Reviews

Countdown City by Ben H. Winters

linzmarie's review against another edition

adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

ems888's review against another edition

adventurous 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? It's complicated

3.75

jokopoko's review against another edition

emotional mysterious sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

beastreader's review

2.0

Hank Palace is unemployed. It is no wonder as the world is about to end in seventy seven days. The only crimes people are committing are the ones where they are stocking up on food. There is someone though that wants Hank’s help. A friend of Hank’s has asked Hank to help find her husband. He went missing.

Countdown City is the second book in this trilogy. To be honest, I was excited to read this trilogy. I thought it was something different and liked the concept of a pre disaster as I have read many post disaster stories. The first book was alright but there was something there that made me want to check out book two. If I had to say what makes this book it is Hank. He is like the only good guy left on the planet. Plus I like that even though the world is going to end in seventy seven days that he still cares about his job and helping people. Yet, despite this I still have not found myself glowing with excitement over these books. I did like book two a little better than book one.

The rest of the characters are unmemorable. In fact I can not tell you their names or what they do. Thus this was hard as it made the mystery aspect of the story pretty dull and thus the story made for some slow reading. Not a lot of action taking place in this book. Other than the world deteriorating more and more as people prepare for the end.

mcnewm's review

4.0

This one was better than the first - more mystery, more action, more anxiety.

zaphod46's review

4.0

better than the first. How often can you say that about a sequel?

bluestarfish's review

4.0

Still a great premise and Henry Palace still a great character bent on being a detective in a world that makes no sense any more. A request to find the husband of his former babysitter gets Hank moving about this world investigating the mystery and all the ways people are responding to there being only a few months left before destruction of the world as we know it. (This is less of a stand-alone book but that makes sense as it's the middle of a trilogy.)

liketheday's review

3.0

This book suffers from some of that second-book-in-a-trilogy malaise where the first book stands alone quite well but the second one exists largely to lead into the third one and its big ending. There's some stringing along of interesting mysteries left over from the first novel (what the heck is up with Palace's sister and her friends) and some new mysteries introduced (what the heck is the government doing?), and I presume that when I read the third book I will get some halfway decent answers to them.
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pattiillbee11's review

4.0

There's just something about this series, the characters, that I like. Not generally into end of the world stories but a police procedural taking place while the world goes mad. Well, okay.

hank's review

4.0

Second book syndrome. I do like Winter's writing and this is a good detective story. There is much introspection material in this book. What would you do if you knew the world ended in 70 days, I like how Winters represents the whole spectrum of choices. Good enough to keep going until the conclusion.