Manny’s review of The Flanders Panel > Likes and Comments
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oh I loved this book, the only one of his I truly admired. Will be interested to hear what you, a chess player, thinks--
I've already been warned by another chess player that there's something wrong with the chess - but the same person said it didn't matter :)
I read The Dumas Club and was a bit disappointed. I have The Painter of Battles on my unread pile. Anybody read that one? Any particular one that would be strongly recommended? Is the Flanders Panel likely to appeal to some-one who is not a serious chess player?
Robert, I am not a chess player and I loved it.
I've read about 4 others by Perez-Reverte, and this was by far the best. Much better than the Dumas Club.
Jessica - which did you read first? I have known many fellow booksellers and customers over the years who have read either Flanders Panel or Club Dumas, and so far, without exception, whichever is read first is loved best, and the other is at best considered okay. Oddly enough I haven't encountered anyone who has started with any other of Perez-Reverte's books first, though obviously my sample size is pretty limited to the stores I have worked at.
I read The Flanders Panel first, but I'd have preferred it even if read after Dumas; they're pretty different.
I've also read about 4 others.
I feel pretty certain I'd not have loved Dumas if read first whereas I did love 'The Flanders Panel'. But none have been as good since, and some have been pretty lame.
Thanks, Manny, for reminding me of this one! I loved it as well. I remember reading it the semester after studying in Spain, so it was extra thrilling.
yay Manny!
cracked the case & what a lovely review!
very fun.
Thank you Jessica!
I left a comment on the author's website earlier today, giving a pointer to the review and asking how he knew César Muñoz. I'll post again if he replies...
this is his best book, by far...
yes, let me know!
It's all a bit over my head, but I feel like something wonderful has happened here today.
Isaiah wrote: "It's all a bit over my head, but I feel like something wonderful has happened here today. "
It was, indeed, just about the most surprising thing that's ever happened to me while reading a book. Possibly excluding the incident with the alligator, the two strippers and The Brothers Karamazov.
I somehow missed that he also beat Larsen. Also as Black, and also in a rather impressive game. The knight promotion at the end is very cute.
Who is this guy? He goes on my list of suspected time-travelers and extraterrestrials...
Now, someone locate Muñoz!
He's tantalizingly obscure.
Another thought that occurred to me. In the book, Muñoz frequently throws games once he's achieved a winning position. The real Muñoz killed two of the greatest players of all time, with Black even, but never achieved any very impressive tournament successes. One does wonder.
Just seen this in the current edition of New In Chess: Perez-Reverte is working on a new chess novel. He visited the Melody Amber tournament in Monaco to get background.
just saw you had read this - good to read a review from a chess player, as I enjoyed it when I read it but am close to completely ignorant on the game. For his books I started with The Fencing Master, which was good - definitely caught the angle of fencing obsession and expertise (although this from a non-expert!) - but far behind this one and The Club Dumas in my opinion. I started Queen of the South but found it too violent somehow - may try again at some later point. Have you ended up picking up more of his stuff?
This is still the only one I've read. As you can see, I thought the chess mystery was extraordinarily satisfying!
I've read more of his stuff, but none was as satisfying, as masterful, as this one.
I loved Club Dumas, but then I'm a bookseller. Also liked Flanders Panel, which is the one I recommend to others to start with. I've read others of Perez-Reverte's but none as good as these two, and I really don't like his swashbuckler series. Queen of the South was mildly amusing.
I'm afraid I read it in English - my Spanish is really basic :(
This sounds like a really fascinating book. Thanks Manny (and by extension, Not) for bringing it to my attention! :)
I have avoided Pérez-Reverte so far, but this intriguing review makes me have second thoughts. I am not a chessplayer, though, I wonder if I would be able to appreciate your moves.
Kalliope, I'd be so interested to hear what a native speaker of Spanish with your refined literary sensibilities thought!
It's very difficult for me to say whether you need to be a chessplayer. As you can see, I think the meta-riddle is the bottom layer. But I haven't found anyone else who's even noticed this aspect of the book, and plenty of them have enjoyed it. There are many layers, it's an extremely clever construction.
Really brilliant. Back when I read the book, I thought retrograde studies were annoying, but liked the story and my ignorance of this type of study made me think he was just using chess as a plot device. I totally missed the meta. I didn't know computers couldn't compose those types of studies! So there was another EGB-type level to the story. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you Randy! But I think I was mainly lucky... back when I was a chess-obsessed teen, I read Fischer's Collected Games cover to cover multiple times. The name "César Muñoz" was etched in my memory, whereas I think most chessplayers of the current generation have never even heard of him.
Very nice, Manny. Are you familiar with John Brunner's The Squares of the City where the entire novel is based, move by move, on an actual world championship chess match between Steinitz and Tchigorin? And speaking of great novels, you might want to check out a comment I left on your review of Ian Watson's The Embedding.
I've owned this book since the paperback edition was new but have yet to read it. I'll have to bump it up. Thanks for this review, Manny. I just saw it again.
Glenn wrote: "Very nice, Manny. Are you familiar with John Brunner's The Squares of the City where the entire novel is based, move by move, on an actual world championship chess match between Steinitz and Tchigo..."
Glenn, I can't believe I didn't know that. Thank you, must check it out!
Lisa wrote: "I've owned this book since the paperback edition was new but have yet to read it. I'll have to bump it up. Thanks for this review, Manny. I just saw it again."
Hi Lisa! I will be curious to hear whether you discover any more cunningly hidden Easter eggs, I suspect they exist :)
Manny wrote: "Hi Lisa! I will be curious to hear whether you discover any more cunningly hidden Easter eggs, I suspect they exist :) ."
Manny, I'll now know to look for them but I might miss them anyway.
I think different people will spot different things.
Manny wrote: "I think different people will spot different things."
I agree. That makes sense.
Manny wrote: "Thank you Randy! But I think I was mainly lucky... back when I was a chess-obsessed teen, I read Fischer's Collected Games cover to cover multiple times. The name "César Muñoz" was etched in my mem..."
I found the game you mentioned in "Bobby Fischer's Chess Games" By Wade and O'Connell from the 1960 Olympiad in Leipzig. There are 660 games in this book - I wish I had been as chess obsessed as a teen - that's quite a book!
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Jun 19, 2009 04:24AM
oh I loved this book, the only one of his I truly admired. Will be interested to hear what you, a chess player, thinks--
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I've already been warned by another chess player that there's something wrong with the chess - but the same person said it didn't matter :)
I read The Dumas Club and was a bit disappointed. I have The Painter of Battles on my unread pile. Anybody read that one? Any particular one that would be strongly recommended? Is the Flanders Panel likely to appeal to some-one who is not a serious chess player?
Robert, I am not a chess player and I loved it.I've read about 4 others by Perez-Reverte, and this was by far the best. Much better than the Dumas Club.
Jessica - which did you read first? I have known many fellow booksellers and customers over the years who have read either Flanders Panel or Club Dumas, and so far, without exception, whichever is read first is loved best, and the other is at best considered okay. Oddly enough I haven't encountered anyone who has started with any other of Perez-Reverte's books first, though obviously my sample size is pretty limited to the stores I have worked at.
I read The Flanders Panel first, but I'd have preferred it even if read after Dumas; they're pretty different.I've also read about 4 others.
I feel pretty certain I'd not have loved Dumas if read first whereas I did love 'The Flanders Panel'. But none have been as good since, and some have been pretty lame.
Thanks, Manny, for reminding me of this one! I loved it as well. I remember reading it the semester after studying in Spain, so it was extra thrilling.
yay Manny!cracked the case & what a lovely review!
very fun.
Thank you Jessica!I left a comment on the author's website earlier today, giving a pointer to the review and asking how he knew César Muñoz. I'll post again if he replies...
this is his best book, by far...yes, let me know!
It's all a bit over my head, but I feel like something wonderful has happened here today.
Isaiah wrote: "It's all a bit over my head, but I feel like something wonderful has happened here today. "It was, indeed, just about the most surprising thing that's ever happened to me while reading a book. Possibly excluding the incident with the alligator, the two strippers and The Brothers Karamazov.
I somehow missed that he also beat Larsen. Also as Black, and also in a rather impressive game. The knight promotion at the end is very cute.Who is this guy? He goes on my list of suspected time-travelers and extraterrestrials...
Now, someone locate Muñoz!He's tantalizingly obscure.
Another thought that occurred to me. In the book, Muñoz frequently throws games once he's achieved a winning position. The real Muñoz killed two of the greatest players of all time, with Black even, but never achieved any very impressive tournament successes. One does wonder.
Just seen this in the current edition of New In Chess: Perez-Reverte is working on a new chess novel. He visited the Melody Amber tournament in Monaco to get background.
I could not agree more. Once began, the story gripped me; racing chapter through chapter, it took all of my will to not skip ahead to the end. After "Queen of the South", this is my favorite Arturo Perez-Reverte Thriller. He is an amazing author and story teller.
just saw you had read this - good to read a review from a chess player, as I enjoyed it when I read it but am close to completely ignorant on the game. For his books I started with The Fencing Master, which was good - definitely caught the angle of fencing obsession and expertise (although this from a non-expert!) - but far behind this one and The Club Dumas in my opinion. I started Queen of the South but found it too violent somehow - may try again at some later point. Have you ended up picking up more of his stuff?
This is still the only one I've read. As you can see, I thought the chess mystery was extraordinarily satisfying!
I've read more of his stuff, but none was as satisfying, as masterful, as this one.
I loved Club Dumas, but then I'm a bookseller. Also liked Flanders Panel, which is the one I recommend to others to start with. I've read others of Perez-Reverte's but none as good as these two, and I really don't like his swashbuckler series. Queen of the South was mildly amusing.
I'm afraid I read it in English - my Spanish is really basic :(
This sounds like a really fascinating book. Thanks Manny (and by extension, Not) for bringing it to my attention! :)
I have avoided Pérez-Reverte so far, but this intriguing review makes me have second thoughts. I am not a chessplayer, though, I wonder if I would be able to appreciate your moves.
Kalliope, I'd be so interested to hear what a native speaker of Spanish with your refined literary sensibilities thought!It's very difficult for me to say whether you need to be a chessplayer. As you can see, I think the meta-riddle is the bottom layer. But I haven't found anyone else who's even noticed this aspect of the book, and plenty of them have enjoyed it. There are many layers, it's an extremely clever construction.
Really brilliant. Back when I read the book, I thought retrograde studies were annoying, but liked the story and my ignorance of this type of study made me think he was just using chess as a plot device. I totally missed the meta. I didn't know computers couldn't compose those types of studies! So there was another EGB-type level to the story. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you Randy! But I think I was mainly lucky... back when I was a chess-obsessed teen, I read Fischer's Collected Games cover to cover multiple times. The name "César Muñoz" was etched in my memory, whereas I think most chessplayers of the current generation have never even heard of him.
Very nice, Manny. Are you familiar with John Brunner's The Squares of the City where the entire novel is based, move by move, on an actual world championship chess match between Steinitz and Tchigorin? And speaking of great novels, you might want to check out a comment I left on your review of Ian Watson's The Embedding.
I've owned this book since the paperback edition was new but have yet to read it. I'll have to bump it up. Thanks for this review, Manny. I just saw it again.
Glenn wrote: "Very nice, Manny. Are you familiar with John Brunner's The Squares of the City where the entire novel is based, move by move, on an actual world championship chess match between Steinitz and Tchigo..."Glenn, I can't believe I didn't know that. Thank you, must check it out!
Lisa wrote: "I've owned this book since the paperback edition was new but have yet to read it. I'll have to bump it up. Thanks for this review, Manny. I just saw it again."Hi Lisa! I will be curious to hear whether you discover any more cunningly hidden Easter eggs, I suspect they exist :)
Manny wrote: "Hi Lisa! I will be curious to hear whether you discover any more cunningly hidden Easter eggs, I suspect they exist :) ."Manny, I'll now know to look for them but I might miss them anyway.
I think different people will spot different things.
Manny wrote: "I think different people will spot different things."I agree. That makes sense.
Manny wrote: "Thank you Randy! But I think I was mainly lucky... back when I was a chess-obsessed teen, I read Fischer's Collected Games cover to cover multiple times. The name "César Muñoz" was etched in my mem..."I found the game you mentioned in "Bobby Fischer's Chess Games" By Wade and O'Connell from the 1960 Olympiad in Leipzig. There are 660 games in this book - I wish I had been as chess obsessed as a teen - that's quite a book!
