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jacpam0521's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
davidb71's review against another edition
2.0
This book has left me feeling utterly perplexed. I've previously read The Lewis Trilogy by Peter May, and I enjoyed all three of those books a great deal, but this one was a real let down.
It's hard to know what I think about it at the moment. It's such an odd book. I found some of it rather good, some of it surprisingly bad.
The story starts in Paris and then shifts to the Isle of Lewis. The story is mainly told from the point of view of Niamh - who witnessed a terrible event in Paris - but also from the point of view of Parisian detective Sylvie Braque, who is investigating the crime Niamh witnessed. And, as with all of the Peter May books I've thus far read, there's a lot of backstory, in this case relating to Niamh's childhood and the burgeoning relationship with her future husband Ruairidh. These parts of the novel dealing with Niamh's past are written in the first person by Niamh; the rest of the novel is written in the third person.
One problem I have with this novel is that it feels unfocused. Many novels switch between different characters and timelines very successfully, but in the case of this book it ended up feeling like there were multiple disparate fragments stitched together in a way that just didn't work for me.
At first I was drawn into the mystery of what happened in Paris, and I enjoyed a lot of the chapters that were narrated by Niamh about her past - these parts of the book really came alive for me. But I thought the overall crime story was extraordinarily bad. At times I was scratching my head because what I was reading made no sense. One person had an attempt made on their life towards the end of the book, for example, but for some reason carried on as though it never happened and never bothered to inform the police. Why?
And I found Sylvie Braque's inclusion in the book strange - she's a detective doing her job, but we also find out a great deal about her personal life; her divorce, her children, her struggle to balance her job with being a mother. I wondered what the point of all this was. The main character of this book is very much Niamh, and I felt that Braque's chapters were an odd adjunct to the book. I think I felt that her character was a little wasted in this book, because this wasn't her story at all. I felt that this character perhaps deserved a book of her own, and her presence here just added to the overall unfocused feel that this book had for me.
It's hard to know what this book is really about - because it's all over the place, switching between different characters and timelines in a way that felt a little messy to me. But, at its heart, there is a crime mystery, and unfortunately I thought the way this played out was absolutely terrible. I didn't like the ending to this book at all, and I thought that the reveal of who the perpetrator was and what their motivation was for doing what they did was extremely disappointing. Plus, there were other implausible aspects about the ending.
If I were rating this purely as a crime novel, I'd struggle to give it even one star. But at the same time there were things about this book I liked. Peter May always writes with an eye for detail that I find absorbing. I enjoyed learning about the manufacture of Ranish tweed and Harris tweed, for example, and I enjoyed many of the vignettes from Niamh's past, and her various encounters with Ruairidh throughout her childhood and teenage years. But overall I found this to be an unfocused and disappointing book, with a quite terrible crime story at the heart of it.
It's hard to know what I think about it at the moment. It's such an odd book. I found some of it rather good, some of it surprisingly bad.
The story starts in Paris and then shifts to the Isle of Lewis. The story is mainly told from the point of view of Niamh - who witnessed a terrible event in Paris - but also from the point of view of Parisian detective Sylvie Braque, who is investigating the crime Niamh witnessed. And, as with all of the Peter May books I've thus far read, there's a lot of backstory, in this case relating to Niamh's childhood and the burgeoning relationship with her future husband Ruairidh. These parts of the novel dealing with Niamh's past are written in the first person by Niamh; the rest of the novel is written in the third person.
One problem I have with this novel is that it feels unfocused. Many novels switch between different characters and timelines very successfully, but in the case of this book it ended up feeling like there were multiple disparate fragments stitched together in a way that just didn't work for me.
At first I was drawn into the mystery of what happened in Paris, and I enjoyed a lot of the chapters that were narrated by Niamh about her past - these parts of the book really came alive for me. But I thought the overall crime story was extraordinarily bad. At times I was scratching my head because what I was reading made no sense. One person had an attempt made on their life towards the end of the book, for example, but for some reason carried on as though it never happened and never bothered to inform the police. Why?
And I found Sylvie Braque's inclusion in the book strange - she's a detective doing her job, but we also find out a great deal about her personal life; her divorce, her children, her struggle to balance her job with being a mother. I wondered what the point of all this was. The main character of this book is very much Niamh, and I felt that Braque's chapters were an odd adjunct to the book. I think I felt that her character was a little wasted in this book, because this wasn't her story at all. I felt that this character perhaps deserved a book of her own, and her presence here just added to the overall unfocused feel that this book had for me.
It's hard to know what this book is really about - because it's all over the place, switching between different characters and timelines in a way that felt a little messy to me. But, at its heart, there is a crime mystery, and unfortunately I thought the way this played out was absolutely terrible. I didn't like the ending to this book at all, and I thought that the reveal of who the perpetrator was and what their motivation was for doing what they did was extremely disappointing. Plus, there were other implausible aspects about the ending.
If I were rating this purely as a crime novel, I'd struggle to give it even one star. But at the same time there were things about this book I liked. Peter May always writes with an eye for detail that I find absorbing. I enjoyed learning about the manufacture of Ranish tweed and Harris tweed, for example, and I enjoyed many of the vignettes from Niamh's past, and her various encounters with Ruairidh throughout her childhood and teenage years. But overall I found this to be an unfocused and disappointing book, with a quite terrible crime story at the heart of it.
rileyhawk30's review against another edition
1.0
[SPOLER ALERT]
.
.
.
I had always loved Peter May's books and was thoroughly disappointed, and quite angry, to see the use of the psycho/murderous lesbian trope being used in this book. It's safe to say that I won't be bothering with anymore of his books.
.
.
.
I had always loved Peter May's books and was thoroughly disappointed, and quite angry, to see the use of the psycho/murderous lesbian trope being used in this book. It's safe to say that I won't be bothering with anymore of his books.
celtic67's review against another edition
5.0
This is a brilliant read! What a great story, you will turn the pages furiously, telling yourself one more page, one more chapter. It's that good.
From the opening chapter and what a chapter it was!
In Paris Niamh confronts Ruairidh with the fact she suspects he has a lover. Ruairidh denies this and storms from the room. Niamh later sees him leave with his lover in a Mercedes car which explodes within seconds of them entering it.
Niamh is bereft, left with the task of taking her husband's remains home to the Isle of Lewis and not knowing for certain whether he was being unfaithful or not.
She has to get on with the rest of her life, not knowing if she had any life left to lead.
Enough of the story for now, read it and you will enjoy it.
I want to admit something here; Peter is one of my favourite writers. He could write the back of the a corn flake packet and I would think it great.
His writing is of top quality and he can put pictures in your head and what great pictures they are!
His sense of atmosphere and place is prevalent throughout his writing.
I urge you to pick up this book and give it a read.
In fact read any book written by Peter; you'll be in for a treat!
From the opening chapter and what a chapter it was!
In Paris Niamh confronts Ruairidh with the fact she suspects he has a lover. Ruairidh denies this and storms from the room. Niamh later sees him leave with his lover in a Mercedes car which explodes within seconds of them entering it.
Niamh is bereft, left with the task of taking her husband's remains home to the Isle of Lewis and not knowing for certain whether he was being unfaithful or not.
She has to get on with the rest of her life, not knowing if she had any life left to lead.
Enough of the story for now, read it and you will enjoy it.
I want to admit something here; Peter is one of my favourite writers. He could write the back of the a corn flake packet and I would think it great.
His writing is of top quality and he can put pictures in your head and what great pictures they are!
His sense of atmosphere and place is prevalent throughout his writing.
I urge you to pick up this book and give it a read.
In fact read any book written by Peter; you'll be in for a treat!
richard1510's review against another edition
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
wishknots's review against another edition
3.0
Firstly, I need to say that this book is well written. However, there were many pages that I skimmed through because they felt like filler. Also, the ending tied up too conveniently, with a nice little bow. It ended up feeling more like chick lit than a thriller. There were enjoyable parts but it was largely disappointing.
janie's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-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? Yes
4.5