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rushreads22's review
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
wafflefonfabre's review
4.0
A good mystery, while not the best of its genre. It is an interesting mystery to read.
emilymf's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
the book is paced well, although i feel like the author dwelled a little too long on certain parts. it was interesting to see how the pieces came together. the ending was not satisfying because we don’t get a ton of the answers we wanted.
emenendez1's review
4.0
Good book, not excellent. The ending is too vague and unsatisfying. But the narrative is solid, the main characters very interesting and the setting is terrific.
karenleagermain's review
1.0
Slow and far fetched. It ended without a real resolution. If the book hadn't been such a quick read, I probably wouldn't have bothered finishing it.
sandin954's review against another edition
4.0
The first of Miyabe's work to be translated to English (she is a huge bestseller in Japan) revolves around a missing person case that morphs in stolen identity with elements of the Japanese system of credit and bankrupcty thrown in
millionaire's review
3.0
All She Was Worth was a standard missing persons/stolen identity case. Set in the early 90s, it was nostalgic to read about how the protagonist, Detective Honma, had to navigate sourcing the information before the internet boomed.
The story has a steady pace and I was never left with too little information. I felt as if the book was leaving a puzzle piece in each chapter to build the final picture. The M.O. of dodging loan sharks was scary and the explanation of how easy it is for any upstanding person to be targeted and begin the slippery descent in to crippling debt.
I didn't feel there was anything special about the story though. I felt like everyone was a little too helpful in helping Honma solve the puzzle. Was everyone in 90s Japan just that trustworthy?
The story has a steady pace and I was never left with too little information. I felt as if the book was leaving a puzzle piece in each chapter to build the final picture. The M.O. of dodging loan sharks was scary and the explanation of how easy it is for any upstanding person to be targeted and begin the slippery descent in to crippling debt.
I didn't feel there was anything special about the story though. I felt like everyone was a little too helpful in helping Honma solve the puzzle. Was everyone in 90s Japan just that trustworthy?
kmatthe2's review
4.0
A cool noir crime thriller from 1990s Japan. Takes on the credit industry and culture. There was one section with a plodding discussion of personal credit that went on for too long, but it is otherwise smart and subtle.
bndy28's review against another edition
5.0
Một cuốn trinh thám âm u, tăm tối. Cả cuốn sách là một làn sương mờ ảo, cho dù các nhân vật có cố gắng xua tan đi cách nào, mọi thứ vẫn chưa từng được hiện lên một cách rõ nét. Cho đến phút cuối cùng, tất cả chỉ là phỏng đoán, suy luận, giữ vững sự bức bối cho người đọc từ đầu đến cuối. Nhưng thực sự phải khẳng định đây là cuốn trinh thám hấp dẫn, lối kể chuyện từ tốn, chậm rãi rất phù hợp với mình, thậm chí những phân đoạn dài dòng nói về tài chính, tiền tệ đối với người theo ngành xã hội như mình cũng rất dễ hiểu (cảm ơn dịch giả).