P. Bowen

Overwritten, Over determined, Overstuffed, Over It

Revisado: 02-03-25

Less dull than banal. Moore’s writing is flat and uninteresting, but worse, it is so predictable. The female characters are utterly predictable in their resentments and unhappiness. The male characters are non-existent. I wish she had added some animals. They might have been amusing. If you want a lesson on how to completely deflate suspense from drama, here it is. I had to keep repeating chapters because every chapter sounded like every other that I could remember if I’d listened to it or not.

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Good to the last second

Revisado: 12-13-22

The problem with this book, and Horowitz's other mysteries, is that they are so delightful to listen to that I become aware that every minute I listen, there is a minute less of the audiobook. Again the perfect mix of classic mystery and meta-ficiton about the creating of mystery stories. Even within that formula, Horowitz finds a new approach. Here it is the ticking clock.

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A sad, beautiful story

Revisado: 11-03-21

First, the readers — Piers Hampton and Emma Powell — did a magnificent job telling the story of two people who are connected by a third who remains silent throughout. As the story progressed, and the inevitable conclusion was apparent, the story grew more tragic and impossible to resist. The sadness that seeped through the story was at once specific to the lives of these three people and yet felt as universal as sadness can be.

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Extraordinary mix of history, economics, and food

Revisado: 04-13-21

This was a fascinating listen, both for the topic and Albala's willingness to stretch the definition of food to include all of its ramifications, from history, economics, culture, art, religion, and more. Here a banana is never a banana, but a piece of fruit, a marker of changing economic forces, and a trace of brutal imperialist policies. If anything, I wish it kept going. For example, I wish he'd extended his discussion of how immigration transforms traditional cuisine to include other considerations. How people moving back home transform traditional food back home (as in Korea) or how the cuisine of occupying forces meld with native food (like how French food changed Vietnamese food).

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Carefully rendered world

Revisado: 08-22-17

What did you love best about Luck and Judgement?

I've come to love most of Grainger's novels, mostly for the methodical way the characters are created and their worlds come into view. But I keep expecting more of mystery or thriller than it is expected. Indeed in some ways they are barely thrillers at all. But more novels of consciousness.

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Classic Suspence

Revisado: 08-22-17

What did you love best about Brat Farrar?

Josephine Tey is such a great writer that each sentence and description was a joy. And it is masterful the way she ratchets up the suspense.

What other book might you compare Brat Farrar to and why?

Patricia Highsmith's books.

Any additional comments?

I loved it all, except the ending felt very quick and insubstantial.

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Vote Bernie

Revisado: 08-17-17

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I have read nearly all of Kerr's Bernie Gunther series. Of course, the early ones, as in Berlin Noir, are classics. Later ones were always pleasurable, although sometimes felt like Kerr was phoning it in. But this returns to complex Nazi roots, with amazing historical detail, fascinating ethical questions, and hard-boiled noir fun.

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Fantastic

Revisado: 08-17-17

What did you love best about Magpie Murders?

As a big fan of Horowitz's TV work, this book did not let me down. But more it explored both the guilty and pleasure behind us who find a guilty pleasure in cozy murder mysteries.

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Remarkable psychological profile

Revisado: 08-17-17

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I've been on Daphne du Maurier binge recently, This is classic du Marnier--well-written, sly, mysterious, and just a bit crazy. Jonathan Pryce's narration was great. The only thing is that it ends so abruptly and, to be honest, a bit unconvincingly.

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Tedious and predictable

Revisado: 08-17-17

What would have made Shadow of the Lions better?

I picked this because of the reviews, but this was a slog. Pretentious and predictable, the novel was like a generic thriller. Every surprise was telegraphed pages before hand. And his "expose" of boy's prep school was filled with every cliche, from Tom Brown's School Days to A Separate Peace, with mock surprise and horror at teenage drug usage and child abuse. Indeed its fear of being homoerotic made the whole thing teeter on on edge of homophobia.

Would you ever listen to anything by Christopher Swann again?

NO

Would you be willing to try another one of James Anderson Foster’s performances?

No

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