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maria_stoycheva_tbr_pile's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
izumen's review against another edition
4.0
Много плашещо излезе тази книга точно сега. В нея човечеството умира поради нещо във въздуха и само няколко души, благодарение на пет кислородни бутилки, преживяват нощта. Конан Дойл е бил в настроение...
diya95's review against another edition
3.0
I think this was a wrong book at the wrong time for me because I was expecting the kind of adventure with Professor Challenger that I'd read of in the Lost World. Dystopia is a gloomy subject anyway and it didn't help that life isn't being v. kind to me at the moment.
queencleo's review against another edition
1.0
I'm inclined to agree with H.G Wells on this one. And Sir Arthur Conan Doyle himself in a direct quote from this book "what is this drivel I am writing..."
fongovea715's review against another edition
2.0
What a bizarre little book, and honestly not one of my favorites. "And then everyone just woke up" is a pretty sad deus ex machina. I don't think I'll be pursuing anymore Professor Challenger novels.
shreyas1599's review against another edition
2.0
A doomsday story where the world is coming to an unpredictable end. The reasoning provided is a fantastical explanation of the ether of the Earth being poisoned which consequently is spreading from the eastern hemisphere to the western. The four characters who proved the existence of magnificent beasts in the first instalment of the Professor Challenger series are faced with the end of the world hanging over them and what they do to overcome or prolong their existence.
There were lines like this that just irked me.
“the less developed races have been the first to respond to its influence.”
“The Northern races have as yet shown greater resisting power than the Southern.”
What was the point even of having these lines? I get the viewpoint that for the time in which the book was written, this was a completely normal thing and for a man as obnoxious and condescending as Challenger, a racist trait is not to be unexpected but nevertheless seeing this just irked me and I find it prudent to make a mention of it.
The story itself had a rather dull plot. Most of the story revolved around the philosophical aspects of Doomsday and loss of life. There was no real adventure in this story. It was a mere fluke that Challenger found a way to prolong the lives of his companions and nothing more. The semi-explanation of how he arrived at his conclusion that Oxygenated tanks would prolong their existence was not convincing.
I expected more, or at least some sort of adventure similar to Lost World, but this was more of a nothing story. Just strings of sentences and philosophical viewpoints were strung together to make a semi-structured story. I think it's a good thing I haven't read Sherlock Holmes yet and picked the Challenger series as my first read of Arthur Conan Doyle. It can only go uphill from here!
There were lines like this that just irked me.
“the less developed races have been the first to respond to its influence.”
“The Northern races have as yet shown greater resisting power than the Southern.”
What was the point even of having these lines? I get the viewpoint that for the time in which the book was written, this was a completely normal thing and for a man as obnoxious and condescending as Challenger, a racist trait is not to be unexpected but nevertheless seeing this just irked me and I find it prudent to make a mention of it.
The story itself had a rather dull plot. Most of the story revolved around the philosophical aspects of Doomsday and loss of life. There was no real adventure in this story. It was a mere fluke that Challenger found a way to prolong the lives of his companions and nothing more. The semi-explanation of how he arrived at his conclusion that Oxygenated tanks would prolong their existence was not convincing.
I expected more, or at least some sort of adventure similar to Lost World, but this was more of a nothing story. Just strings of sentences and philosophical viewpoints were strung together to make a semi-structured story. I think it's a good thing I haven't read Sherlock Holmes yet and picked the Challenger series as my first read of Arthur Conan Doyle. It can only go uphill from here!
inquisitive_chap's review against another edition
2.0
I found this pretty disappointing. It started interestingly but - unlike the Lost World - the character description is poor. Challenger has become a caricature of himself while the other characters are only really mentioned by reference to him rather than in their own right.
The plot seemed too far fetched. I'm glad it was short. It's put me off reading the final book in the series.
The plot seemed too far fetched. I'm glad it was short. It's put me off reading the final book in the series.
boozzi's review
challenging
dark
sad
tense
medium-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
nicolaspratt's review against another edition
4.0
We never know what will happen in the future, make the best of today. Doyle is verbose and at times frustratingly so, but the premise is believable (for the time) and the moral of the story is timeless. As a short read, this book is easy to follow and has a very definite timeline, and while it is predictable, it is still an enjoyable read.