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daybreak1012 's review for:
Lord John And The Private Matter
by Diana Gabaldon
This book is of an entirely different tone than that of the Outlander. While I adore the John Grey we get there, here (at least in this book), his world is far more gritty. As I was reading, rather than the rich, full scenes I enjoy in the other series (even in its darkest moments, Outlander is lush), everything here feels harsh and shadowy and ominous, with little levity or anything light to balance the weight. If I had to compare it to something, it would Sherlock Holmes meets Kate Atkinson's Jackson Brodie series (I initially thought Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone series, but even that wasn't a gritty enough comparison).
What I liked about Lord John and the Private Matter:
John Grey - One of my favorite peripheral characters in the Outlander series, he remains true to character, and almost seems misplaced in this new setting that is apparently his personal world. Perhaps that is indicative of all the ways he truly does feel misplaced in his own world...
What I didn't care for:
It was a bit difficult for me to follow along - I don't know if it was how different the writing style was from what I had expected or just that I actually encountered some vocabulary with which I was not familiar (some of it "thesaurus words", others just vernacular or simply words that were time-appropriate but have fallen by the wayside) but for portions of the book, I was a bit foggy on what was taking place. I was able to get the gist of it, so I wasn't completely lost, but it felt similar to walking around an unfamiliar, dimly lit room; you can see well enough to move about cautiously but you aren't entirely sure what you're looking at.
Not a terribly written book but not the sort to which I am typically drawn, I am sufficiently curious about Lord John's world away from Scotland. As many of the installments in Lord John's series are short(er) stories, I imagine I will delve into at least a few more before determining if I am interested in fully committing to seeing it through. Mostly, I am hesitant to dabble much in the grittier mystery genre. It can be a bit gory for my taste and I suspect I need to approach it in just the right frame of mind to be able to immerse in the story while remaining mostly disengaged from some of the more noir-ish aspects. I do really enjoy Lord John though, so there's that.
What I liked about Lord John and the Private Matter:
John Grey - One of my favorite peripheral characters in the Outlander series, he remains true to character, and almost seems misplaced in this new setting that is apparently his personal world. Perhaps that is indicative of all the ways he truly does feel misplaced in his own world...
What I didn't care for:
It was a bit difficult for me to follow along - I don't know if it was how different the writing style was from what I had expected or just that I actually encountered some vocabulary with which I was not familiar (some of it "thesaurus words", others just vernacular or simply words that were time-appropriate but have fallen by the wayside) but for portions of the book, I was a bit foggy on what was taking place. I was able to get the gist of it, so I wasn't completely lost, but it felt similar to walking around an unfamiliar, dimly lit room; you can see well enough to move about cautiously but you aren't entirely sure what you're looking at.
Not a terribly written book but not the sort to which I am typically drawn, I am sufficiently curious about Lord John's world away from Scotland. As many of the installments in Lord John's series are short(er) stories, I imagine I will delve into at least a few more before determining if I am interested in fully committing to seeing it through. Mostly, I am hesitant to dabble much in the grittier mystery genre. It can be a bit gory for my taste and I suspect I need to approach it in just the right frame of mind to be able to immerse in the story while remaining mostly disengaged from some of the more noir-ish aspects. I do really enjoy Lord John though, so there's that.