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entchen's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
daisy222de's review against another edition
5.0
I absolutely enjoy a well researched book. And this is one of them. Keeping in mind the year it was written in it was ahead of current events. And that is an astonishing feat. If you like a good thriller, genetics and computers this book is for you. An absolute page turner
suzid's review against another edition
challenging
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.5
vickijustwantstoread's review against another edition
3.0
Great plot & story line, but sadly not my favorite Ken Follett book. Really like the Kingsbridge series. These characters all seem shallow and flat.
msmegsboone's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
suzze's review against another edition
3.0
First time I have read this author - somehow he came off as sexist to me.
tabea_sph_'s review
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
liz_ross's review against another edition
reflective
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
The pace is great. And that is pretty much the best thing I can say about this book. Damn it, Follett. Showing the powerful people don't always win is obviously a great thing too. So is showing how things worked in 1996, when it comes to rape crimes (which makes me glad things are far better, even if still far from perfect). But obviously the powerful couldn't win when they are the bad guys. And the second one would only have worked if Lisa hadn't ended up forgotten and only brought up again when it was convinient for the plot.
The fact that every single reaction feels artificial doesn't help either. The problem wasn't the reaction itself. Everyone is allowed to react differently and I no one can judge that. But I sure as hell can judge the wya it is written and that made me want hit my head against a wall because there was nothing human about Follett's description. He seemed ditached from what was being written. And it was like that for the entire book, except in this one scene with Jeannie and Steve, which I will talk about later.
Knowing exactly what was going to happen didn't help either. What was Follett thinking when he named this book The Third Twin?? I just ended up frustrated it was taking the characters so long to figure things out even if I knew it wasn't really their fault. Only one plot twist surprised me. And it was quite well-done, I do have to give Follett that much.
But definitely this is far from one of Follett's best books.
Full review coming soon!
The fact that every single reaction feels artificial doesn't help either. The problem wasn't the reaction itself. Everyone is allowed to react differently and I no one can judge that. But I sure as hell can judge the wya it is written and that made me want hit my head against a wall because there was nothing human about Follett's description. He seemed ditached from what was being written. And it was like that for the entire book, except in this one scene with Jeannie and Steve, which I will talk about later.
Knowing exactly what was going to happen didn't help either. What was Follett thinking when he named this book The Third Twin?? I just ended up frustrated it was taking the characters so long to figure things out even if I knew it wasn't really their fault. Only one plot twist surprised me. And it was quite well-done, I do have to give Follett that much.
But definitely this is far from one of Follett's best books.
Full review coming soon!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Rape and Police brutality
Minor: Infidelity and Dementia
ana90's review against another edition
DNF at page 160 (Feb 2018).
The characters are horribly written, flat and ridiculous.
Is Jeannie supposed to be exotic because she has a nose ring? And she's incredibly stupid for somebody who is supposed to be a genius. Her reaction to the black policewoman was so idiotic I had to google when this book was published. (In 1996!) Standing up for a potential rapist rather than her friend was also lovely. And saying that the potential rapist "gave no wrong signals" after CLEARLY GIVING WRONG SIGNALS was beyond me.
I kept reading on thinking that even if the characters are horrible, maybe the plot gets better. But no, one quarter in, we still don't know what everything is actually about (even though I can venture a guess - there are more than two twins! :O).
Here's the paragraph that made me quit:
However, she was going crazy living the life of a nun. She missed having someone hairy in bed with her; she missed the masculine smells - bicycle oil and sweaty football shirts and whiskey - and most of all she missed the sex. When radical feminists said the penis was the enemy, Jeannie wanted to reply, "Speak for yourself, sister."
The characters are horribly written, flat and ridiculous.
Is Jeannie supposed to be exotic because she has a nose ring? And she's incredibly stupid for somebody who is supposed to be a genius. Her reaction to the black policewoman was so idiotic I had to google when this book was published. (In 1996!) Standing up for a potential rapist rather than her friend was also lovely. And saying that the potential rapist "gave no wrong signals" after CLEARLY GIVING WRONG SIGNALS was beyond me.
I kept reading on thinking that even if the characters are horrible, maybe the plot gets better. But no, one quarter in, we still don't know what everything is actually about (even though I can venture a guess - there are more than two twins! :O).
Here's the paragraph that made me quit:
However, she was going crazy living the life of a nun. She missed having someone hairy in bed with her; she missed the masculine smells - bicycle oil and sweaty football shirts and whiskey - and most of all she missed the sex. When radical feminists said the penis was the enemy, Jeannie wanted to reply, "Speak for yourself, sister."