F. R.

Entertaining, but frustrating.

Revisado: 03-23-25

I was entertained, but rather against my better judgement: the protagonist made absurdly foolish choices. Annoyingly, unbelievably foolish. The plot was highly improbable, and the whole definitely did not "transcend the genre" as is sometimes said of more accomplished mysteries. It was a kind of morbid fluff with a dollop of romance. Perhaps the author is very young. Perhaps she will grow into her art, but this felt immature to me. I probably won't try another from McFadden for some years.

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A good reading of the orginal poignant tale

Revisado: 02-10-25

I forget how lyrical Andersen's tale is, a beautifully told, deeply sad tale. The language draws images in the mind so much more magical to me than the brash Disney interpretation. No wonder it became a classic. The reading is pleasingly straight forward and sincere, the way reading aloud should be for such a story.

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A simple and sublime book

Revisado: 10-07-24

A great pleasure and calming guide on the path Home, read sweetly with sincerity. Thank you.

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I loved it.

Revisado: 05-03-23

A fabulous, well developed concept, extreme suspense regarding a world-ending threat, an amusingly flawed protagonist and a thoroughly alien character who totally charmed me. All this leavened with just the right amount of humor. It could also make a young person mighty eager to study science. A book I will enjoy more than once!

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Agravating flaws.

Revisado: 11-28-22

There were some seeds of a good idea here, maybe, but for me the flaws out-weighed any potentials. I had hopes at the beginning of the book, but by the time the protagonists began their vapid, formulaic romance during a court proceeding that became utterly improbable, I felt clumsily manipulated and increasingly irritable. I realized I did not care what happened to any of the characters, since I did not believe in them (or for that matter in their pets, who seemed stuck in to pump some sympathy out of the weary reader). By the end of the book, I felt as if the author had dumped a police procedural, a court drama, a young-adult romance novel and a serial killer psycho-fest in a blender and offered up the result.

If this book had not been offered free, I would have returned it halfway through. As it was, I got some stuff done while listening to it and I satisfied my morbid curiosity as to the final intentions of the author. However, I will not repeat the exercise with Mr. Dugoni.

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Delightful reading of intriguing vintage tales

Revisado: 06-19-22

A great reading and selection by Mark Gatiss. One might be seated by the fire. listening to the tale-teller in some solitary manor or wayside inn, just the way so many weird stories used to begin, in the golden age of ghosts. A great presentation of Benson's beautifully eerie stores. Thank you, Mr. Gatiss!

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Central character a miss for me

Revisado: 04-10-22

Unfortunately, I could not muster much feeling -- beyond exasperation -- for the central character, Carter. Ms. Ellis described Carter as charismatic. She had two intelligent, professional women emotionally over-invested in him, and had him perform various good acts. Yet somehow I found him an unlikable character for whom I felt little empathy. I did not care what happened to him, and wearied of his improbable torments. Why? There are plenty of other fictional persons, including outright villains, for whom I feel deep affection. Perhaps this was a 'show don't tell' issue: I was told how charismatic and beloved Carter was, but I did not find it demonstrated in a way that reached me. Clearly, others felt otherwise, but for me, this was a pretty big miss.

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Grim, dark, beautifully done

Revisado: 02-24-22

Bleak and fascinating. Psychologically engaging, complex and twisting. I am eager to hear more from this author.

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An exceptionally valuable book.

Revisado: 01-03-22

There are many books I love, but few I'd confidently call "important." This one seems to me deeply important and potentially transformative, for individual lives and for society. It's also pretty terrifying. This is because it brings home with full weight and detail the importance of good and plentiful sleep -- a thing many of us struggle to obtain, and perhaps never achieve. Why We Sleep is fascinating and powerful. It has caused me to make practical changes in my own life. I am giving it to friends, with hope. The narrator does an excellent, appealing job, also. Highly, highly recommended.

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Dreary, with some interesting ideas.

Revisado: 11-12-21

I'm speaking as a rather old-fashioned fan of Robert Aickman's "strange stories," and classics like M.R. James and Arthur Machen. There are some interesting, morbid ideas here. Perhaps the beginning of a nihilistic, pollution-soaked sister city to Lovecraft's Innsmouth. Unfortunately, I did not like, care about or identify with the characters. For me, that is a serious flaw, robbing the stories of suspense. Relentless nihilism and loathsome dreariness become monotonous when the fate of characters is not engaging. Also, the obnoxiously hard-boiled female detective stuck me as a token woman. Neither the writing nor the narration gave her any qualities that I, as a woman, found convincing, engaging or complex: just a shallow, snotty character who was supposed to be a woman. Perhaps if the book had been read by a more accomplished narrator it would have worked better for me. Perhaps a narrator who was not the author could have enriched the mix.

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