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The book reports just keep on coming, because YOU demand it, ladies and gentlemen.
20th Century Ghosts by Joe Hill
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Joe Hill is one of those writers I struggle with primarily because he tends to be hyped/marketed as the new hot shot in the ghost-story/horror genre, and his writing doesn’t really live up to it. (And for the record, I read both this collection and Heart-Shaped Box before I found out who his parents are.) That’s not Hill’s fault, so I don’t hold it against him. Still, first-time readers should be warned that there are very few ghosts in this collection. Many of them aren’t horror stories at all – some are more surreal modern fantasy. For me, it’s a mixed bag ranging from average to very good, depending on the subject matter. Hill has a lot of talent and imagination – enough to warrant three stars for this book – but something about it doesn’t really engage me, so I don’t know if I’ll give him a third try. But I might.
Slayground by Richard Stark
My rating: 2 of 5 stars
In which Stark varies the formula again with Parker being the hunted instead of the hunter. An armored-car robbery goes bad, and Parker’s only option is to hide in an amusement park that’s closed for the winter – and there’s only one way in or out, and that’s covered by mobsters and crooked cops who aim to take Parker’s money. I’m going to go against the grain here, because this is rated as one of the best Parker books among fans, but I didn’t get that much out of it. The narrative gets a little too bogged down by the detailed description of the different rides in the park – which is necessary to be able to follow the action, but it slows things down. So it lacks the briskness of previous Parker books, at least until the final act. The actual story is okay, and credit to Stark for making it a little less predictable than I imagined this sort of story would be, but this is probably my least favorite book of the series so far.
Spy Sinker by Len Deighton
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
SPOILERS, DUDE: The sixth Samson book and the third of the second trilogy, and one of the most enjoyable of the series. First things first: the book jacket blurb is rather misleading. It promises a story about Bernard Samson, his wife Fiona and her sister Tessa. In fact it’s essentially a recap of the first five books, focusing mainly on the tale of Fiona’s defection to the KGB – how and why it was arranged, by whom, and the impact on her. That might sound like a lot of retread, but remarkably it’s not. For a start, it’s told in objective third-person instead of Samson’s first-person narrative. Also, it covers mostly events outside of Samson’s direct experience, shedding light on a lot of unanswered questions (though not all), with minimal repetition. I can’t say how well it would read if you haven’t read the first five books, but Fiona’s story is every bit as thrilling and satisfying as an espionage story as Samson’s. The fact that Deighton makes it a compelling experience, even if you know how it ends, speaks volumes.
Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Shortish children’s book in which a father goes out for some milk, takes a long time to come back, then returns and tells his children what took him so long. This being a Gaiman story, it involves time travel, aliens, pirates, volcanoes, dinosaurs, vampires and ponies. And, this being a Gaiman story, the actual storytelling is top-notch, and entertaining enough for adults and kids alike. It’s a bit lightweight compared to some of Gaiman’s work, but still a lot of fun.
Rogue Moon by Algis Budrys
My rating: 1 of 5 stars
I’ve seen a few people namedrop Algis Budrys as a less-famous but no less visionary Philip K Dick, and this particular book – part of the SF Masterworks series – is heralded by fans as a great exploration of the psychological nature of death and identity. Certainly the premise is interesting – scientists are sending men to the moon by duplicating them and transmitting them transporter-style, in order to explore an alien structure from which no one has come out alive. And the earthbound version of each explorer experiences that death every time their duplicate makes the trip – and inevitably go insane. Scientist Edward Hawks thinks he may have found the solution in Al Barker, a thrillseeker with a death wish. But as good a story as that sounds, actually getting to it requires plodding through a lot of very awkward set-up with dialogue so clunky it feels like the characters are talking in non-sequiturs or lengthy philosophical expositions. I made it a little over halfway through before I finally lost patience with it. I don't walk away from a book very often, if only because many bad books are at least readable enough to make it to the end. That isn’t the case here. It does have enough of a fan base that others might get something out of it, but it’s not for me.
The Thin Man by Dashiell Hammett
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
This is my second time reading Hammett – the first was The Maltese Falcon, which I’m sorry to say didn’t really impress me that much, mainly because I thought Hammett’s writing style felt somewhat flat compared to Raymond Chandler. But I decided to try again with his other famous novel, in which former PI Nick Charles and smart-aleck socialite wife Nora get unwillingly roped into a murder investigation. The main suspect is Clyde Wynant, an old acquaintance of Nick’s, but the case gets complicated, as the victim turns out to have shady criminal connections and everyone in Wynant’s family has something to hide. Overall, it’s a pretty enjoyable mystery once you get the hang of Hammett’s writing style, which I still find a bit clunky and flat compared to Chandler’s cynical lyricism, but it works better with the wisecracking (and heavy drinking) Nick and Nora than it did with Sam Spade (IMHO).
Who Could That Be At This Hour? by Lemony Snicket
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I should admit up front that I tried Snicket’s A Series Of Unfortunate Events, but couldn’t really get into it – I felt it was a bit too much of a Neil Gaiman pastiche, and anyway I didn’t really want to read about bad things happening to orphans. But there must have been something there, because when I came across this – first volume of a new series that’s more like a detective/secret agent story – I decided to give it a shot. The story features the 13-year-old Snicket taking an apprenticeship with S. Theodora Markson, with the mission of recovering a stolen MacGuffin that quite possibly wasn’t stolen at all. As it happens, Snicket has an ulterior motive for his apprenticeship, and – as the name of the series implies – spends the whole story making wrong assumptions by asking the wrong questions. In some ways it’s frustrating – like most YA series, it’s not really written to be a standalone book, so it does leave a lot of loose ends. On the other hand, I like Snicket’s writing style, and it’s actually a fun read once you get used to the premise that kids get to apprentice as agents. So I’ll probably at least try the next installment.
Ask a silly question,
This is dF
20th Century Ghosts by Joe HillMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
Joe Hill is one of those writers I struggle with primarily because he tends to be hyped/marketed as the new hot shot in the ghost-story/horror genre, and his writing doesn’t really live up to it. (And for the record, I read both this collection and Heart-Shaped Box before I found out who his parents are.) That’s not Hill’s fault, so I don’t hold it against him. Still, first-time readers should be warned that there are very few ghosts in this collection. Many of them aren’t horror stories at all – some are more surreal modern fantasy. For me, it’s a mixed bag ranging from average to very good, depending on the subject matter. Hill has a lot of talent and imagination – enough to warrant three stars for this book – but something about it doesn’t really engage me, so I don’t know if I’ll give him a third try. But I might.
Slayground by Richard StarkMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
In which Stark varies the formula again with Parker being the hunted instead of the hunter. An armored-car robbery goes bad, and Parker’s only option is to hide in an amusement park that’s closed for the winter – and there’s only one way in or out, and that’s covered by mobsters and crooked cops who aim to take Parker’s money. I’m going to go against the grain here, because this is rated as one of the best Parker books among fans, but I didn’t get that much out of it. The narrative gets a little too bogged down by the detailed description of the different rides in the park – which is necessary to be able to follow the action, but it slows things down. So it lacks the briskness of previous Parker books, at least until the final act. The actual story is okay, and credit to Stark for making it a little less predictable than I imagined this sort of story would be, but this is probably my least favorite book of the series so far.
Spy Sinker by Len DeightonMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
SPOILERS, DUDE: The sixth Samson book and the third of the second trilogy, and one of the most enjoyable of the series. First things first: the book jacket blurb is rather misleading. It promises a story about Bernard Samson, his wife Fiona and her sister Tessa. In fact it’s essentially a recap of the first five books, focusing mainly on the tale of Fiona’s defection to the KGB – how and why it was arranged, by whom, and the impact on her. That might sound like a lot of retread, but remarkably it’s not. For a start, it’s told in objective third-person instead of Samson’s first-person narrative. Also, it covers mostly events outside of Samson’s direct experience, shedding light on a lot of unanswered questions (though not all), with minimal repetition. I can’t say how well it would read if you haven’t read the first five books, but Fiona’s story is every bit as thrilling and satisfying as an espionage story as Samson’s. The fact that Deighton makes it a compelling experience, even if you know how it ends, speaks volumes.
Fortunately, the Milk by Neil GaimanMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
Shortish children’s book in which a father goes out for some milk, takes a long time to come back, then returns and tells his children what took him so long. This being a Gaiman story, it involves time travel, aliens, pirates, volcanoes, dinosaurs, vampires and ponies. And, this being a Gaiman story, the actual storytelling is top-notch, and entertaining enough for adults and kids alike. It’s a bit lightweight compared to some of Gaiman’s work, but still a lot of fun.
Rogue Moon by Algis BudrysMy rating: 1 of 5 stars
I’ve seen a few people namedrop Algis Budrys as a less-famous but no less visionary Philip K Dick, and this particular book – part of the SF Masterworks series – is heralded by fans as a great exploration of the psychological nature of death and identity. Certainly the premise is interesting – scientists are sending men to the moon by duplicating them and transmitting them transporter-style, in order to explore an alien structure from which no one has come out alive. And the earthbound version of each explorer experiences that death every time their duplicate makes the trip – and inevitably go insane. Scientist Edward Hawks thinks he may have found the solution in Al Barker, a thrillseeker with a death wish. But as good a story as that sounds, actually getting to it requires plodding through a lot of very awkward set-up with dialogue so clunky it feels like the characters are talking in non-sequiturs or lengthy philosophical expositions. I made it a little over halfway through before I finally lost patience with it. I don't walk away from a book very often, if only because many bad books are at least readable enough to make it to the end. That isn’t the case here. It does have enough of a fan base that others might get something out of it, but it’s not for me.
The Thin Man by Dashiell HammettMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
This is my second time reading Hammett – the first was The Maltese Falcon, which I’m sorry to say didn’t really impress me that much, mainly because I thought Hammett’s writing style felt somewhat flat compared to Raymond Chandler. But I decided to try again with his other famous novel, in which former PI Nick Charles and smart-aleck socialite wife Nora get unwillingly roped into a murder investigation. The main suspect is Clyde Wynant, an old acquaintance of Nick’s, but the case gets complicated, as the victim turns out to have shady criminal connections and everyone in Wynant’s family has something to hide. Overall, it’s a pretty enjoyable mystery once you get the hang of Hammett’s writing style, which I still find a bit clunky and flat compared to Chandler’s cynical lyricism, but it works better with the wisecracking (and heavy drinking) Nick and Nora than it did with Sam Spade (IMHO).
Who Could That Be At This Hour? by Lemony SnicketMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I should admit up front that I tried Snicket’s A Series Of Unfortunate Events, but couldn’t really get into it – I felt it was a bit too much of a Neil Gaiman pastiche, and anyway I didn’t really want to read about bad things happening to orphans. But there must have been something there, because when I came across this – first volume of a new series that’s more like a detective/secret agent story – I decided to give it a shot. The story features the 13-year-old Snicket taking an apprenticeship with S. Theodora Markson, with the mission of recovering a stolen MacGuffin that quite possibly wasn’t stolen at all. As it happens, Snicket has an ulterior motive for his apprenticeship, and – as the name of the series implies – spends the whole story making wrong assumptions by asking the wrong questions. In some ways it’s frustrating – like most YA series, it’s not really written to be a standalone book, so it does leave a lot of loose ends. On the other hand, I like Snicket’s writing style, and it’s actually a fun read once you get used to the premise that kids get to apprentice as agents. So I’ll probably at least try the next installment.
Ask a silly question,
This is dF
