Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.88 AVERAGE
3.88 AVERAGE
This was a good book, another audible listen. The world is experiencing a new pandemic, people spontaneously catch fire. That is all I needed to know to purchase this book. I thought it was really engaging and often really scary. The only reason it is not getting 5 stars from me is that it was a little too long and the ending was just kind of meh. I wanted some epic ending to an epic book, but I didn't get what I thought I deserved.
Despite the cheesy cliffhanger at every other chapter, I w joyed this book very much, could not put it down and ended up binge-reading it. Hill’s style is not very distinguishable from King’s, but King is much much better at endings and tying loose ends. The book was predictable in many ways after a certain point, I still couldn’t put it down despite knowing what was coming.
I’m looking forward to having more of Joe Hill’a books on my shelves.
I’m looking forward to having more of Joe Hill’a books on my shelves.
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Sexism, Torture, Death of parent, Sexual harassment
Minor: Animal death, Vomit, Religious bigotry
Please insert random apocalypse plot device here...
The Fireman starts out as a typical end of the world story and really doesn't stray too far from that trope. It took almost halfway through for me to get into this and then it all falls apart in the third act. It's way too long (I think at least 200 pages could have been chopped), I didn't buy the main romantic subplot at all and the third act just gets more and more ridiculous. NOS4A2 this is not. Between the at times groan-worthy dialogue and lazy plot devices, this was not what I was expecting. Hill is such a solid writer though, that it is a pageturner, but I wish that his skills as a practitioner of thrills carried over to nuance, subtlety and brevity as well.
The Fireman starts out as a typical end of the world story and really doesn't stray too far from that trope. It took almost halfway through for me to get into this and then it all falls apart in the third act. It's way too long (I think at least 200 pages could have been chopped), I didn't buy the main romantic subplot at all and the third act just gets more and more ridiculous. NOS4A2 this is not. Between the at times groan-worthy dialogue and lazy plot devices, this was not what I was expecting. Hill is such a solid writer though, that it is a pageturner, but I wish that his skills as a practitioner of thrills carried over to nuance, subtlety and brevity as well.
This is the 2nd book I've read by Joe Hill. I love how easy it is to read his books. I couldn't wait to get home and read more.
The Fireman was a really uneven read.
Firstly, it wasn’t the story I thought it would be (though I don’t know what exactly I thought it would be). I half-expected a journey through a post-apocalyptic setting to a potential safe haven – one with a possible cure to the Dragonscale spore. However, the “safe haven” was pretty much reached in the first fifth of the novel. Because of this, a large part of the middle of the story had little momentum.
Instead, most of the story was reminiscent of The Lord of the Flies, enforced by the Dragonscale spore
Hill’s writing was generally strong but not always convincing.
The writing fell flat in its attempts to describe characters. I mean, if you have to distinguish a character by constantly associating him with Dumbledore you don’t have a character, you have a caricature. I really didn’t appreciate the pandering to Harry Potter. It felt patronising.
I wasn’t really drawn to Harper as a character. If you have a protagonist infatuated with Mary Poppins, you don’t have a main character, you have a really weird woman-child anglophile. I did not really know what to do with the strange infatuation of English pop culture that culminated in a strange relationship between the protagonist and John.
Apart from these irks, what was done well was the attitudes towards the Dragonscale. Hill did manage to explore some interesting themes on human greed and one’s desire for power. Through the conflicts among the characters he highlighted how delusion results in corruptibility.
But, overall, my reading experience wasn’t really an enjoyable one. I didn’t like the fact that it felt like a rehashing of cliched post-apocalyptic tropes. The plot was quite fragile – leaning on other tropes and narratives. Giving this a 2.75 stars.
Firstly, it wasn’t the story I thought it would be (though I don’t know what exactly I thought it would be). I half-expected a journey through a post-apocalyptic setting to a potential safe haven – one with a possible cure to the Dragonscale spore. However, the “safe haven” was pretty much reached in the first fifth of the novel. Because of this, a large part of the middle of the story had little momentum.
Instead, most of the story was reminiscent of The Lord of the Flies, enforced by the Dragonscale spore
Hill’s writing was generally strong but not always convincing.
The writing fell flat in its attempts to describe characters. I mean, if you have to distinguish a character by constantly associating him with Dumbledore you don’t have a character, you have a caricature. I really didn’t appreciate the pandering to Harry Potter. It felt patronising.
I wasn’t really drawn to Harper as a character. If you have a protagonist infatuated with Mary Poppins, you don’t have a main character, you have a really weird woman-child anglophile. I did not really know what to do with the strange infatuation of English pop culture that culminated in a strange relationship between the protagonist and John.
Apart from these irks, what was done well was the attitudes towards the Dragonscale. Hill did manage to explore some interesting themes on human greed and one’s desire for power. Through the conflicts among the characters he highlighted how delusion results in corruptibility.
But, overall, my reading experience wasn’t really an enjoyable one. I didn’t like the fact that it felt like a rehashing of cliched post-apocalyptic tropes. The plot was quite fragile – leaning on other tropes and narratives. Giving this a 2.75 stars.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really enjoyed this book, however I will likely never reread it. The ending was a tad bit disappointing and predictable.
Alright. Let's talk about this book! I have had this on my reading list for a while from some interesting reads list I saw on Pinterest. I was compelled about the interesting idea of a new post-apocalyptic disease that causes people to get cool, black inky tattoos and are combusting into flames. This book is almost 800 pages long and I was skeptical about committing to such a story. But I am very happy that I did. This book somehow keeps going and keeps us drawn. We aren't ever stuck in a lull and it all makes logical sense. There are no obvious attempts to try and keep the story going. The characters of this book are all unique and quirky! I loved these characters! Harper's love of Julie Andrews and Mary Poppins, Allie's bad-ass swearing and stubbornness, and John Rookwoods cocky and loveable attitude, and lastly sweet, deaf Nick that makes you want to wrap him in a warm hug! I adored these characters and this new world wrapped in fire and destruction and bonds formed through tragedy. This was a great read! If you feel like you can tackle an 800-page read I would definitely give this book a read.