Doug Lewars's Blog, page 6

Herbie's Game

Herbie's Game by Timothy Hallinan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This was an okay book but not quite as fast paced as the others. In addition there's a good deal of soul searching and introspection. It appears the author has been bitten by the 'character development' virus spread through university creative writing courses and further promoted by editors. There's sufficient plot to maintain interest but not so much as to rate a fifth star. These books have been going down hill ... slowly mind you but deteriorating nonetheless. I'll give one more a try and if things get worse I'll finish it there.



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The Masquerades of Sprint

The Masquerades of Spring by Ben Aaronovitch

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This was an excellent book, short but good nonetheless. Although part of the Rivers of London series it is on the periphery. It takes place in the early 1920's so we have Nightingale but no-one else from the Folly although Molly gets an honourable mention. This book made me wonder if perhaps Ben Aaronovitch was paying homage to P.G. Wodehouse because the main character, Gussy very much resembles Bertie Wooster in his manor of speaking and the way he thinks - a gay Bertie but a Bertie nonetheless. In addition, even though Beauregard doesn't have a large role, the one he plays is a little like Jeeves in is ability to anticipate Gussy's needs and prepare for them. Overall, I thouougly enjoyed the book and hope more of the series comes out soon. yes I know a book has been released in 2025 and I also know it isn't stocked in the library or on Overdrive yet.



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The Fame Thief

The Fame Thief by Timothy Hallinan

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

Fast paced, well written, although not quite living up to its 'humor' tag but still worth reading, this book is a little different from books one and two. The author had a problem with writing a first person story dealing with a number of events which happened back in the early 1950s. As a result there is quite a bit of third person flashback which I thought detracted from the overall tale. Some of the time movement was a little confusing. I think there was even a flashback within a flashback. This was the weakest part of the book although I think it is still worth reading. I'll give the next book in the series a try.



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Little Elvises

Little Elvises by Timothy Hallinan

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This was a fine fast paced book. Although it had the keyword 'humor' on Goodreads, the humor was pretty thin. Still I found it interesting, and, had I not been listening to the audio version, it would have qualified as a page turner. This author is quite well-informed about music in the 1950s. It's definitely worth reading unless you're someone who looks for strong character arcs and some in depth soul searching. There's a bit of that because it seems the author, or more likely publisher, couldn't resist, but while it's mildly annoying it doesn't wreck the book.



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The Dark is Rising

The Dark Is Rising by Susan Cooper

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

I didn't like this much but then it wasn't written for me. According to the tags, it's targeted towards 11 - 13 year olds and I think it would likely work for them. There is action and suspense but not too much. The good guys are all likable and the bad guys good and properly bad. There is one bad guy who started off good, betrayed his fellows and as he's dying, repents of what he did. I think this is something those in middle school can sink their teeth into. For me, I found the book decidedly bland but then I'm not a young person. I think I would recommend this for young people but not for adults.



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America Fantastica

America Fantastica by Tim O'Brien

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

I had a love hate relationship with this book and DNFed it at the 27% mark but not entirely voluntarily. Overdrive made a mistake and returned it when I was returning another book. I could have borrowed it again but it just wasn't worth it. I had been thinking of DNFing it for some time. This is unfortunate because the author actually is a good writer and the book had a lot going for it. It's a satire about contemporary American life, and in particular, the massive amount of disinformation bombarding people all the time. Those sections dealing with the group making up exaggerated fiction some people would believe were interesting. If the author had focused on those I'd have stayed with and thoroughly enjoyed the book. There is a particularly nice, and decidedly sarcastic description of Santa Monica I quite enjoyed.

Unfortunately it appears, sometime in his life Tim O"Brien has fallen victim to the mavens of creative writing and been indoctrinated with their creed:
1. Thou must write character driven, as opposed to plot driven books.
2. Thou must develop character arcs no matter what else thou writest.
3. Thou must show, not tell.

Of the general population, it appears 60% like character driven work while 40% prefer a good strong plot. Unfortunately everyone today seems to have jumped on the character bandwagon leaving 40% of the population without much in terms of reading matter. This author in particular is determined to develop his protagonist and, in doing so, show, not tell what's going on. As a result, there are scenes consisting of ten minutes of showing where they could have been compressed to one minute of telling. Dramatization is fine but it can become excessive if the characters are seriously boring.

Ironically, I read a number of 'one' reviews and many individuals wanted even more character development. They argued his earlier books were much better than this one. Some didn't even like the satire paltry as it was. I'll take their advice and NEVER read the earlier works. This one was bad enough. If Tim O'Briuan fully exploited his talent for satire he could turn out some fantastic work, but as long as he persists in emoting all over the page I'll take a pass on his work.



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Everyone This Christmas Has A Secret

Everyone This Christmas Has a Secret by Benjamin Stevenson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


*** Possible spoilers ***

This is an excellent Whodunit Mystery and well worth reading. It is, however, very short, barely more than a novella. One gets the impression the author's agent asked if he could knock off a quick book for the Christmas season and this is the result. I didn't figure out who the murderer was but then I didn't try. I read books for the story, not to solve a puzzle. I get the impression the author intends to add books to this series and if he does, I'll most certainly read them. There isn't as much humour in this one as there was in #2 but there was a bit.



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Bag Limit

Bag Limit by Steven F. Havill

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

This was very well written with excellent pacing and an interesting plot. There wasn't much character development which was fine with me but might put off some readers. I'd classify this book as a 'page turner' and on numerous occasions it kept me up past my bedtime. I took away one star for the ending which failed to wrap things up. Presumably the author wants to keep certain things open for future books in the series and that's fair; however, there were a few too many things left outstanding. Despite the ending, I think this book is well worth reading.



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Cheer Up Mr Widdicombe

Cheer Up, Mr. Widdicombe by Evan James

My rating: 1 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

I do not recommend reading this book. Under some circumstances, listening to the audio version may be worthwhile. There is no plot. The characters are boring and the ending seems trite. That said, if you happen to be alone, working at chores or something where it's pleasant to have a voice chattering along in the background, the audio version works pretty well. You can half listen and not miss anything of importance. If you are disturbed, or your mind wanders, there is no need to, reset the story because you won't have missed a thing. I found the audio version quite pleasant in a non-engaging sort of way but under no circumstances would I want to devote my time and attention to the text version.



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The Angels' Share

The Angels' Share: A Losers Club Murder Mystery by Yvonne Vincent

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


*** Possible Spoilers ***

Had I known this was a cozy mystery when I started, I doubt I would have selected it. I'm not a fan of the genre although occasionally I'll read one so I guess this was one of the occasions. I was in a hurry and didn't check the tags in Goodreads. The ones in Overdrive are pretty limited. Personally I find cozy mysteries a little too saccharin for my taste. This one was better than most. Yes there were quirky characters and the plot resembled a Swiss cheese for holes but it held my interest. A few things surprised me. There was more violence in this than is common for the genre. Likewise there was a lot of crude language. I'm not certain how cozy mystery fans would react to either. Still, this is the third book in the series so presumably most readers know what they're getting into. If you like the genre I think this is about as good as any.



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