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lolatarantula 's review for:
Lord John and the Private Matter
by Diana Gabaldon
I generally enjoyed this book, but it's not what I would call good. There were some really high points and bits that made me keep reading, but it wasn't until more than halfway that I got really invested and interested, only to be quite bored and let down by the last chapters. For some reason, the last thirty pages are spent in a weird blend of dialogue and exposition that just didn't work. Suddenly Gabaldon was using 'the Cornishman' to refer to a character we've been familiar with throughout the entire novel, and proceeded to explain the solution to whatever mystery Grey was trying to solve in a bizarre, melodramatic fashion.
That, amongst other strange choices, really made me hate the last couple of chapters. I don't know. I've never read any Outlander novels but certain parts of this book were so convoluted and poorly assembled that I had no idea what was happening, while others were really enjoyable. The historical accuracy is great and I loved the attention to detail, and a lot of characters were well fleshed out and believable, while in the context of the story I felt like I knew very little about them or how they connected. It's sort of a whodunnit novel as well, but at the end I felt just as lost as I had in the beginning. The resolution had been so long and muddled in its approach that I must have missed half of the important details and by the time the book was over I was just glad to see it done. As good as all the characters were, there were just too bloody many of them to keep them straight in my head and honestly so few of them had anything to do with the mystery that I couldn't tell you what happened or why.
Weirdly enough I do intend on trying another one of this series, but more out of the hopes that the plots improve since I like the main character and the setting. I also failed to read the short story beforehand, so that might have helped somewhat. Fingers crossed, because I really do admire Gabaldon's attention to detail and the research she's put into gay life in the 18th century.
That, amongst other strange choices, really made me hate the last couple of chapters. I don't know. I've never read any Outlander novels but certain parts of this book were so convoluted and poorly assembled that I had no idea what was happening, while others were really enjoyable. The historical accuracy is great and I loved the attention to detail, and a lot of characters were well fleshed out and believable, while in the context of the story I felt like I knew very little about them or how they connected. It's sort of a whodunnit novel as well, but at the end I felt just as lost as I had in the beginning. The resolution had been so long and muddled in its approach that I must have missed half of the important details and by the time the book was over I was just glad to see it done. As good as all the characters were, there were just too bloody many of them to keep them straight in my head and honestly so few of them had anything to do with the mystery that I couldn't tell you what happened or why.
Weirdly enough I do intend on trying another one of this series, but more out of the hopes that the plots improve since I like the main character and the setting. I also failed to read the short story beforehand, so that might have helped somewhat. Fingers crossed, because I really do admire Gabaldon's attention to detail and the research she's put into gay life in the 18th century.