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sydneyyreads's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoy Rick Riordan's writing and this was a fun mystery novel. It takes place in Texas. There's a cat who loves enchiladas. What more could I ask for?
righter_of_words's review against another edition
3.0
This book was fine, but nothing exceptional. For a debut novel, it’s well-written but not amazingly so. The characters are not particularly complex but also aren’t entirely archetypal. The plot was interesting but not ground-breaking. I’m glad I read this, but I have now concluded that Riordan really found his stride when he started writing the Percy Jackson books.
debnanceatreaderbuzz's review against another edition
4.0
I certainly can’t share this with all the many fans of Riordan’s The Lightning Thief at my elementary school, but I can share it with all the adult readers who love silly mysteries. An added incentive to reading this book was its setting in San Antonio; what fun, I thought, to release this book at the Texas Library Association Conference to be held in San Antonio in April. It’s been a while for me since I’ve finished anything close to literary fiction. Oh well. Nothing wrong with some just-for-fun reads now and then.
clambook's review against another edition
4.0
Before he became proprietor of the million-dollar Percy Jackson franchise, Rick Riordan wrote a half-dozen detective novels set in San Antonio, and they are quite good. I mean, who doesn't like a private eye who's a martial arts master and English Ph.d? I'm doing the audio books while walking and driving, and will be back for more.
nilchance's review against another edition
2.0
I think Riordan is stronger in 3rd person or in multiple 1st person narrative structure, because his everyman characters aren't necessarily as accessible as stories where there's more than one main
character to latch on to as a reader. I think the fact that he wrote the adult series before Percy Jackson and before maturing as a writer (with better pacing, less clunky exposition, etc) and, as a real-world mystery, the story is going to be less charming / interesting to me personally than his mythology books.
Also, without the charm of the mythology books, the race/sexism/fat fails are much more pronounced to me.
character to latch on to as a reader. I think the fact that he wrote the adult series before Percy Jackson and before maturing as a writer (with better pacing, less clunky exposition, etc) and, as a real-world mystery, the story is going to be less charming / interesting to me personally than his mythology books.
Also, without the charm of the mythology books, the race/sexism/fat fails are much more pronounced to me.
jilfie's review against another edition
3.0
I read this out of curiosity born from my love for the Percy Jackson series. I wanted to see if I liked them solely for the story, or if Riordan's writing really was good. AFter finishing this novel, his first ever published,I would have to conclude that his writing is actually able to help me through any story, not just one I already enjoy from the concept. In the Percy Jackson series there is always a hint of side comments and sarcasm, but in this adult novel with much more room to play, these qualities come out i full force, making the book an enjoyable read.
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