn't quite fit that in by the end sort of feeling.
there's only one book left, as the series currently exists, and i've already started it. i somehow manage to hold out hope that at least one more instalment will hit the 4-star mark. (though i've been led to believe i may very well detest book #20. heh!)
i truly wish i was getting as much enjoyment out of this series as so many others have. as much as i adore havers, nkata, and lynley, i find george to be an erratic and inconsistent writer.
in this 19th book in the series, the plot is a bit more straightforward than in previous stories, and the tangential arcs don't get quite as minutely detailed - though they are still present. but it all felt sloppy to me and the sense of frenzy is once again present through the character of caroline goldacre. (she's an exhausting and horrible 'person'.) before we even begin the novel, the book jacket tells us of the suicide of william goldacre (who turns out to be one of caroline's two sons). very early on, it is clear a something significant has affected william deeply, and his mental health is quite fragile. as the story unspools and all the players' secrets come to be known, there ends up being multiple nearly insurmountable traumas. this is definitely a tough read. and yet, as seems to happen frequently in George's stories, some threads are left hanging. not so much the intentional ambiguous endings, but more the didn't quite fit that in by the end sort of feeling.
there's only one book left, as the series currently exists, and i've already started it. i somehow manage to hold out hope that at least one more instalment will hit the 4-star mark. (though i've been led to believe i may very well detest book #20. heh!)
falconerreader's review against another edition
3.0
Mildly disappointed. It was still good, of course, but it seemed uncharacteristically mild of her to provide an obvious villain and wrap up the likeable characters' storylines so kindly. Always glad to see Winston and to not see Deborah.
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