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3.62 AVERAGE
3.62 AVERAGE
This was a bust! A movie star takes her closest friends and family on an African safari that turns into a kidnapping gone wrong. The unnecessary gore right out of the gates turned me off and it didn’t let up. Too many characters and narrators made for a convoluted story.
Did I love this? No. Did I hate this? Also, no.
This is my first read by this author; and, I have to admit that based on the description of the title, I thought it would be quite a bit more fast-paced. I found myself growing bored of the stories that weren't part of the actual safari (the characters flash back to stories of their lives that are sometimes relevant to what they are going through now and sometimes aren't) and I just wanted to get back to something exciting. It was interesting because I never read anything quite like this, but I am not raving about it. It has a LOT of characters to follow, so if that is not something you enjoy, I would skip this one. You can tell this is well researched, which I always appreciate, so it is a book you can learn from. Overall...it was just okay.
This is my first read by this author; and, I have to admit that based on the description of the title, I thought it would be quite a bit more fast-paced. I found myself growing bored of the stories that weren't part of the actual safari (the characters flash back to stories of their lives that are sometimes relevant to what they are going through now and sometimes aren't) and I just wanted to get back to something exciting. It was interesting because I never read anything quite like this, but I am not raving about it. It has a LOT of characters to follow, so if that is not something you enjoy, I would skip this one. You can tell this is well researched, which I always appreciate, so it is a book you can learn from. Overall...it was just okay.
I came across this due to its "Tanzania" tag as I was looking for guidebooks to plan a trip. Of course it majorly freaked me out, but I really enjoyed the read. It paints such an intense and beautiful picture of the Serengeti and its creatures, and provides plenty of chills and thrills.
3.5 stars rounded down because it took me approximately seventeen years to read this book. A Hollywood starlet and some of her famous friends go on safari in Africa, where they are kidnapped by Russian mercenaries. Lots of people get killed, one of whom is beheaded and eaten by a leopard, before we find out the reason for the kidnapping. Sounds exciting, right? Except, no. For a situation so fraught with tension and danger, there is zero suspense. The pacing is thrown off by the alternating timelines and the big reveal is telegraphed about 35% into the book. The extra half star is for the elephants.
I think I read this book while distracted. I just found it going back and forward in time too much between characters and tenses and I kept forgetting where I was. I've enjoyed other books by Chris Bohjalian and was instantly connected to them so this won't deter me from reading further works or maybe even rereading this book someday.
4.5 stars. Great writing, interesting story and good pacing. I liked the timeline switching to get more into each character. Loved all the Serengeti descriptions. Really well done, enjoyed this one a lot.
Violent in some parts but a good story about a group of Hollywood stars who go on safari. Complexities keep emerging as the story continues. Definitely could see this one being made into a movie.
I'm gonna say 3.5 stars. There were things I liked and things I didn't like. Things I liked:
1. The writing was good.
2. The premise was interesting and caught my attention.
3. The characters were interesting.
4. The twists.
Things I didn't like:
1. There were so many POVs that I had a hard time developing much of an attachment to any of the characters. There were just too many of them. I would've loved to spend more than like 3 chapters with each character.
2. I didn't really get the "point" of the book? Like I got to the end and was like, okay, that was entertaining, but what's the takeaway? There was a senselessness to it that left me feeling a little unsatisfied. So many of the deaths seemed kind of empty and pointless. And maybe that was the point, but I still don't see how to apply that message to everyday life?
3. Because there's so much going on, the "big reveal" moments weren't as powering as they could have been. Which is a shame because I think the author did a great job setting up the moments from a technical perspective. But I didn't care enough about the characters to react as strongly as I would have if the story had been more focused on a smaller group of leads.
So. Yeah. While I didn't find this book particularly moving or memorable, it was a good read and an entertaining story with good writing.
1. The writing was good.
2. The premise was interesting and caught my attention.
3. The characters were interesting.
4. The twists.
Things I didn't like:
1. There were so many POVs that I had a hard time developing much of an attachment to any of the characters. There were just too many of them. I would've loved to spend more than like 3 chapters with each character.
2. I didn't really get the "point" of the book? Like I got to the end and was like, okay, that was entertaining, but what's the takeaway? There was a senselessness to it that left me feeling a little unsatisfied. So many of the deaths seemed kind of empty and pointless. And maybe that was the point, but I still don't see how to apply that message to everyday life?
3. Because there's so much going on, the "big reveal" moments weren't as powering as they could have been. Which is a shame because I think the author did a great job setting up the moments from a technical perspective. But I didn't care enough about the characters to react as strongly as I would have if the story had been more focused on a smaller group of leads.
So. Yeah. While I didn't find this book particularly moving or memorable, it was a good read and an entertaining story with good writing.