Reviews

Die Sprache des Feuers by Don Winslow

remocpi's review against another edition

4.0

Sigo con Winslow, el amo, tras haber sido "obligado" a ello al ver (re)aparecer a tantos personajes que desconocía en Broken.
En esta novela, que no tiene serie, nuestro protagonista es Jack Wade, un perito/liquidador de seguros que evalúa los daños de incendios para ver cuánto paga la aseguradora para la que trabaja. Ya al principio del libro se nos cuenta la vida de Wade, incluyendo un larguísimo capítulo que es de divulgación, no de novela, contando toda la formación que tiene que tener un perito en incendios (supongo que eso aquí lo estudian los bomberos, en USA lo estudian los del Sheriff también) y que a mí me encantó.
Las cosas se complican para Jack, por supuesto, cuando se encuentra con un caso que parece ser una cosa pero que luego es otra mucho más tocha.
El final es así asá y hay algunas coincidencias de la novela que hacen que todo sea menos creíble, pero aún así he estado enganchadísimo. Me ha encantado.

nocto's review against another edition

3.0

I was enjoying this for about a hundred pages. A different take from the usual on a mystery with a fire investigator looking into the death of a woman in a fire at her home in California. When I picked the book up I thought the title sounded more like an insurance company than a novel, that'll be because the title is an insurance company (imaginary I presume). Then just as I was enjoying the story it goes all off on a KGB angle on me. In the end I think the Russian connections made reasonable sense but I didn't enjoy it as much as I thought i was going to in the beginning, I just felt it was too big for it's own good. And a week after reading it I've pretty much forgotten it all. Entertaining but nothing very special.

cjazzlee's review against another edition

4.0

I've always liked Don Winslow since his earliest mysteries.

This one delved into the world of fire insurance and since it's a topic I know nothing about, it held my interest. The author educates the reader on certain topics as much as spins a good tale but does it in a manner that's not in-your-face annoying. I loved the link to Russian mafia as well. The main characters are pretty well drawn, not flimsy caricatures like with some writers (but I have to say I love his Neal Carey mysteries from his early writing career the best. There are some fleshed-out, interesting main characters to be found in that series). The other thing Mr. Winslow is very good at is capturing the sense of place, in this case, California and the American dream of fortune and endless opportunities. A good couple of hours recently spent.

camoverride's review against another edition

4.0

Hard-boiled, John Grisham-esque thriller novel. I really enjoyed it despite the cheesy salt-of-the-earthiness and cartoonish anti-hero protagonist. The best parts of this novel were the explorations of the minutiae of the insurance industry, fire science, and corporate bureaucracy.

bookoholic's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

4.5

radballen's review against another edition

4.0

Two words: holy shit! What a book. I finally read this book (thank you Terry for the rec!) and it was fantastic. Can't wait to read more Don Winslow.

teejayniu's review against another edition

4.0

I enjoyed this California surfer noir. It's one of Don Winslow's earlier books. I really enjoy his story crafting and writing style. He writes a great anti-hero.