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A review by kkilburn
The Naturalist by Andrew Mayne
3.0
Not bad...
The Naturaist has several things to recommend it, an unusual, interesting protagonist not the least among them. The plot has some unusual premises and devices that set the book apart from others in the genre, and in a good way. I give it three stars for a few reasons. First, I felt that it started to drag about 3/4 of the way through before building up to a decently fast-paced denouement. Second, as a biologist myself, I found some of the science a little dodgy - sometimes, even with a scientist-protagonist and a lot of science at the heart of the story, the less said the better for those of us who are trying to suspend our disbelief. Finally, although the story is set in what I am willing to bet is some drop-dead gorgeous country, I didn't get a very good sense of place, or at least not as much of one as I would have liked. All in all, I mostly enjoyed the read, but am glad I got this as a Kindle Prime freebie.
The Naturaist has several things to recommend it, an unusual, interesting protagonist not the least among them. The plot has some unusual premises and devices that set the book apart from others in the genre, and in a good way. I give it three stars for a few reasons. First, I felt that it started to drag about 3/4 of the way through before building up to a decently fast-paced denouement. Second, as a biologist myself, I found some of the science a little dodgy - sometimes, even with a scientist-protagonist and a lot of science at the heart of the story, the less said the better for those of us who are trying to suspend our disbelief. Finally, although the story is set in what I am willing to bet is some drop-dead gorgeous country, I didn't get a very good sense of place, or at least not as much of one as I would have liked. All in all, I mostly enjoyed the read, but am glad I got this as a Kindle Prime freebie.