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3.87 AVERAGE
3.87 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is the ultimate slow burn. Though it took me a good few chapters to really get into it, by the end I was so invested in the Telemachus family that I never wanted it to end.
If you like dysfunctional family stories, and also have a penchant for the unexplained, then I would highly recommend this book.
If you like dysfunctional family stories, and also have a penchant for the unexplained, then I would highly recommend this book.
adventurous
funny
mysterious
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
Dysfunctional family novels . . .come on, don't they make you feel better about your own relatives? So here we have a book about an out-of-whack family with a twist; some of them, or all of them, may, or may not be, psychics. They're confused, too.
It all went wrong for the Telemachus family when they botched the appearance on the Mike Douglas Show that should have rocketed them into celebrity status and assured their futures. Instead, they are all struggling like regular folks, but with a big quirk.
"Spoonbenders" is frisky and, like the Telemachi, quirky. Daryl Gregory throws in some interesting tidbits about the possible use of psychics during the Cold War, including the development of some sci-fi gizmos to sniff out people with psychic ability. Throw in the Chicago mob--yes, even people with psychic card-counting ability can end up short the vig--and you have a spirited (ahem!) novel.
Thanks to Knopf for letting me pre-read!
It all went wrong for the Telemachus family when they botched the appearance on the Mike Douglas Show that should have rocketed them into celebrity status and assured their futures. Instead, they are all struggling like regular folks, but with a big quirk.
"Spoonbenders" is frisky and, like the Telemachi, quirky. Daryl Gregory throws in some interesting tidbits about the possible use of psychics during the Cold War, including the development of some sci-fi gizmos to sniff out people with psychic ability. Throw in the Chicago mob--yes, even people with psychic card-counting ability can end up short the vig--and you have a spirited (ahem!) novel.
Thanks to Knopf for letting me pre-read!
adventurous
funny
hopeful
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
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Great book. Matty came off as a creep tho. but the buddy plot was amazing!!!
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
As others have noted, Matt's obsession with his stepcousin is creepy. Sure, adolescent boys fresh out of puberty can develop crushes on cousins, step and otherwise, and, if Matt was a real person, I would tell him that he will grow out of it and stay away from the cousin until he does. It may be a normal part of sexual development, but so are a lot of other things I also would not let define my character, if I were the writer.
I'm just getting back into popular science fiction after a years long hiatus. This was not for me. The writing was okay, unremarkable but few outright annoyances (like, without spoiling, a character refusing to communicate a basic plot point that they 100% would have if not for the writer trying to keep other characters in the dark). No member of the family was appealing to me. The plot kept me interested enough to turn the page, but not much more.
James Randi was done dirty.
I'm just getting back into popular science fiction after a years long hiatus. This was not for me. The writing was okay, unremarkable but few outright annoyances (like, without spoiling, a character refusing to communicate a basic plot point that they 100% would have if not for the writer trying to keep other characters in the dark). No member of the family was appealing to me. The plot kept me interested enough to turn the page, but not much more.
James Randi was done dirty.