JRF26

Unbearably Boring

Revisado: 07-29-24

I’m not easily bored, but I could not get through this book. Most of the story is told in dialogue that goes on forever, with no wit or humor, and not a single interesting or likable character anywhere. The simpering style of the narrator only made it worse. I gave up before the murder even happened and switched to a Margery Allingham book that provided a balm of fine writing, complex and compelling characters, and an excellent story.

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Disappointing

Revisado: 06-05-23

I’d been looking forward listening to my first John Dickson Carr mystery, but this one did not live up to my expectations. The characters are uniformly uninteresting, especially the female characters, who are vapid and infantile. Even the great genius Dr. Fell failed to intrigue me. The mystery itself is compelling enough, but for me, the story must be woven around interesting and complex people for it to truly capture my imagination, and in this case it most certainly was not. The narration, however, was very good.

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Good narrator, ridiculous story

Revisado: 01-10-23

This is an incomprehensible, convoluted story without a single likeable character. The narrator is very good, but he can’t save this book.

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A Beautiful Tale

Revisado: 12-03-22

I forgot what a beautiful little book this is. The narration is outstanding and only enhances the experience of the story.

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Couldn’t finish it

Revisado: 08-29-19

Melodramatic and overblown language; much of the book just felt like one gothic novel cliche after another. I couldn’t even get through half of it.

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Starts well, but...

Revisado: 08-07-19

This started out so promisingly, but unfortunately the storyline of the young woman fell into the rut of romance novel cliches and hackneyed devices. The book as a whole seemed to get away from the author at some point - it became overly complicated and unfocused. It descended from a pseudo-spiritual, magical tale into a rather cheap murder mystery, complete with harrowing climax. Ugh. It’s well narrated, however, and has moments of beautiful writing. Some people might enjoy it.

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Entertaining but predictable

Revisado: 08-01-19

This is an enjoyable listen but not outstanding. I usually enjoy books with flawed characters, but the author went a little overboard in this regard with the main character, who is really rather horrid, not a single lovable quality. It is also easy to predict the ending from very early on, including the Big Surprise that’s no surprise at all. The narrator is excellent, however, and the book was entertaining enough. Just keep your expectations on the low side.

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Pretty Good

Revisado: 06-23-19

Overall I enjoyed this book. The characters, especially Eleanor, are lovable and interesting. As is so often the case, the depiction of therapists and therapy are cliched and absurdly tidy - no one recovers from deeply buried trauma so quickly and easily. The main character and her history deserve better. I also found the references to Jane Eyre a bit heavy handed and this served to remove me from the story and set me outside it, observing the author’s little tricks, rather than being absorbed in the story - it’s supposed to be a believable tale but of course it ventures into utter impossibility when so many character names are plucked directly from Jane Eyre and a bit from Austen as well. It was an unnecessary distraction. The narrator, though, was outstanding and handled multiple accents with ease. It’s worth a listen.

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Overblown Gothic Novel

Revisado: 04-16-19

I have nothing against a good Gothic novel but this one was overdone and way beyond believable. The narrator for Miss Winter was wonderful, but the woman who voiced the main character made an already melodramatic story even worse. Her character is difficult to like anyway and the narration made her insufferable. I’ve read one other Diane Setterfield novel, Once Upon A River, and liked that one much better.

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Great book, disappointing ending

Revisado: 02-05-19

This book is beautifully written with intricate details and wonderful characters that are carefully woven together. The ending, however, is shockingly abrupt and rushed, as though the author ran out of time and just dashed it off as best she could. The depth and complexity of the book deserves a much more complete ending. I found myself thinking, “I spent hours listening to this story just for that ending?? Not worth it.” Too bad. A better ending and I would have said this was a phenomenal book. As it is I’m reluctant to try another Kate Morton book.

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