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The Riddle of the Fractal Monks
(A Mathematical Mystery #3)
by
A mystery lands – literally – at Tom Winscombe’s feet, and another riotous mathematical adventure begins…
Tom Winscombe and Dorothy Chan haven’t managed to go on a date for some time, so it’s a shame that their outing to a Promenade Concert is cut short when a mysterious cowled figure plummets from the gallery to the floor of the arena close to where they are standing. But ...more
Tom Winscombe and Dorothy Chan haven’t managed to go on a date for some time, so it’s a shame that their outing to a Promenade Concert is cut short when a mysterious cowled figure plummets from the gallery to the floor of the arena close to where they are standing. But ...more
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I have enjoyed this series and this, the third, is another very entertaining instalment.
The plot is cheerfully bonkers. Frankly, I don’t know how to begin to explain it but it involves mysterious and violent monks, fractal geometry, a pair of alpacas, some of the usual enjoyably silly but rather exciting episodes of Dan and Dot being in mortal danger (usually having put themselves there) and so on. It’s great fun and very well written and structured with the rather hapless Dan narrating while th ...more
The plot is cheerfully bonkers. Frankly, I don’t know how to begin to explain it but it involves mysterious and violent monks, fractal geometry, a pair of alpacas, some of the usual enjoyably silly but rather exciting episodes of Dan and Dot being in mortal danger (usually having put themselves there) and so on. It’s great fun and very well written and structured with the rather hapless Dan narrating while th ...more
The Riddle of the Fractal Monks is a wild ride: an over-the-top math/tech/mystery/humor novel that is the third volume in a series built around the work of a deceased pair of genius-level twin mathematicians, Archimedes and Pythagoras Vavasor. Though this was the third volume in the series and I hadn't read the first two I had no trouble following the narrative which begins with a monk plunging from a balcony to his death at a concert of music composed by Hildegard Von Bingen and grows more and
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This was probably the best of the three books. It is quite possible that by now, I am accustomed to the randomness of events or the even more random conversations between the main protagonists. This time around, there is no time spent on pleasantries, and we are plunged quite literally into the narrative. For those who haven't read the previous books, this will make little to no sense so I highly advise either reading a very detailed synopsis of the last two if not the books entirely (the latter
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Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.
The Riddle of the Fractal Monks is the third in the Mathematical Mystery series by Jonathan Pinnock. Released 16th April 2020 by Duckworth on their Farrago imprint, it's 304 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.
The setup and humor remind me very much of other humorous British SF(ish) classics: Fforde, Fowler, Grant/Naylor, Moore, Stross, Aaronovitch, et.al. It's not derivative, not really, the author has a slightly different humor ...more
The Riddle of the Fractal Monks is the third in the Mathematical Mystery series by Jonathan Pinnock. Released 16th April 2020 by Duckworth on their Farrago imprint, it's 304 pages and available in paperback and ebook formats.
The setup and humor remind me very much of other humorous British SF(ish) classics: Fforde, Fowler, Grant/Naylor, Moore, Stross, Aaronovitch, et.al. It's not derivative, not really, the author has a slightly different humor ...more
About a year and a half ago I read The Truth about Archie and Pye. It was listed as a Mathematical Puzzle Book and I thought it would have some sort of puzzles in it for there reader to solve. I was wrong then.
Forgetting that I had read that, I picked up The Riddle of the Fractal Monks. It is part of the series which I realized by the end of the first chapter.
My assessment of this book is virtually the same as the first book. The characters are interesting. Yes, I did have to laugh at parts. Bu ...more
Forgetting that I had read that, I picked up The Riddle of the Fractal Monks. It is part of the series which I realized by the end of the first chapter.
My assessment of this book is virtually the same as the first book. The characters are interesting. Yes, I did have to laugh at parts. Bu ...more
Mar 16, 2020
Verity Halliday
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
netgalley
Reading The Riddle of the Fractal Monks by Jonathan Pinnock without reading the other books in the series was a bit like plunging into a television drama midway through the season. It wasn't like a Poirot where the familiar characters are solving a brand new mystery, it's clearly a continuation of an action-packed adventure started in the first two books. There was some explanation to get me up to speed, but I think that I should probably have read the first two books to get the most out of this
...more
In The Riddle of The Fractal Monks, Tom and Dorothy are once again drawn into the pursuit for proof of a mathematical formula that has the potential to change the world, and not necessarily for the better. This time, they are joined in the pursuit by an obscure order of monks who will stop at nothing to get their hands on the formula. I don't even begin to understand the mathematics beyond a basic level, but that didn't stop me from enjoying the book. Tom and Dorothy have a great sarcastic bante
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The premise for this, a mathematical mystery, was so intriguing. Unfortunately, the execution was a bit of a let-down. The dynamic between the characters didn't work for me, and the humour wasn't good enough to keep me reading on. The mystery itself, involving murderous monks, is quite bonkers but might work for some people.
At about halfway through, I did remember that I DNF'd the first book in the series a few years ago. And while my second go at the series was slightly more successful, I don't ...more
At about halfway through, I did remember that I DNF'd the first book in the series a few years ago. And while my second go at the series was slightly more successful, I don't ...more
A new favourite in my favourite series! From the bottom of the sea to the mountain top, Tom is chased by a group of psychopathic monks. Loads of nerd fun, nerd humour, wild goose chase, two alpacas and the mystery behind the Vavosor twins, this book is absolutely superb!
Excellent storytelling, a mystery that keeps you hooked on, and an exploding helicopter! Highly recommended series for mystery and math lovers.
Detailed review's here: http://thebookdecoder.com/2020/04/25/... ...more
Excellent storytelling, a mystery that keeps you hooked on, and an exploding helicopter! Highly recommended series for mystery and math lovers.
Detailed review's here: http://thebookdecoder.com/2020/04/25/... ...more
If you geek out on maths you'll be right at home with this hilarious bit of fun. I do wish I'd read the others first, but that didn't stop the laughing. Tom is the not-quite-clueless half of the pair and Dorothy is the certifiable geek. Together they meet people who are more like Bedlamites than anything else. Guaranteed laughs!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Duckworth Books via NetGalley. Thank you! ...more
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Duckworth Books via NetGalley. Thank you! ...more
This is part of a series that I haven't read and I didn't feel it worked well as a standalone. The premise was interesting--mathematical thrillers--but I couldn't get into the story and it took me a long time to finish. Not a bad book, just didn't connect with me. If the premise strikes your fancy, I'd recommend starting at the beginning in order to understand the backstory.
I read a digital ARC via NetGalley. ...more
I read a digital ARC via NetGalley. ...more
This series never disappoints and all the books are well written and entertaining. This one was no exception.
I loved the plot, was happy to meet again the characters and had a lot of fun.
An engrossing and fun story, highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I loved the plot, was happy to meet again the characters and had a lot of fun.
An engrossing and fun story, highly recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine.
I was actually delighted that I found out this was the third book in the series. I figured it was worth reading the first two first, which was a good idea. Although the books are standalone stories, there are a lot of details and spoilers if you don't read the others.
I have spent the last two weeks with Jonathan's characters and it was super lovely. Reminded me of Carl Hiaasen (I love his books). So this is the third adventure for Tom, Dorothy and Ali and some of the fringe characters.
While the ...more
I have spent the last two weeks with Jonathan's characters and it was super lovely. Reminded me of Carl Hiaasen (I love his books). So this is the third adventure for Tom, Dorothy and Ali and some of the fringe characters.
While the ...more
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