Congetture su April

I read this book for a challenge and the author was previously unknown to me. It turned out to be an okay read and was reasonably interesting but I will probably not be seeking out the rest of the series. The main character is the usual alcoholic heavy smoking, melancholic middle age man who is neve Leggi tutto

Years ago I read "Christine Falls," an intriguing rather gothish, noir mystery by an author (pen) named Benjamin Black. It was good enough to have remained RAM-ready for recall in the intervening years, whereas, say, when I (re)purchased the book "Crimson Petal and The White" it was not until page 4 Leggi tutto

Third times the charm, usually, and could still very well be if you start here. B. Black is a wonderful writer (of course, we all know he is in his *other life* the wonderful Irish novelist John Banville, moonlighting to pay the bills between his literary novels). Problem I see with his Quirke novel Leggi tutto

for a single glance at the first four novels in the Quirke series, click on through to where I post my online crime fiction reviews. We start moving into deeper, blacker territory here with Elegy for April, a trend that continues through the two novels following this one. This book also happens to

Many of the very best mysteries are profoundly political. In digging deeply into what makes their characters tick, the writers locate the roots of their class origins and the wounds inflicted on them by their families, their neighbors, and society at large. Not convinced? Think about the sociology un Leggi tutto

I wondered after I read this novel, which while atmospherically lovely, was somewhat lacking in character development, if it assumed previous knowledge of the protagonist, Quirke, a middle-aged pathologist/alcoholic in 50s Dublin, trying to dry out, but failing, and sometimes failing miserably. He a Leggi tutto

Bettie's Books

prose and atmosphere were amazing, especially the descriptions of sometimes foggy, sometimes Ice-bound Dublin in February. Characters and plot both felt thin though, so mixed feelings about the book as a whole. Would like to read more by this author, so opting for 3 stars.

Now that I've read this book, I'm amazed at the hype it got. Not only did I find the characters very two-dimensional, but the plot also was thin. And the ending was an "oh, come ON!" for me. April Latimer, a junior doctor, is missing. Her friend Phoebe hasn't heard from her in several days, even thou Leggi tutto

This book is beautifully written. It evokes the fog-enveloped gloom of 1950s Dublin. It provides insights into the claustrophobic world of the city’s middle class. But nothing happens. Phoebe thinks her friend April may have disappeared but April always was a bit of a wild one. Phoebe talks about it Leggi tutto