kerry reviewed The Black Box by Michael Connelly
Review of 'The Black Box' on 'Goodreads'
Started: Nov 17, 2015
Gave up: Nov. 25, 2015
about 20% done
Dull, plodding, so unlike other Harry Bosch novels.
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kerry reviewed Being Dead by Jim Crace
Review of 'Being Dead' on 'Goodreads'
2 stars
An artfully written and constructed book. However, the main characters (Joseph and Celice--the dead folks of the title) were such unpleasant people that I didn't feel too much sympathy for their plight.
Jim Crace writes of the bodies' physical decomposition with clinical detail, which fits Joseph and Celice's careers as scientists. Through alternating chapters, Crace describes the beginning and end of their lives together (how they met as students, and their last morning). Things perked up for me when their daughter, Syl, made her appearance at about the halfway point.
An artfully written and constructed book. However, the main characters (Joseph and Celice--the dead folks of the title) were such unpleasant people that I didn't feel too much sympathy for their plight.
Jim Crace writes of the bodies' physical decomposition with clinical detail, which fits Joseph and Celice's careers as scientists. Through alternating chapters, Crace describes the beginning and end of their lives together (how they met as students, and their last morning). Things perked up for me when their daughter, Syl, made her appearance at about the halfway point.
kerry rated The Drop (Harry Bosch, #15; Harry Bosch Universe, #23): 4 stars
kerry rated Play It As It Lays: 4 stars
kerry reviewed The Diver's Clothes Lie Empty by Vendela Vida
After being robbed of her wallet and passport while on a mysterious trip to Morocco, …
Review of "The Diver's Clothes Lie Empty" on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
3 1/2
kerry reviewed The diver's clothes lie empty by Vendela Vida
After being robbed of her wallet and passport while on a mysterious trip to Morocco, …
Review of "The diver's clothes lie empty" on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
3 1/2
The Brass Verdict (Mickey Haller, #2; Harry Bosch Universe, #18) by Michael Connelly (Harry Bosch Series)
When Hollywood lawyer Jerry Vincent is murdered, Mickey Haller (of "The Lincoln Lawyer" fame) inherits his biggest case yet: the …
kerry rated Hotel World / Hotel World (Alfaguara) (Alfaguara): 3 stars
kerry rated Hotel World: 3 stars
kerry rated The Hidden Reality: 4 stars
The Hidden Reality by Brian Greene
From the best-selling author of The Elegant Universe and The Fabric of the Cosmos comes his most expansive and accessible …
kerry reviewed A Brief History of Seven Killings by Marlon James
Review of 'A Brief History of Seven Killings' on 'Goodreads'
Nope. Nope, nope nope. Not spending any more time on this one. Cannot read or understand the Jamaican vernacular without my brain glazing over.
kerry rated Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch, #14; Harry Bosch Universe, #20): 3 stars
Nine Dragons (Harry Bosch, #14; Harry Bosch Universe, #20) by Michael Connelly (Harry Bosch Series)
kerry reviewed The Overlook by Michael Connelly (Harry Bosch Series Volume 13)
Near Mulholland Drive, Dr. Stanley Kent is found shot twice in the back of the …
Review of 'The Overlook' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Very quick read. Detective Bosch returns, surviving only on coffee and a little jazz while bucking authority and solving a case based on instinct.
Very quick read. Detective Bosch returns, surviving only on coffee and a little jazz while bucking authority and solving a case based on instinct.
kerry rated Domus aurea: 4 stars
Domus aurea by Elisabetta Segala (Guide Electa per la Soprindentenza archeologica di Roma)
kerry reviewed The familiar by Mark Z. Danielewski
From the universally acclaimed, genre-busting author of House of Leaves comes a new book as …
Review of 'The familiar' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
3 1/2 pounds. This book weighs three and a half pounds.
[b:The Familiar, Volume 1: One Rainy Day in May|23012473|The Familiar, Volume 1 One Rainy Day in May|Mark Z. Danielewski|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1421172286s/23012473.jpg|42578928] is as much “written” as it is “designed.” It includes numerous illustrations (that relate to the story…how?…not sure), custom page layouts, heavy glossy paper, a ribbon bookmark, and color and typography to identify characters. There are even colored squiggles in the gutter. You’re all readers, right? You know what a “page gutter” is? (Huh. Gutter. A key event takes place in a street gutter.)
Most of the primary characters appear in separate chapters without interacting with one another. The main plotline follows a family: Xanther, Anwar (her stepfather), and Astair (her mother). The other characters – I don’t even know what to say about the other characters. After reading a few of their sections, I gave up and skipped …
3 1/2 pounds. This book weighs three and a half pounds.
[b:The Familiar, Volume 1: One Rainy Day in May|23012473|The Familiar, Volume 1 One Rainy Day in May|Mark Z. Danielewski|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1421172286s/23012473.jpg|42578928] is as much “written” as it is “designed.” It includes numerous illustrations (that relate to the story…how?…not sure), custom page layouts, heavy glossy paper, a ribbon bookmark, and color and typography to identify characters. There are even colored squiggles in the gutter. You’re all readers, right? You know what a “page gutter” is? (Huh. Gutter. A key event takes place in a street gutter.)
Most of the primary characters appear in separate chapters without interacting with one another. The main plotline follows a family: Xanther, Anwar (her stepfather), and Astair (her mother). The other characters – I don’t even know what to say about the other characters. After reading a few of their sections, I gave up and skipped to the Xanther/Anwar/Astair chapters. The chapters with those other characters were pretty bad. I lost any motivation to wade through slang, broken English (which I felt was denigrating and racist), gang jargon, and oodles and oodles of odd character names. Like Shnork.
There’s a prologue that has no tie-in to the rest of the book. About 2/3 of the way through is an interlude that hints at what’s going on (and is a likely adjunct to Anwar’s job as a software game developer).
Overall, this was strange. I may or may not read the next book in the series, but if I do it will only be to find out what happens to Xanther.
Bonus points to the author for mentioning the Post & Beam restaurant in the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Plaza.