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atarbett's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
darwin8u's review against another edition
3.0
It's not the fall that kills you... it's the sudden stop at the end."
- Douglas Adams
I'm a huge fan of John D. MacDonald. I think he is funny and sharp. He has a certain pulp formula and sticks with it and usually the cake rises, browns, and turns out just fine. But this book was just kinda -- meh. Which is surprising because you would think a book with motorcycle gangs, pornography rings, and people falling out of hot air balloons would be kinda exciting. It just wasn't. It was like he read Around the Wold in 80 days, watched a couple James Bond flicks, and followed that up with an Easy Rider/road movie marathon and felt he could easily combine the three things. He managed to combine these elements, but the novel just didn't have enough tickle, lift or torque.
To me it felt like MacDonald wasn't sailing this novel. He had it tied down and was just letting nature take its course. There was no emotional texture and the narrative was just kinda straight. I knew where he was going and by the end I just didn't really care. AND, I did't even mention one of my MacDonald peeves. Sex. Hey, I think sex is nifty and neato and all the rest. Sure sure. But MacDonald writing about it is like talking dirty with an unmarried uncle. No thanks. I'll pass.
- Douglas Adams
I'm a huge fan of John D. MacDonald. I think he is funny and sharp. He has a certain pulp formula and sticks with it and usually the cake rises, browns, and turns out just fine. But this book was just kinda -- meh. Which is surprising because you would think a book with motorcycle gangs, pornography rings, and people falling out of hot air balloons would be kinda exciting. It just wasn't. It was like he read Around the Wold in 80 days, watched a couple James Bond flicks, and followed that up with an Easy Rider/road movie marathon and felt he could easily combine the three things. He managed to combine these elements, but the novel just didn't have enough tickle, lift or torque.
To me it felt like MacDonald wasn't sailing this novel. He had it tied down and was just letting nature take its course. There was no emotional texture and the narrative was just kinda straight. I knew where he was going and by the end I just didn't really care. AND, I did't even mention one of my MacDonald peeves. Sex. Hey, I think sex is nifty and neato and all the rest. Sure sure. But MacDonald writing about it is like talking dirty with an unmarried uncle. No thanks. I'll pass.
vinniesee's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
ahsimlibrarian's review against another edition
2.0
I know this is a beloved series. And I saw some of the appeal in the Travis McGee. But I didn't connect with any of the characters (it is late in the series, I realize) and found the sexism hard to overlook. Just not my thing.
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