OK, admittedly, I SHOULD have paid more attention to existing reviews of this novel. Had I even bothered to read the Wikipedia eRead Dec 2021/Jan 2022
OK, admittedly, I SHOULD have paid more attention to existing reviews of this novel. Had I even bothered to read the Wikipedia entry I would have realised that the author himself admits it's not great: "I could see why it didn't appeal to a lot of people. It was an unpleasant story about unpleasant people. With hindsight, it was never going to be as popular as my other works."
But, I've loved every Hamilton book I've read to date. I've even read the Night's Dawn trilogy twice. I read Great North Road a couple of months ago, and Pandora's Star/Judas Unchained not long before that. So, before tackling the Void trilogy, I thought I'd read Misspent Youth, the first book (timeline-wise) set in the Commonwealth universe.
Which was a mistake, as I now realise. My fault. The warnings were there.
It's set in the near future. Jeff Baker, a 78-year-old inventor, is chosen as the first person in the world to undergo rejuvenation treatment. He's away for 18 months, then returns with the body/health of a man in his mid 20s, but the mind/wisdom/experience (more or less) he had before.
Which is an interesting concept, which could have been explored in many different interesting ways.
Unfortunately, Hamilton elects to explore the ramifications of rejuvenation from the point of view of Jeff Baker's penis. Which, as interesting as that might be if handled by someone with a defter touch when writing about sex, with Hamilton (whose sex scenes I've always found clumsy, embarrassing, and often puerile), it's all rather boring.
Although 'only' written 20 years ago, so much has changed in the sexual political landscape in those 20 years, that the long, repetitive passages about Jeff's sexual adventures really seem like something from a bygone age, the misogynistic 1970s, perhaps? We get extensive descriptions about nubile teenage bodies bursting from flimsy/skin-tight clothing. We learn how 'expert' these teenage girls are at doing what Jeff needs/wants. Etc etc etc.
You might think I'm banging on (pun intended) about the sex too much, but if you've not read this book (and I don't recommend you do), I'm not exaggerating. I had to skim read whole pages. Yeah, I get it, Pete. This 18-year-old girl has curves in all the right places, know exactly what to do, and can do it for days on end. Oh, and then she can rope in some other girl she's never met before for a five-day, three-in-a-bed sex romp.
The other mis-step in the book is the European/English political situation. Now, this WAS a little more interesting, read five years after the Brexit referendum. It was fascination to note how Hamilton had picked up back in 2002 that such a split in society would occur. The last 20% of the book concerns riots in London. And also interesting to see that Hamilton got things the wrong way around. (Can't blame him for that � it's just noteworthy, not a complaint). In Misspent Youth, it's the young people driving the movement for England to separate from the UK. In reality, in 2016, the youth were overwhelmingly in favour of the UK staying in the EU.
Oh, and the ending was a disappointment. As though Hamilton, too, had become fed up with the story and just decided to bring things swiftly to a close.
I love Hamilton's world-building skills. I've often become lost in his imagined societies, cities, landscapes. Months/years after reading his books, I often find myself thinking about a character, or a situation, or a setting. But he does tend to over-write things (everything). And I often think that, with the right co-author, he could produce something for the ages, something that would resonate for generations to come. Misspent youth � a normal-length novel for most authors � should really be considered a (bloated) short story. And, sadly, a bad one at that.
I've got another couple of books lined up, but then I'll tackle the Void trilogy, and I've every expectation that I will LOVE it!
I read this in 2021, nearly 60 years after it was written, having never heard of it, having never seen the movie. I came to it having read horror/darkI read this in 2021, nearly 60 years after it was written, having never heard of it, having never seen the movie. I came to it having read horror/dark fantasy for nearly 40 years, and I read it in anticipation of the forthcoming limited edition from Suntup. And, perhaps most importantly, I read it as an Englishman, for this, above else, in my opinion, is a very ENGLISH novel.
The plot concerns a young man, Frederick Clegg, a civil servant in London, in the early 60s, who (through the prism of 2021) probably has a form of autism, who becomes obsessed with a young art student, Miranda Grey. Due to his lack of social skills, he doesn't even speak to her. When he wins the pools, he gives up his job, buys an isolated house in the country, then abducts Miranda.
The book in his three parts. The first large part is told from Clegg's point of view. The second large part is in the form of Miranda's diary entries. Then we're back with Clegg for the last small part.
It's tough to review this book in 2021. At the time, much of it was probably terribly shocking. Reading it in 2021, very little of it is shocking. We see much worse on terrestrial TV. We read much worse in daily newspapers and on websites. There's very little violence. There's very little sex.
What seems more shocking in 2021 than it probably did in 1962 are the social class themes. With the first part, when we're in Clegg's head, it's all very familiar territory for 2021 readers. We've been here before, in much more (graphic) detail. It's interesting, but no more than that.
The second part, for me, was much more interesting. We're with Miranda. We're with the young woman who's been abducted, who's being held captive, and our sympathies should very much be with her. And yet� and yet�
Viewed from 2021, Miranda's views are what stand out as unacceptable, much more so than Clegg's actions. Clegg is painted as a victim of his class. And, again, with 2021 goggles on, we seem him (almost) as more the victim than his captive. He's the one born in the wrong class, working in the wrong dead-end job, looked down on by Miranda and her friends, living with his inadequacies, with his autism? Miranda is the privileged one, with her upper-class views on art and the meaning of life.
The same story, written in 2021, would be, I think very different. But that's not the point. It was written nearly 60 years ago, and, arguably, it foreshadowed much of what was to come in the next few decades, in fiction, and in the movies.
I'm not sure I can say I enjoyed it, but I'm glad I read it, and I'm looking forward to it receiving the Suntup treatment. ...more
It's the best thing I've written all year. Well, except for a post on a Facebook group for fans of escalators, which was eruditDOI: I wrote this book.
It's the best thing I've written all year. Well, except for a post on a Facebook group for fans of escalators, which was erudite and humorous in equal measure.
All in all, it's a great book. Much scare. Some plot. Marginally irritating characterisation.
This is another of those novels that I liked more as soon as I’d finished it than I do now, on reflection, a few days afterwards.
It’s one of those ‘ThThis is another of those novels that I liked more as soon as I’d finished it than I do now, on reflection, a few days afterwards.
It’s one of those ‘The Girl on the Train� type of thrillers where some things (OK, a lot of things) aren’t quite what they seem. Not so much an unreliable narrator as an unreliable husband and an author who drip-feeds information and then throws in twists just for the heck of it.
Currently, the Amazon reviews are spread fairly evenly across the 2-5 stars.
(Though, again, how can ANYONE give this FIVE STARS? This is not Lord of the Rings, Catcher in the Rye, Othello, etc etc etc And yet 36% of reviewers currently rate this book up there with the BEST books ever written - sigh)
And I suppose that would fit with my feelings as I read the book. There were some passages/sections where I really enjoyed it (4 stars), and some (deep sigh and eye-rolling) where I thought WTF? (1 star).
Essentially, it’s about a TV news reporter who never knew her father, who had an over-bearing mother, who had an unsatisfactory short marriage to someone rather like her mother, who has a psychiatric meltdown on screen while reporting from hurricane-torn Haiti, who then becomes an agoraphobic shut-in, who is then befriended by a character from her past. I won’t spoil the rest of the story.
It’s a book of two halves, or rather the first two-thirds, then the final third. The first section is a fairly-well-drawn character study. Lots of navel-gazing and some detailed descriptions of the main character’s life to date. The final third is like a completely different book, and not a good book, sadly, more like a novelisation of ‘Taken 13�, or something. Credulity is stretched to breaking point then smashed to smithereens. Again, I won’t spoil it for anyone who still intends to read it, but I could not, in good conscience, encouraged anyone to read it.
I’ve only read one other Lehane book � Mystic River � which I thought was excellent. So, he can write, and he can tell a good story. This book is well-written, but the story is, in a word, stupid. Two of the other one-star reviews on Amazon comment “totally absurd� and “awful�. Unfortunately, I have to agree.
Oh, and as an aside, as a fan of Lee Child’s Reacher books (although the quality of those has been dipping alarmingly in recent years), having recently read a couple of books boasting Child puffs on the cover (including this one) it has become crystal clear that a Child puff is absolutely no guarantee whatsoever of quality. ...more
Possibly the greatest, most insightful, most hilarious book I've ever read.Possibly the greatest, most insightful, most hilarious book I've ever read....more
This is an odd book in that it tackles some of the big issues � both of our time (Islam, radicalisation, celebrity) and timeless (love, family ties) �This is an odd book in that it tackles some of the big issues � both of our time (Islam, radicalisation, celebrity) and timeless (love, family ties) � but it does so in a curiously detached, clinical way.
Set initially in Paris, it centres around the beautiful Nina and the two men who love her � Samuel and Samir. Nina chooses Samuel, leaving Samir, Arabic by birth, to reinvent himself as successful lawyer in New York. Samir � now Sam � poses as a Jew, married into a wealthy, powerful, Jewish family and becomes incredibly successful. Samuel, a failed novelist, works a social worker, and his relationship with Nina flounders. What happens thereafter is the story, and I won’t spoil it.
I found this book ultimately rather unsatisfactory, for a number of reasons. The style was very strange � dry, list-like, unengaging. The plot was unbelievable. And none of the three main characters were in any way likeable. And that last point, I think, is the main problem. You don’t have to like at least one character to like a book but it certainly helps, and if the book is full of unlikeable characters then it had better excel in other areas to be a good read, and this doesn’t.
Oddly, this was the second translated-from-French book I’ve read in the recent months, the other being After The Crash by Michel Bussi. That book shared some qualities with this one � mainly the tone of the narrative. Perhaps it’s a French thing.
Astonishingly, this is Child’s 20th Reacher book and while it’s not up there with the very best of the series, it’s certainly no disgrace.
It’s set in Astonishingly, this is Child’s 20th Reacher book and while it’s not up there with the very best of the series, it’s certainly no disgrace.
It’s set in the current day, with Reacher travelling aimlessly (as ever) and just happening to run into a whole load of trouble. This time he’s on a train passing through a tiny town � called Mother’s Rest � in the middle of the great American mid-west.
One thing leads to another and he’s soon hopping around to Chicago, LA and San Francisco, accompanied by Chang � a female, ex-FBI private detective � who is “long-limbed and solid, but not where she shouldn’t be�.
I won’t spoil the plot because the book’s neatly constructed so that we (and Reacher) know almost nothing at the start and the plot slowly but surely unfolds. Unlike many Reacher books, where the stories could almost have been set any time in the last 70 years, the plot of this one is bang up to date.
I loved the first 12-14 Reacher books but the later ones have felt a little tired to me. ‘Make Me� is something of a return to form (or formula).
Let’s face it, anyone buying the 20th Reacher novel knows what they want and knows what they’re going to get. And in this one, there are no real surprises.
Jack can beat anyone (or any group of people up to about half a dozen) in a fist fight, or with a gun, or both. He beds the leading lady, and it’s fantastic and gets more fantastic each time he beds her, and then he bids her adieu. The plot is pretty much secondary. We just like Jack to be Jack, and to think, talk and act in a Jack-like way. This ticks all the boxes.
I laughed out loud when Jack’s in a store, asking the man behind the counter to let him see the telephone directory. The man asks why he wants it and Jack replies: “I want to balance it on my head to improve my deportment.�
Just before the final battle, after the plans have been discussed and agreed, Jack’s asked if he’s content with the plan. He replies: “Something we used to say in the MPs. Everyone has a plan till they get punched in the mouth.�
The Reacher books aren’t great literature, and no one’s pretending they are. There are better books in the series, though not many.
This is the second book in a proposed trilogy (the first being 2014’s Mr Mercedes) about retired police detective Bill Hodges. There’s little point reThis is the second book in a proposed trilogy (the first being 2014’s Mr Mercedes) about retired police detective Bill Hodges. There’s little point reading this unless you’ve read the first one. It IS a separate story but there are so many references to events in the first book you’d be silly not to read Mr Mercedes.
That said, if you’ve read Mr Mercedes, you’re probably going to read this anyway. If, by chance, you were disappointed by Mr Mercedes and you’re wondering whether or not to buy this, then don’t. Go read (or re-read) a Jack Reacher book instead.
King is an incredibly prolific author. Among his dozens of books there are a few stand-out gems. This is NOT one of them. He can write this stuff in his sleep and, at times, reading this, I became convinced that’s exactly what he’d done.
He’s covered almost ALL of this ground before. Crotchety retired author? Check. A psychotic obsessed reader? Check. Pages and pages on life in prison? Check. A plucky teenager? Check. Some old guy who both reflects on his life but still runs around like a teenager? Check.
Have you guessed that I didn’t like this much?
My main problem was that there was NO mystery here and precious few thrills. We’re told exactly what’s going on. Nothing is kept back as a surprise. The denouement lasts about three pages.
If you’re a King fan, you’ll read this anyway. If you’re more discerning, re-read The Shining or The Stand. If you’re new to King � difficult to imagine anyone in this position � then please start elsewhere. ...more
A game of three thirds, this book, sadly, ultimately, disappointed on a number of levels, which was a great shame, as it started off brilliantly. If IA game of three thirds, this book, sadly, ultimately, disappointed on a number of levels, which was a great shame, as it started off brilliantly. If I’m scoring it 4/10 then all four points are accrued in the first 130 pages or so.
This is the story (from the early 1960s in rural Maine � of course � to the present day) of Jamie Morton (youngest of five, musician, drug addict) and (Reverend) Charles Jacobs (minister (retired), carnie, healer/revivalist, electricity experimenter). Their lives intersect at four different points, leading to a (frankly bizarre) finale.
The first part of the book is classic King. Jamie is a country boy in a large family. This is 1960s and early 1970s. I don’t know whether writing about this kind of thing really is effortless for King but it comes across that way and, from the reader’s point of view, it’s like putting on your most comfortable jumper and curling up on the sofa with a mug of hot chocolate.
Where it all goes wrong is when Jamie goes wrong and picks up a heroin habit. We never really sympathise with him after this. And then Charles Jacobs goes increasingly wrong and we go from really liking him in the first third to seeing him as nothing more than a caricature of a mad scientist for most of the rest of the book.
And the denouement, as is so often the case with King’s books in the 21st century, is very, very disappointing. If you’re familiar with Lovecraft and the Cthulhu mythos then, when it becomes apparent where the story is heading, you’ll be hoping King pulls something astounding out of the hat, only, when you see what King actually does, to end up shaking your head and tossing the book to one side in disgust and disappointment.
OK � maybe � for someone who’s never read Lovecraft, the ending might be interesting, but, frankly, this is just Lovecraft homage/pastiche by the numbers. For King to be doing this 40 years after publishing Carrie is lazy and insulting.
King can write. His characterisation is beyond reproach. He can make you really care about the people in his stories. He needs to stop churning out this crap and come up with a good, proper story.
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