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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
Columbus (called for his proficiency Silver Bear) is a professional hitman. Unlike Rain (another famous book character) he is not semi-official assassin (he is not extensively used by this or that government agency). He is a cold blooded professional working for whoever can pay him, made ruthless by his very occupation were trust means betrayal and where affection means Achilles heel. He is not a positive guy he is very negative, sometimes even madly violent man. But he has an avenger-like attitude and mostly aims the criminals.[return][return]Very disturbing voyage into very disturbing world of underground where life is measured only in how much money will it cost to take it away. Another novel with the same main character is expected to be published sometime in 2009/2010. Looking forward to see how Columbus ends up.[return][return]Very interesting story, recommended.
The Silver Bear is a reasonably entertaining assassin thriller. The narrator lacks the charm of John Rain or the Grey Man, but the story is interesting enough and moves along quickly. One aspect I found particularly positive is that Haas makes very clear the connection between child abuse and adult criminality. Although we all know that society makes its own monsters, it's always good to have that message reiterated in a context in which it may reach new ears. Haas also shows the flip side of that coin when he undermines the narrator's assumption that he comes by his deadly proclivities genetically. However much he would like to think he was "born bad," the facts do not bear out his belief.
The negatives? The character himself is a fairly stunted individual and it shows, as it must, in his narrative. While the limitations of his story fit his character, they also make for fairly superficial reading. Also, there are some inconsistencies in the character that seem like more than personal foibles, more like flaws in character construction. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the novel enough that I will pick up the next one in the series at some point, even if I'm not running out to get it right away.
The negatives? The character himself is a fairly stunted individual and it shows, as it must, in his narrative. While the limitations of his story fit his character, they also make for fairly superficial reading. Also, there are some inconsistencies in the character that seem like more than personal foibles, more like flaws in character construction. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the novel enough that I will pick up the next one in the series at some point, even if I'm not running out to get it right away.
Not a great book. It's popcorn. It's like a less good Lee Child book. I do appreciate that the lead is a unrepentant psychopath, but he's also a complete fucker, which is not awesome. It's very lean and mean, but that's probably a good thing because the author isn't the best. Still, good summer reading.