This is not my favorite Thompson book. I wasn’t captivated by the plot - what little of it was there - and to be honest, I didn’t really like ThompsonThis is not my favorite Thompson book. I wasn’t captivated by the plot - what little of it was there - and to be honest, I didn’t really like Thompson’s personality. Regardless, it was interesting to see the seeds of his later prose. ...more
This is the best Bigfoot novel, hands down. (Are there others? Not in the interspecies-romance genre, I mean.)
Part satire on modern society, part horrThis is the best Bigfoot novel, hands down. (Are there others? Not in the interspecies-romance genre, I mean.)
Part satire on modern society, part horror novel, this book tracks a group of people wholly dependent on ecologically-conscious high technology, whom are least likely to survive in a situation alone in turbulent nature.
Brooks also weaves in the accepted lore and behavior of the Bigfoot in this horror novel.
Great book. I had a lot of fun reading it. Very multi-layered tale of our dependence on technology and the raw power of nature that can take it all away....more
Great, ripping yarn. Lots of fun. A bit choppy at the beginning, and it took awhile before the plot cohered into something apparent, but I really enjoGreat, ripping yarn. Lots of fun. A bit choppy at the beginning, and it took awhile before the plot cohered into something apparent, but I really enjoy what Gail Simone has done with this character. Looking forward to more....more
More than crime fiction, this is also a biting social satire and commentary that is just as relevant to America today, as it was when was written.
The More than crime fiction, this is also a biting social satire and commentary that is just as relevant to America today, as it was when was written.
The main character is virtually the same as the narrator of The Killer Inside Me, with minute differences. I imagine Thompson must have wanted to write a sequel to that one, and we got Pop. 1280. (If you haven’t read “Killer�, read that one first.)
This is a highly engrossing novel, that keeps you saying, “What the fuck!�. Can’t say much more than that without spoiling it. It’s a page-turner. Enjoy....more
This is the best novel I‘ve ever read about a psychopath. Thompson gradually increases the crazy in such a sophisticated way, you wonder how he does iThis is the best novel I‘ve ever read about a psychopath. Thompson gradually increases the crazy in such a sophisticated way, you wonder how he does it so well�(hmmm�).
I’ve never wanted to read Thompson because the premises of his books weren’t interesting to me - and I can’t remember why I picked this one up, but I got hooked fast. This was a GREAT ride. Best crime fiction I’ve read....more
This is a superb spy novel. You’d be very hard pressed to find a novel this realistic, compelling, and exiting. Kudos to David McCloskey. He’s in a clThis is a superb spy novel. You’d be very hard pressed to find a novel this realistic, compelling, and exiting. Kudos to David McCloskey. He’s in a class of his own. Looking forward to reading the rest of his work.
(I won’t compare him to LeCarre, because McCloskey’s characters aren’t as bitter and emotionally downtrodden. This is a uniquely American novel, and given McCloskey’s knowledge of the region, the villains are fully fleshed out. Well done.)...more
A friend gave me this book to read about 28 years ago. I started and thought it was "too gay", and never finished it. Recently, I decided to give it aA friend gave me this book to read about 28 years ago. I started and thought it was "too gay", and never finished it. Recently, I decided to give it another go - and after having read it I can honestly say, my buddy had me pegged all wrong. Lol. Good lookin' out though Q.
Regardless, this is a seminal piece of literature in the American canon. While we can debate if this is an "American" book or not - it takes place in France, the characters are American, French, and Italian, the author decamped from the US to France to escape Jim Crow and sexual oppression - the American narrator is grappling with his inborn American attitudes towards homosexuality.
It's a tragic book. Very tragic. But, a sincere exploration of what many American gay men went through (up until the 00's, I'd imagine) in regards to living openly as homosexuals, or not. I haven't read any reviews here yet, but I'm incredibly curious to see what the Millennials and Gen Z's think of this book, especially the latter. From my perspective as a Gen X'er, I can see this novel taking place up until about the mid-90's, but not too much later. I would bet that the majority of gay men up until the 00's still had to deal with societal opprobrium of the intensity that it would make them want to stay as (relatively) closeted as the protagonist of this novel. I would bet these attitudes still persist in many places and homes, but not nearly as widespread and as severely as they did in Baldwin's day, here in America. (You can tell me if I'm wrong.) I could see gay Gen Z's being baffled by this novel and confused as to why the protagonist is being so "dishonest" and dramatic. But again, that's just my assumption. If I'm wrong, let me know.
I'm also curious as to whether or not people think that David is a villain. Objectively, he's closeted and using Giovanni for love and pleasure, and his fiance Hella as a beard. So, by today's standards, definitely a dick, using other people for his own needs. However, David claims that despite the damage and chaos he wrought, he had to do what he did (chasing the American heterosexual dream while conducting a homosexual affair) because it was the only thing he *could* do. Personally, having known tons of people who grew up in the 1950's, I can understand that and give him a pass, sort of. The social pressure in that era was enormous, and I can see someone like David feeling compelled to shove his true nature deep down inside himself in order to be "normal", hoping it would all work out in the end. Self-preservation is pretty high up there on the taxonomical pyramid of human needs, so I can definitely understand the impulse.
However, his needs to satisfy his love and lust while balancing against his needs to fulfill the criteria of a "normal" appearance to satisfy his family and fit into 1950's America, cause some very serious ramifications. I still can't judge him too harshly, because it wasn't easy to be brave back then. It was impossible for gay men to live openly, homosexuality was considered a mental disorder, homosexuality was criminalized, gay men faced horrible violence and discrimination, not to mention being shunned by their families in most cases.
Did he do wrong? By today's standards, yes. But despite what happened to Giovanni (he kind of made his own bed in the end), I feel that David did do wrong - even by 1950's standards - by taking it as far as he did with Hella. Hella would've had a tough row to hoe back then, pushing 30 and single. (Also, I applaud Baldwin's examination of the state of feminism in that era of oppression, through Hella's voice.) However, as David intones in the end, he didn't even know himself, what he was doing - not to mention to other people. I'm sure if the character was a real person, his actions - despite being based on self-preservation - would've haunted him forever. No winners in this novel, that's for sure. All I can say is, the 50's were a horrible era, and I'm glad I didn't come of age then.
I would recommend this novel for Gen Z's in order that they can understand what the personal freedoms they enjoy, evolved from.
Whoo. This one is...chock full of plots and subplots, with violent action being taken kinetically and politically. I see this novel as a significant nWhoo. This one is...chock full of plots and subplots, with violent action being taken kinetically and politically. I see this novel as a significant node in a major arc Slough House saga, and I would be surprised if the next novel didn't take place immediately afterwards. Again, not a standalone novel. I guess I'm binging the rest of this series. ...more
I can’t really give my true thoughts on this one unless I spoil it, so all I’ll say is, it was completely compelling and I couldn’t put it down. For tI can’t really give my true thoughts on this one unless I spoil it, so all I’ll say is, it was completely compelling and I couldn’t put it down. For those new to the series, this is definitely not a standalone book....more
Loved it. My favorite entry in the series so far. Lots of fun, and I thoroughly enjoyed the character development - not to mention the new faces. I thLoved it. My favorite entry in the series so far. Lots of fun, and I thoroughly enjoyed the character development - not to mention the new faces. I think this a great set up for future plot lines. Great season on the tube, but as always, the book is much better. ...more
Fantasy is not my genre, however, I felt it was time that I read this novel. I don’t feel adequately knowledgeable in the fantasy genre to give this aFantasy is not my genre, however, I felt it was time that I read this novel. I don’t feel adequately knowledgeable in the fantasy genre to give this a proper review.
I thought the book was a bit slow and in parts, the plot and action didn’t give me a lot of incentive to keep turning pages. (I wasn’t too fond either of how a major plot arc would end…and the novel would seem to wind down…and then characters were thrown into another major event.)
However, there were parts I did find compelling, and eventually I found it to be a rewarding novel. Very beautifully written, and I have much respect for Tolkien’s intellect at creating such an incredible world. ...more
For several decades, up until about a week ago, I dismissed The Bell Jar as a "girl book". In my youth, it was ubiquitous. Every bookstore had a copy,For several decades, up until about a week ago, I dismissed The Bell Jar as a "girl book". In my youth, it was ubiquitous. Every bookstore had a copy, I constantly saw them in the homes of friends, and they were not unknown in my high school. I knew Plath had committed suicide (she was the butt of "head in the oven" jokes), and I had invented in my head the premise of the book (a roman à clef about her time as a young woman in New York) which was unappealing to me.
I can't remember why I picked this one up last week, but her detached, wry, cynical charm won me over quickly. I enjoyed reading about the New York of a bygone era, and by the time she had left the city, her internship over, I was wondering why this was such an iconic novel.
Then, I got to the dark part, and I was blown away with how matter-of-fact about her slide into mental illness and "treatment". Her accounts of shock therapy are probably the first I'd ever read from the patient's perspective.
I should probably let this one marinate for a while before offering a final judgement, but I think this novel has a well deserved place in the American canon.
If you haven't read it before, there is a fair amount of racism and bigotry, which would've been common then for a white person of European-Christian extraction (as it is now, relatively speaking) living on the East Coast. However, I'm sure Plath's modern counterparts at Smith hide it a lot better, even if they are "scholarship girls". (Boy, did she hate Catholics and Italians, even more than Jews and Black people.) Though I’m Jewish, I chose to ignore her observations, distasteful as they were.
All-in-all, it was an impactful, powerful novel, which I recommend to anyone looking for an early, groundbreaking work about mental illness....more
Short, punchy, and fast moving, this is a gritty and gratifying mystery.
Manchette is a great descriptive writer, who paints a clear and distinct pictuShort, punchy, and fast moving, this is a gritty and gratifying mystery.
Manchette is a great descriptive writer, who paints a clear and distinct picture of the action and its environs. The detective is down at the heel, and gets knocked around a lot, but there’s nothing in this novel that feels like it’s beyond the realm of reality.
That quality was what I enjoyed the most. It was entirely believable, yet exciting enough to maintain my interest and keep me quickly turning pages.
Though sordid, it had none of the bleakness and despair of a Simenon novel.
Very well done. Recommended for lovers of seedy detective novels, 70’s noir, and Jean-Pierre Melville films.
Merged review:
Short, punchy, and fast moving, this is a gritty and gratifying mystery.
Manchette is a great descriptive writer, who paints a clear and distinct picture of the action and its environs. The detective is down at the heel, and gets knocked around a lot, but there’s nothing in this novel that feels like it’s beyond the realm of reality.
That quality was what I enjoyed the most. It was entirely believable, yet exciting enough to maintain my interest and keep me quickly turning pages.
Though sordid, it had none of the bleakness and despair of a Simenon novel.
Very well done. Recommended for lovers of seedy detective novels, 70’s noir, and Jean-Pierre Melville films....more
Very interesting, existential novel that examines what it means to be human, especially when you have other options available to you. Aside from that,Very interesting, existential novel that examines what it means to be human, especially when you have other options available to you. Aside from that, it’s suffused with Scalzi’s trademark wry humor, and plenty of military action. Well done novel, I’m definitely interested in perusing the next volume in this series....more
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