Scan barcode
A review by mhall89446
Box Nine by Jack O'Connell
3.0
While having heard a lot about O'Connell's debut book over the past decade, I figured it was time to sit down and read it. It gets three stars since it has both some high and low points.
High points--at least for Lenore and her brother Ike, characterization is excellent. These two flawed characters come to life throughout this novel from their words and actions. To a lesser extent, Ike's fantasy love interest, Eva, comes off as another flawed character. O'Connell's writing style is what I like also: the prose is spare, not overly detailed and scenes are broad brushed and you aren't wading through pages of minute detail that have no bearing on the story.
Low points--while Woo starts off as a almost believable character, his transition to villain, is abrupt and makes no sense. The new drug that is being introduced into Quinsigamond also seems hokey; why O'Connell just didn't stick with heroin or some other drug that was breaking onto the scene in the 1980s or 1990s is beyond me. Storytelling is not O'Connell's strong suit either; at times this book seems episodic and has very little linear storytelling in my opinion. There are also some procedural mistakes--I don't know many police jurisdictions that would still allow an officer to be active and on duty after they shoot and kill an individual.
I'll try another in O'Connell's Quinsigamond series. That will determine if I go for a third or more of his books.
High points--at least for Lenore and her brother Ike, characterization is excellent. These two flawed characters come to life throughout this novel from their words and actions. To a lesser extent, Ike's fantasy love interest, Eva, comes off as another flawed character. O'Connell's writing style is what I like also: the prose is spare, not overly detailed and scenes are broad brushed and you aren't wading through pages of minute detail that have no bearing on the story.
Low points--while Woo starts off as a almost believable character, his transition to villain, is abrupt and makes no sense. The new drug that is being introduced into Quinsigamond also seems hokey; why O'Connell just didn't stick with heroin or some other drug that was breaking onto the scene in the 1980s or 1990s is beyond me. Storytelling is not O'Connell's strong suit either; at times this book seems episodic and has very little linear storytelling in my opinion. There are also some procedural mistakes--I don't know many police jurisdictions that would still allow an officer to be active and on duty after they shoot and kill an individual.
I'll try another in O'Connell's Quinsigamond series. That will determine if I go for a third or more of his books.