Scan barcode
millen13's review against another edition
5.0
I was thinking of giving this 4 stars because I really, really liked it. But was it amazing? I had to think about that. I have read really amazing books by Banks: Whit, The Bridge, The Algebraist, and the story is not as jaw-dropping as those books. However, the story-telling, the picture-painting, the character development, the small herrings make this book amazing in its own right. Stories by Banks just seem to be perfect, down to the slight quirks in the dialog of the characters themselves. So yes, definitely 5 stars according to me.
serinde4books's review against another edition
2.0
So this book is full of a lot of ambiguity regarding whatever the event was. I felt like we didn’t move far. I want to know what is going on though. I don't care for time jumps and this book was particularly jarring for me. I don’t like the flipping between past and present in the same chapter. It’s confusing to follow. We would flip in the same chapter an I wouldn't realized ht time period had changed at first.
It’s slow and most of the action is in memories of the past. I was expecting more. It felt like it took forever to get the story really moving.
Overall this was an ok book, I had hoped it would be a little more fast paced.
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
It’s slow and most of the action is in memories of the past. I was expecting more. It felt like it took forever to get the story really moving.
Overall this was an ok book, I had hoped it would be a little more fast paced.
For additional reviews please see my blog at www.adventuresofabibliophile.blogspot.com
vanessar's review against another edition
4.0
After five years away, Stewart is back in his home town of Stonemouth. He has returned to attend the funeral of a man he first met as an adolescent - a man who happens to be the father of Donald Murston, the head of one of two criminal gangs that run this small Scottish town with the approval and respect of the police. It soon becomes clear that Stewart was forced to leave town five years earlier by the Murstons following a misdemeanour and has only now been allowed to return for a few days. A truce appears to be called in the first chapter, but things swiftly go downhill for Stewart as this initial goodwill does not appear to be shared by all members of the family. As he reconnects with old friends, he tries to come to terms with his guilt over past deeds and regain contact with former love Ellie (also of the Murston clan) while trying to stay in one piece.
Stewart is a typical Iain Banks hero in that he is smart and somewhat cocksure. While not as cocky and prone to ranting as the guy in Dead Air he is, like him, in love with an unfeasibly beautiful woman with dangerous connections. Stewart’s friends are all likable characters, ranging from the endearingly dim to razor-sharp witty. By contrast, the gangsters of the protagonist’s generation are all pretty thick and very violent. The novel is fast-paced, funny and an enjoyable quick read. Some of the descriptions, especially of the very minor characters who only appear once or twice, are to the point and highly recognisable. My only quibble is with the female characters in this novel. Ellie (the love interest) seems almost too good to be true: beautiful, intelligent, calm and controlled, she stays out of the family business without rebelling against it but can’t seem to stick with anything since the events of five years ago. Her sister Grier is slightly more interesting: slightly less beautiful and much less calm, she is a bit more proactive than the passive Ellie. I felt both women could have been made more interesting. But in the end they are only supporting characters in this story about Stewart’s rite-of-passage realisation of what’s important in life.
Stewart is a typical Iain Banks hero in that he is smart and somewhat cocksure. While not as cocky and prone to ranting as the guy in Dead Air he is, like him, in love with an unfeasibly beautiful woman with dangerous connections. Stewart’s friends are all likable characters, ranging from the endearingly dim to razor-sharp witty. By contrast, the gangsters of the protagonist’s generation are all pretty thick and very violent. The novel is fast-paced, funny and an enjoyable quick read. Some of the descriptions, especially of the very minor characters who only appear once or twice, are to the point and highly recognisable. My only quibble is with the female characters in this novel. Ellie (the love interest) seems almost too good to be true: beautiful, intelligent, calm and controlled, she stays out of the family business without rebelling against it but can’t seem to stick with anything since the events of five years ago. Her sister Grier is slightly more interesting: slightly less beautiful and much less calm, she is a bit more proactive than the passive Ellie. I felt both women could have been made more interesting. But in the end they are only supporting characters in this story about Stewart’s rite-of-passage realisation of what’s important in life.
tomfairfax's review against another edition
4.0
Although I thought this a slight story, it was told with deep detail and great fondness for youth, something that deeply resonates with me. Sometimes you need a book with second chances and happy endings.
magicschooltokoro's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cursing, Alcohol, Addiction, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Sexual content, Murder, Kidnapping, Drug use, Addiction, Toxic relationship, Drug abuse, Violence, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, Gun violence, and Death
Minor: Animal death
My first Iain Banks! I saw the author being discussed on social media and decided I'd browse the library for something by him, and ended up checking the library app, Hoopla first---and finding something! I'm glad it ended up being one of the lesser-known ones, but it was definitely primarily relationship- and character-driven rather than much, if any of a plot development, for those that it would matter for. It reminded me of a play, maybe even a story from the 'Angry Young British Men' literary movement of the 50s and 60s, or like a gang/crime story like Trainspotting, A Clockwork Orange, Fight Club, The Outsiders, Requiem For a Dream or something, focusing on youth culture, relationships, sex, substance use, specifically Irish youth culture. Whiskey was especially prominent everywhere here. It definitely felt narrative, observational, too, like The Great Gatsby, though it was also in-the-moment, and I think this blending measured out well. I wish I could relate if it felt like an Iain Banks novel with his literary elements or not. And I'm not sure how this will affect how soon I follow up with another novel by the author or not. I miss a lot listening to books via audio, as I can't always hear well enough or can't focus enough attention as I usually listen to audiobooks while driving. But this worked well as an audiobook, maybe more than it would reading, as the narrator had an Irish accent/brogue and we got the cultural expressions right as well as the pronunciation of Irish/Celtic names, which can be distracting in reading trying to figure out if one has it right or not. I think my favorite parts were Stuart's times with Ellie, her younger sister, Greer, and maybe Angelica, as well as his discussions with his best friend and the random EMP politician over whiskey. I do wish we had gotten more flashbacks of Stuart's time away in London, and it was interesting that half the book was a contextual flashback of earlier days as a youth before having to run off to avoid those who hunted to hurt him for reasons I'm still not entirely clear about even at the end. At first it was confusing but then I figured it out and noticed the transition in time. Not sure I can recommend it or not, but the Irish brogue is always pleasing for the audio, if that helps.hugo_pc's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
bibliomaniac2021's review
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
linguisticali's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
2.5
This meeting could have been an email. I was interested at the beginning and there was some action at the end, but the bulk of the book felt like an effort to reach page count.