Scan barcode
book_concierge's review against another edition
3.0
Book # 8 in the John Dortmunder series has the gang hired by a small country to “retrieve” a religious relic – the femur of St Ferghana. Seems that there is only one spot available at the United Nations and two neighboring and always warring countries – Tsergovia and Votskojek – are both determined to get that seat. The head of the selection committee is an archbishop who will likely side with the country who possesses the authenticated relic. The poor countries have equally unimpressive “embassy” headquarters, so it should be pretty easy for Dortmunder and his team to get in, get the bone and get out. And it is … but then …
I love this series. I marvel at Westlake’s imagination in coming up with these convoluted scenarios. John Dortmunder is a rather gentlemanly burglar; he’s a mastermind and a great planner, but his plans, however well thought out and featuring split-second timing, never quite work out. The gang may succeed at first glance, but you can be sure that some twist will result in their ultimate defeat.
The joy comes in watching the various plans, fumbles, and regroupings unfold. I also love how Westlake describes things. For example:
"(He) wore a vaguely military tunic kind of thing, the Nehru jacket’s homicidal cousin, in dark olive green;…”
“… his usual airplane engine of a voice modulating down to a kind of heavy purr, like a well-fed lion.”
“This woman was about the size and shape of a mailbox, with a black-haired white lunch box on top for a head.”
In short, it’s a fun, fast, entertaining read.
I love this series. I marvel at Westlake’s imagination in coming up with these convoluted scenarios. John Dortmunder is a rather gentlemanly burglar; he’s a mastermind and a great planner, but his plans, however well thought out and featuring split-second timing, never quite work out. The gang may succeed at first glance, but you can be sure that some twist will result in their ultimate defeat.
The joy comes in watching the various plans, fumbles, and regroupings unfold. I also love how Westlake describes things. For example:
"(He) wore a vaguely military tunic kind of thing, the Nehru jacket’s homicidal cousin, in dark olive green;…”
“… his usual airplane engine of a voice modulating down to a kind of heavy purr, like a well-fed lion.”
“This woman was about the size and shape of a mailbox, with a black-haired white lunch box on top for a head.”
In short, it’s a fun, fast, entertaining read.
dantastic's review against another edition
3.0
Dortmunder and company get hired to steal the femur of St. Ferghana so that Tsergovia will get the favor of an archbishop and be admitted into the United Nations. Unfortunately, things go south, Dortmunder winds up kidnapped and Andy Kelp leads the charge to steal the bone a second time. Will Dortmunder and company ever get paid?
The Dortmunder books are like a visit with a lovable gang of losers. At first, you love them but after a while you just want them to leave you alone. That's why I rated this a three. Even though it was hilarious visiting with Dortmunder, Kelp, Murch, and Murch's Mom, the whole story felt padded, like Westlake was stretching it to a more easily sellable length. The plot was convoluted and the story was at least eighty pages too long.
On the plus side, Dortmunder and the rest of the characters were on top of their game, dialogue wise. The planning was as sound as could be for a Dortmunder operation and while I didn't care for the serpentine plot, it was very original.
While not my favorite Dortmunder by any means, still a worthwhile read for a reader with a certain sense of humor.
The Dortmunder books are like a visit with a lovable gang of losers. At first, you love them but after a while you just want them to leave you alone. That's why I rated this a three. Even though it was hilarious visiting with Dortmunder, Kelp, Murch, and Murch's Mom, the whole story felt padded, like Westlake was stretching it to a more easily sellable length. The plot was convoluted and the story was at least eighty pages too long.
On the plus side, Dortmunder and the rest of the characters were on top of their game, dialogue wise. The planning was as sound as could be for a Dortmunder operation and while I didn't care for the serpentine plot, it was very original.
While not my favorite Dortmunder by any means, still a worthwhile read for a reader with a certain sense of humor.
jeremyhornik's review against another edition
2.0
Look… I just don’t like Dortmunders as much as Parkers. I wish I did. I’d have more fun. Something about the goofiness puts me off.
They’re well plotted. The characters are funny, and the situations are comically high stakes. I just… I dunno, they take me a long time to read and I always wish he’d get to the point.
They’re well plotted. The characters are funny, and the situations are comically high stakes. I just… I dunno, they take me a long time to read and I always wish he’d get to the point.
slammy90's review against another edition
5.0
E poi niente, Westlake ogni volta è un maledetto genio e crea trame incredibili facendoti nel frattempo morire di risate.
Grazie Donald ♥
Grazie Donald ♥
asweetdevouring's review against another edition
3.0
A fun read and I really liked how the ending came together. However, a huge pet peeve of mine is having accents written out, and that unfortunately happened with several characters throughout the book.
asweetdevouring's review
3.0
A fun read and I really liked how the ending came together. However, a huge pet peeve of mine is having accents written out, and that unfortunately happened with several characters throughout the book.
More...