Reviews

The Lock-Up by John Banville

mandarinkata's review against another edition

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Boooriiiing

dovahferret's review against another edition

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dark 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? No

1.0

The author clearly hates women. I picked this up because the premise sounded interesting but the writer's laziness and extremely thinly veiled hatred of women came out so strongly, it took over the entire book.

megsib's review against another edition

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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? No

2.75

alifeofherown's review against another edition

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mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

trish33's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

eduardorg's review against another edition

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challenging dark mysterious sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

kayann's review against another edition

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dark emotional mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

fattoush's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

jmatkinson1's review against another edition

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5.0

When the body of a young Jewish woman is found in an apparent suicide, Dublin believes it as a result of her controversial views or a failed romance. However Pathologist Quirke thinks she was murdered and clues lead to a rich german industrialist and horsebreeder. As Quirke becomes more entangled with the dead girl's family he persuades Strafford to take him seriously and investigate. The German is connected to the Catholic Church and both Quirke and the police are put under pressure as the conspiracy theories spiral.
This is the latest episode in Banville's series set in 1950s Ireland and featuring the protestant detective Strafford. here Quirke takes more a central figure and his excessive behaviours are explored in more detail. I loved the plot, going from escaped Nazi criminals to the development of nuclear armaments in Israel, yet Naville does not write in a typical way for a thriller. He is an accomplished literary writer and as such this is an intelligent and understated piece of writing that succeeds in both genres.

jenni8fer's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious relaxing slow-paced

4.0