Enjoyable, but not for everyone - Rated 
An enjoyable thriller that relies more on gradually building tension and suspense than fast-paced action. The author has excellent insights into people and if you're drawn to thrillers that build plausible and interesting characters then this is well worth a read.
But it's not for everyone - for example, one character is a 10-year old girl who increasingly acts in ways that no 10-year old would, and the reason for this is fundamental to the finale, and as you can see from some other reviews, if you don't have the patience to follow through and find out the reason, you probably won't enjoy it.
The only quibble I have is that when the big plot twist came through - and it's clearly meant to be pretty horrific and threatening - I found it unconvincing and therefore not really disturbing. So an enjoyable read but not one that I would return to.
Deliciously creepy - Rated 
If you like your thrillers traditional - murder, murder, murder: solution - then this is not for you. But if you like to be teased and taken by surprise, it's a breath of fresh air. Weird, creepy and deeply atmospheric. Thoroughly recommended.
Definitely please bring back the Smith - Rated
Warning, a bit of a spoiler in this review. As a previous reviewer says, you lose interest in what is happening as it takes too long to bring the various strands together, and there is not enough action to keep you going. It says on the back of the book, "when Jack Whalen's wife disappears, his world is shaken." Well, then she turns up again. And some other not very interesting things happen. I finished this book hoping that the author would return to his previous form at some point in the story, but although it was easy enough to read, it was like chewing rice cakes, a big crunchy mouthful which soon turns to nothing.
As Michael Marshall his first book was good (The Straw Men), but since then they have been going downhill. As Michael Marshall Smith I have enjoyed every book he has done since Only Forward. Please bring back the Smith.
just ok - Rated
this is the fisrt Marshall book I've read so I've nothing to compare it to and must admit that I was drawn to the brief on the back and the 'amazing reviews' that were offered. However, anyone who reads should know these can rarely be trusted, as was the case with this book.
The story follows an ex cop turned author whose wife goes missing and, at the same time, so too does a 10 year old girl in apparently unrelated circumstances. The plot is reminiscent of a stephen king novel and is more supernatural than thriller. The books is ultimately a bit of a rollercoaster in that it started fairly well then tailed off, before picking back up. The problem for me was not neccessarily believability (you just have to switch your brain off really) but rather one of interest.
You really dont find out whats going on till the end of the book and by around mid-way the reader is still in the dark and, for me anyway, I rapidly lost interest in wanting to find out what was going and, perhaps also, even caring what happend. plausibility is stretched to the absolute limit and the author doesnt quite carry it off. For example, story aside, how the little 10 year girl behaved and particulalry how adults behaved who met her could not be believed. also the very end of the book was a further disappointment because it was completely out of character for the lead, especially given what he had learned by then.
I've no doubts it was thrown in as the final twist but it was unneccessary, unbelievable and perhaps stretched the credibilty of the novel too far
Something different - Rated 
I found this to be an unusual book but enjoyable nevertheless. As the other reviews say, it's not your average kind of thriller, it's more supernatural so some people might not like it if they don't believe in that kind of thing. It's certainly intriguing, full of twists and turns, and I couldn't wait to find out how everything connected at the end.
|
