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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
I usually read my Kindle on the treadmill, and the 2nd to last chapter of this book made me so sick I had to stop walking.
Barf, dude. Srsly. Barf.
Barf, dude. Srsly. Barf.
this was one of those books i accidentally read, and i don't ENTIRELY regret it. there were a lot of interesting facts about anatomy thrown into what was, to me, a kind of annoying mafia tale. sure, the whole episode where all poles are painted as suspicious, anti-semitic assholes really rubbed me the wrong way. the medical stuff was neat and there were actually a couple moments where his writing left me a bit in awe. as for the rest ... well, at least it went by quick.
Both a doctor and a writer, Bazell, a not before known, came up with a very entertaining and informative story. The medical facts seemed accurate, the story of both past and one day in a hospital doctors life were well woven, including a bit of humor. A good find, by accident, but I'll be looking for more from Bazell
I just don't know what this author or editor was thinking! Very little character recognition or development. Women are well, face it, saints or whores. Preferably both. The mob story line along with the hospital do-gooder just doesn't have any grounding in reality. The hospital satire could be moderately enjoyable, but in the end, this was not worth the time.
Didn't care for the writer's style. Too much exposition, particularly at the beginning. Especially the tangential exposition. Then too much of the story is told via flashbacks. I also learned from this novel that I don't care for medical dramas. Overall, it reminded me of a discarded first draft of a Quentin Tarantino script, especially the ending.
Beat the Reaper chronicles the life and times of a mobster turned doctor thanks to the witness protection program. I loved this book from page one and could not put it down. The pacing was excellent. The characters were likable. The writing is witty and intelligent. I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for a quick fun read (provided you are not too squeamish). Kudos to Josh Bazell and I look forward to the next novel!
I finally received a copy of this book 5 weeks after the Pulp Fiction group chose it as their monthly read. Go AusPost! But it was an ugly copy that felt like it had been photocopied, including a glossy print for the flimsy cover. Must do better work at publishing actual books people.
About two thirds of the way through my interest was waning and I decided to check out the 1 Star reviews to see if others were having the same problem I was having with it - the flashbacks were slow and largely uninteresting. And to my sheer horror I found myself compiling a list of some of the stupidly idiotic things that other readers said in a disparaging way about this book. Why do I torture myself this way?
This book is filled with swearing, duh, it's about a former Mafia hitman in the witness protection program working as a doctor in a hospital.
If you expected this to be a 1940s Hollywood movie think again, if you're easily offended by the term fuckhead thrown around as casually as a sports jacket in a 5 star restaurant then perhaps the first paragraph should have been enough to warn you off. Don't come around here complaining and dragging a books rating down with your social morals from a time long lost to the primordial soup.
This book is filled with gory descriptions of medical procedures, duh, it's about a former Mafia hitman in the witness protection program working as a doctor in a hospital.
If you expected some kind of daytime soap opera drama think again, I consider myself tough and there were a few moments (especially the denouement) where I lost it, if the thought of a skinned knee without your mother coming to kiss it better makes you want to cry or vomit I suggest you steer clear of a book that unashamedly features an autofibulectomy. Don't come around here crying about how crude and apathetic the portrayal of the broken US healthcare system is when this book was written by a practising medical resident at the University of California. I suggest you question your own perceptions of your broken healthcare system before criticising a novel.
This book features sexual encounters, unlikable characters and a zany/unbelievable plot, duh, it's about a former Mafia hitman in the witness protection program working as a doctor in a hospital.
I'm not joking here, read the synopsis, done it? Good, does that sound remotely normal? No! If you were expecting The Sopranos mixed with ER you're barking up the wrong tree. This really is a book that takes every absurd thing the author has witnessed or heard about as a doctor in a hospital and puts it in to a story that takes place over the course of one day, it's closer to Scrubs multiplied in absurdity by a thousand than it is to ER. This is no [a:Robin Cook|19697|Robin Cook|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1289871734p2/19697.jpg] medical thriller either folks.
There's a quote on the back from [a:Don Winslow|37795|Don Winslow|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1288036709p2/37795.jpg] himself about how cool and ferocious this book is and at times it felt like Bazell was heavily influenced by the guy but didn't quite make it, with the lack of substance to his story and characters. It's like Don Winslow light, much funnier, relentless in it's pace (aside from the middle section of flashbacks), but with an arrogant, unlikable, confused, boy as the protagonist.
One reviewer even suggested improving your life by reading a novel about a protagonist "sincerely religious, gentle, and moral, i.e., resembling at least some people the real world.[sic]" Which I found extremely naive on several levels.
But I'm not going to criticise them for believing there aren't people in the world who behave like the characters in this book (there are, we know there are, infact it's quite likely that we share many characteristics with Josh Bazell's characters) or for picking up a book about a mafia hitman in the witness protection program; it's the idea that for a story to have a moral and to work as an entertaining narrative the protagonist needs to be likable, not even holier than thou perfect (how dull would that be,) just plain likable. You don't need to like Peter Brown to know that he is a man doing the best that he can, to realise that all of his actions (and especially the denouement) are attempts at self-flagellation and redemption for his past sins.
Actually, perhaps there aren't many people in the world who are like that?
That's not even where it falls down, it's the slow and largely uninteresting flashbacks that take up nearly half of the novel, if that had been improved I would happily have thrown this an extra star.
I'm intrigued by the concept of a sequel (it's getting worse reviews) simply because surely there's no back story to plump up the page count.
Do yourself a favour, at least read a surgical manual before attempting to recreate some of the scenes from this book in your own home. Failing that, trial the procedure on some unsuspecting homeless guy first.
About two thirds of the way through my interest was waning and I decided to check out the 1 Star reviews to see if others were having the same problem I was having with it - the flashbacks were slow and largely uninteresting. And to my sheer horror I found myself compiling a list of some of the stupidly idiotic things that other readers said in a disparaging way about this book. Why do I torture myself this way?
This book is filled with swearing, duh, it's about a former Mafia hitman in the witness protection program working as a doctor in a hospital.
If you expected this to be a 1940s Hollywood movie think again, if you're easily offended by the term fuckhead thrown around as casually as a sports jacket in a 5 star restaurant then perhaps the first paragraph should have been enough to warn you off. Don't come around here complaining and dragging a books rating down with your social morals from a time long lost to the primordial soup.
This book is filled with gory descriptions of medical procedures, duh, it's about a former Mafia hitman in the witness protection program working as a doctor in a hospital.
If you expected some kind of daytime soap opera drama think again, I consider myself tough and there were a few moments (especially the denouement) where I lost it, if the thought of a skinned knee without your mother coming to kiss it better makes you want to cry or vomit I suggest you steer clear of a book that unashamedly features an autofibulectomy. Don't come around here crying about how crude and apathetic the portrayal of the broken US healthcare system is when this book was written by a practising medical resident at the University of California. I suggest you question your own perceptions of your broken healthcare system before criticising a novel.
This book features sexual encounters, unlikable characters and a zany/unbelievable plot, duh, it's about a former Mafia hitman in the witness protection program working as a doctor in a hospital.
I'm not joking here, read the synopsis, done it? Good, does that sound remotely normal? No! If you were expecting The Sopranos mixed with ER you're barking up the wrong tree. This really is a book that takes every absurd thing the author has witnessed or heard about as a doctor in a hospital and puts it in to a story that takes place over the course of one day, it's closer to Scrubs multiplied in absurdity by a thousand than it is to ER. This is no [a:Robin Cook|19697|Robin Cook|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1289871734p2/19697.jpg] medical thriller either folks.
There's a quote on the back from [a:Don Winslow|37795|Don Winslow|http://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1288036709p2/37795.jpg] himself about how cool and ferocious this book is and at times it felt like Bazell was heavily influenced by the guy but didn't quite make it, with the lack of substance to his story and characters. It's like Don Winslow light, much funnier, relentless in it's pace (aside from the middle section of flashbacks), but with an arrogant, unlikable, confused, boy as the protagonist.
One reviewer even suggested improving your life by reading a novel about a protagonist "sincerely religious, gentle, and moral, i.e., resembling at least some people the real world.[sic]" Which I found extremely naive on several levels.
But I'm not going to criticise them for believing there aren't people in the world who behave like the characters in this book (there are, we know there are, infact it's quite likely that we share many characteristics with Josh Bazell's characters) or for picking up a book about a mafia hitman in the witness protection program; it's the idea that for a story to have a moral and to work as an entertaining narrative the protagonist needs to be likable, not even holier than thou perfect (how dull would that be,) just plain likable. You don't need to like Peter Brown to know that he is a man doing the best that he can, to realise that all of his actions (and especially the denouement) are attempts at self-flagellation and redemption for his past sins.
Actually, perhaps there aren't many people in the world who are like that?
That's not even where it falls down, it's the slow and largely uninteresting flashbacks that take up nearly half of the novel, if that had been improved I would happily have thrown this an extra star.
I'm intrigued by the concept of a sequel (it's getting worse reviews) simply because surely there's no back story to plump up the page count.
Do yourself a favour, at least read a surgical manual before attempting to recreate some of the scenes from this book in your own home. Failing that, trial the procedure on some unsuspecting homeless guy first.