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3.75 AVERAGE
3.75 AVERAGE
A great read but I thought the ending wrapped things up too quickly (?). Almost contrived; like an outline of how things would unfold looked great on paper, but in in pulling it off didn't work just quite right.
I'd rate this book actually between a four and a five...but probably closer to four.
It's a brainy thriller that captivates throughout the almost six hundred pages but there are some aspects that seem a little too hard to fathom and I thought the detail into the financial shenanigans dragged a bit.
But still a heck of a lot better than most stuff out there. Definitely worth a perusal!
It's a brainy thriller that captivates throughout the almost six hundred pages but there are some aspects that seem a little too hard to fathom and I thought the detail into the financial shenanigans dragged a bit.
But still a heck of a lot better than most stuff out there. Definitely worth a perusal!
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was totally on board to love this book, despite the pulpy disguise-focused bit, until the last 10 pages. Then the pulp was amped up and it lost a whole star of my rating. The entire Venice section contained very few surprises despite the fact that it was supposed to be revelatory, except for that one dumb, terrible one.
Worse is that Elizabeth's allure is very unconvincing. She is perfect, perfect, perfect; I want her, want her, want her. Her perfection is told, never truly shown, I felt.
Worse is that Elizabeth's allure is very unconvincing. She is perfect, perfect, perfect; I want her, want her, want her. Her perfection is told, never truly shown, I felt.
I agree with Emily - the first part is the weakest part and a bit of a chore, but my God! It's worth it to get to that third part. I also like that the cold-blooded tycoon is perhaps the most nuanced and most likable character of all.
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I don't know if this book deserves a 3 or a 4 star rating. I genuinely do not know how I feel about this book. In this book I see a similar theme to the one in "Instance of the fingerpost", but told here through different timelines as opposed to just multiple viewpoints. I found every character to speak with the same voice. I love Iain Pears's writing and think his stories to also be very intelligent. I was able to predict what the final few pages were going to reveal but I honestly thought it to be too dreadful to be true and hence I was still shocked when it did turn out to be true. Now that I think more about this book and the depth to the story which was peeled back in layers to reveal to us the mystery, I have decided I do like it after all.
This is a tough one to review (even in brief) and choose how many stars. The beginning was great and I was very quickly pulled into the characters and the mystery. Then the style changed and it turned almost into an epistolary form with the murdered victim from the beginning mystery going on and on and on and on about his life. I hung in until the beginning though and it was jaw dropping.
Not worth the what felt like millions of hours of over-detailed boredom that was the middle.
Not worth the what felt like millions of hours of over-detailed boredom that was the middle.
The historical detail in this makes it worth the read in itself.
I enjoyed this book quite a lot, I say! The period is rendered extremely well. I felt as if I were there in London or Venice or France. Like most good mysteries the clues are dealt out in clever fashion, albeit slowly, in this book.
I did get glassy-eyed during the denser financial descriptions, but I suppose they are true to a character inside that world. It just doesn't make good reading. Maybe a textbook.
Nevertheless, highly recommended!
Five stars if 150 pages were lopped off.
I did get glassy-eyed during the denser financial descriptions, but I suppose they are true to a character inside that world. It just doesn't make good reading. Maybe a textbook.
Nevertheless, highly recommended!
Five stars if 150 pages were lopped off.