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3.42 AVERAGE
3.42 AVERAGE
I enjoyed trying to put the story together along with our narrators. I also would not have expected the end. It’s an interesting study in conspiracies and why people get involved, even the unlikely ones.
SEVEN DOWN was an entertaining, eccentric ride! It released under RARE MACHINES, a new imprint of @dundurnpress focusing on publishing innovative works of literary fiction.
I don't usually gravitate to espionage storylines, but Seven Down sounded very intriguing! About a sting operation gone awry, involving seven moles posing as ordinary Hotel employees that had been waiting years for the event to transpire.
Now the players are being debriefed by an agent of an invisible organization trying to determine what went wrong with the mission. We get to read the transcripts of their interviews and its through these interviews that are characters are revealed.
This is very much a character-driven drama and I thought Whitton did such a great job making each character distinct, while also unraveling the puzzle within this novel.
Thank you to @dundurnpress for sending me this book opinions are my own.
For more of my book content check out instagram.com/bookalong
I don't usually gravitate to espionage storylines, but Seven Down sounded very intriguing! About a sting operation gone awry, involving seven moles posing as ordinary Hotel employees that had been waiting years for the event to transpire.
Now the players are being debriefed by an agent of an invisible organization trying to determine what went wrong with the mission. We get to read the transcripts of their interviews and its through these interviews that are characters are revealed.
This is very much a character-driven drama and I thought Whitton did such a great job making each character distinct, while also unraveling the puzzle within this novel.
Thank you to @dundurnpress for sending me this book opinions are my own.
For more of my book content check out instagram.com/bookalong
I can honestly say that this book is completely unlike any other I have ever read.
It is told in the form of interview transcripts with 7 sleeper agents who were involved in a failed assassination attempt. All of them were working in a hotel and were completely unaware of each others' involvement. It was a fascinating read and I enjoyed learning the agents' individual stories; each one was peppered with snippits of information about the day of 'Operation Fear and Trembling'. As the book went on, I was able to piece the stories together and try to work out how everything fitted into the day of the Operation.
However, although there was lots that I did enjoy, there were also reasons why this book wasn't one of my favourites. I found it a little confusing that the interviews all took place at different times - some were many years apart. I also feel that the book left me with more questions than answers and I'm not sure that the end summed things up enough for me.
Overall, a unique book and possibly one that I would read again to make sure I didn't miss anything.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me the ARC in return for an honest review.
It is told in the form of interview transcripts with 7 sleeper agents who were involved in a failed assassination attempt. All of them were working in a hotel and were completely unaware of each others' involvement. It was a fascinating read and I enjoyed learning the agents' individual stories; each one was peppered with snippits of information about the day of 'Operation Fear and Trembling'. As the book went on, I was able to piece the stories together and try to work out how everything fitted into the day of the Operation.
However, although there was lots that I did enjoy, there were also reasons why this book wasn't one of my favourites. I found it a little confusing that the interviews all took place at different times - some were many years apart. I also feel that the book left me with more questions than answers and I'm not sure that the end summed things up enough for me.
Overall, a unique book and possibly one that I would read again to make sure I didn't miss anything.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for sending me the ARC in return for an honest review.
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Helmuth von Moltke said way back in 1871 that no plan survives first contact with the enemy. (In a nutshell.) But we learn in David Whitton’s fascinating novel, Seven Down, that the people putting together the plan should maybe also take a closer look at the folks they’ve engaged to carry out the plan. No matter how well designed the plan, no matter how perfectly timed each piece, no matter how carefully placed the players, someone is going to screw things up.
Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, for review consideration.
Read the rest of my review at A Bookish Type. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley, for review consideration.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Seven Down is a deep dive into an assassination attempt gone wrong. We follow seven different hotel employees as they speak to multiple mysterious interviewers, recounting their experience of the day and the circumstances that led them there - ultimately, we’re trying to figure out exactly what was supposed to happen, and how it went wrong. The book is written as transcripts from each individual’s interview, at multiple different times after the botched attempt.
I LOVED the way this story was told - at first, I’ll admit, it was difficult to get used to this new way of storytelling (new to me, at least). But after I adjusted, I found myself staying up late, telling myself “I just need to get to the end of this transcript!” It was so much fun to put together the different perspectives of all the characters involved in the operation, and also figure out WHY any of these characters would possibly get caught up in something like assassination.
My personal favourite transcripts were from Ramen and Ivy, but seeing other characters pop up in each other’s memory was like finding little nuggets of excitement in each story. There’s so much to be said here about memory, truth, and secret.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use
Minor: Violence
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Such an intense thriller-type book! Definitely more of a character monologue-esque type. Written in the vein of Anxious People.