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brvmama's review against another edition
4.0
The story meanders along for most part of the book. You start wondering, about the sub plots and loose ends. Suddenly, things start to happen and loose ends are tied conandoyle style.
martyfried's review against another edition
4.0
I'm actually rounding up to 4 stars because I might not have put enough attention into it to fully appreciate what was happening. It was pretty confusing, and I found my mind wandering sometimes and not really paying attention. This is especially bad with an audiobook, as the narrator has no idea I'm not listening, unlike a printed book. I did go back many times, but it didn't do that much good.
I had some trouble keeping up with the characters, but that might not matter, as they often didn't seem to be who I thought they were anyway.
So, the characters were confusing and not what they seemed to be, the plot was confusing and maybe not what it seemed to be, and the ending was confusing, but by that time, I had kind of given up and just wanted to finish already, so I didn't try to figure it all out. But the dialog was interesting, and I did finish, so that counts for something. All in all, I probably wouldn't recommend it to any sane people, not that I know any.
I had some trouble keeping up with the characters, but that might not matter, as they often didn't seem to be who I thought they were anyway.
So, the characters were confusing and not what they seemed to be, the plot was confusing and maybe not what it seemed to be, and the ending was confusing, but by that time, I had kind of given up and just wanted to finish already, so I didn't try to figure it all out. But the dialog was interesting, and I did finish, so that counts for something. All in all, I probably wouldn't recommend it to any sane people, not that I know any.
kfrench1008's review against another edition
2.0
I liked the movie version and I've liked other Deighton novels, but this one was not good. The plot meanders all over the place and some scenes are just pointless. I know that he was trying to show that espionage work is not glamorous like Bond but that doesn't mean the book should be pure drudgery.
friar_tropico's review
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
danyul's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.75
jbrito's review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
noonjinx's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I enjoyed the light hearted tone. The book is full of wordy descriptions but they’re quite entertaining. On the down side; it is quite a confusing book and things just seem to happen to the protagonist without him having much agency until the end