dreynoldsbook's reviews
112 reviews

The Railway Detective by Edward Marston

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

I wanted something lighter to read as I make my way through Magic Mountain. But this proved to be too light. The characters are simplistic and archetypal, the dialogue clunky and corny and the author insists on telling you why a character is doing what he’s doing or saying constantly.

Also, if you think it’s going to be a whodunnit in the classical sense you’ll be disappointed. The main culprit is revealed just over halfway through as you are introduced to the character. There’s nothing wrong with police procedurals but this doesn’t feel very authentic and it’s too shallow to be interesting.

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson

dark funny medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Merricat is a great invention. Jackson manages to portray her as a sadistic psychopath whilst making her sympathetic and endearing. I kept thinking of Highsmith’s Ripley, but Jackson’s invention is far darker. And far more amusing. It’s really a dark comedy and very entertaining read. 
There’s a kind of twist but not really. It’s clear from the start and it doesn’t matter because it’s not a whodunit. I think you’re meant to work it out early on. 
Maybe the last quarter of the novel wasn’t as strong as the rest but it still had its moments. I’d say it’s a better novel than Hill House.

Blood & Sugar by Laura Shepherd-Robinson

dark mysterious slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Although I bought this when it was first published I read the author’s other two novels before reading this. I definitely think she improved as a writer. This novel is more cliched and less well plotted than the subsequent ones. I think the plot is messy and not as satisfying and it has a lot of unnecessary exposition from the main protagonist. He details his thought process at every step, often repeating himself.

It’s still a decent novel though and you can see the promise that the next two novels lived up to.

A Case of Matricide by Graeme Macrae Burnet

mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Burnet is a devious writer. He makes you think the novel is about one thing when it’s actually about something else. It’s cleverly done and very effective.

I didn’t think it was quite as good as his last novel, Case Study, but it’s still a great read.

The Burning Stones by Antti Tuomainen
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.

Didn’t get interested in it. Not up to the standard of his first couple of books, although maybe I wasn’t in the mood for it.

Joel Meyerowitz: How I Make Photographs by

informative inspiring medium-paced

3.0

I think there’s a problem with photography books this size (paperback novel size) if the photos aren’t all going to be full page. I found myself struggling to make out aspects of the images and that’s a problem with a photographer like Meyerowitz as his photographs are often about the little details.

The accompanying text is occasionally thought provoking but anyone who has experience of street photography has probably already worked out a lot of it for themselves. The author seems to have written the book partly to plug his photography course.

Some nice images though, as you’d expect.

The Dance of the Seagull by Andrea Camilleri

funny mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I read the first four or five of these novels a few years ago. I found them very entertaining. This one seemed weaker. The jokes didn’t quite hit the mark a lot of the time. Even the poissonally in poisson joke starts wearing a bit thin! Also, the plot was a bit of a mess and not very satisfying.

Still an enjoyable enough read though. I’ll try another of his later ones to see if this was part of a trend or just a one off.

Bitter Orange by Claire Fuller

dark mysterious tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

I don’t know why I didn’t like this novel more. The atmosphere and set-up appealed to me. Perhaps it didn’t live up to it. But there was also something about the prose that made it less readable and more of a chore to read. Staccato is the word that springs to mind. The narrative would be concerned with one major thing and then something totally unrelated would be brought up and it seemed muddled.

Also what about the suggestion of another person living in the house? This was left unresolved as though it was just there for atmosphere. Stick a ghostly figure in the attic window - that’ll be a good gothic touch!

The Guest by Emma Cline

dark sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

The narrative is told from the perspective of a very unlikeable, depressing character. Despite this I found it quite readable. There’s quite a bit of suspense built up although it isn’t resolved.

Axiom's End by Lindsay Ellis

emotional tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.25

I had to speed read that last 100 or so pages to get through it. It was very ponderous and bloated. The conversations between Cora and ‘the alien’ were tedious and became rather silly. I didn’t think much of the prose either and the characters were bland and forgettable.