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3.76 AVERAGE
3.76 AVERAGE
I'm not one for books about love triangles, which is the driving force behind this book. While I never quite felt comfortable with that aspect, the fact that this is also a book about a confluence of changes happens for the main character, it diverted my attention from it.
Zach is in love with his best friend's widow even though he's engaged.
He works as a middleman between big companies and suppliers, which gives an interesting insight into that work. It also reaffirms my distaste for such arrangements.
Zach's estranged father reappears and is such an over-the-top character.
Needless to say, all of these factors call for everything to change in his life. The characters are really well written and diverse enough to make the interplay seem natural. As is to be expected from a book featuring a love triangle it is at time sexually explicit. Being a bit puritanical, this often made me uncomfortable. The last part of the book, when Zach hits rock bottom, seem to come out of nowhere. The signs were there, but it's such a change in direction that it almost seems like a long epilogue. But Mr. Tropper's skill at crafty characters make it work.
It wasn't a bad read and I did enjoy it. However, I don't think I would have picked it up if it wasn't the book for my Guys Book Group. Which is the whole point of book group.
Zach is in love with his best friend's widow even though he's engaged.
He works as a middleman between big companies and suppliers, which gives an interesting insight into that work. It also reaffirms my distaste for such arrangements.
Zach's estranged father reappears and is such an over-the-top character.
Needless to say, all of these factors call for everything to change in his life. The characters are really well written and diverse enough to make the interplay seem natural. As is to be expected from a book featuring a love triangle it is at time sexually explicit. Being a bit puritanical, this often made me uncomfortable. The last part of the book, when Zach hits rock bottom, seem to come out of nowhere. The signs were there, but it's such a change in direction that it almost seems like a long epilogue. But Mr. Tropper's skill at crafty characters make it work.
It wasn't a bad read and I did enjoy it. However, I don't think I would have picked it up if it wasn't the book for my Guys Book Group. Which is the whole point of book group.
I always love Jonathon Tropper's books - they entertain hugely, but in between the laughs there's a few nuggets of wisdom that make me think and make me wish Jonathon was a friend of mine.
My 5-star rating probably speaks more to the hot mess my life is than the integrity of my rating, but I loved this book. I listened in audio version during my travels this weekend and will read it again in paper copy.
Not my favorite Tropper. Different in that the mad cap capers of his other books were more restrained and less damaging. Still, the man can write characters.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The thing about Jonathan Tropper is that even if his characters or the situations they are in are not resonating with me, I absolutely relish the way he uses words. That got this book 4 stars, not the characterization or the plot.
emotional
funny
fast-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
Quite a bit darker than other Tropper books I've read but still has the elements I love about his books. Witty and a blend of tragedy and heart warming moments that make for a really good read.
Whenever my friend and I happen to stumble upon a conversation about Tropper, we often share opposing views on his body of work. My friend insists that Tropper is a one-trick pony and that every main character in the book is pretty much the same. I agree, but that’s exactly what I love about his books. Tropper has found his niche in depicting awkward family moments and showing the brutal and tender sides to those dynamics. And though the main character is usually a 30-something screw-up, I like visiting his books and knowing the familiarity of that character because even though most of the scenarios depicted haven’t happened to me, they could very well happen. He depicts realistic situations that I can always picture myself in.