Mini Reviews - XVI

The Man Who Died Twice

  - Richard Osman

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I seem to be the minority here, but I did not like this very much. Murder mysteries in fiction usually require one to suspend the belief, but this is somewhat too facetious.

On the positive side, the murder mystery was tighter, and the resolution more rational than the previous book. I loved the insights into human behavior, especially his own, that Ibrahim brings in. The lead characters remain endearing, though unbelievable.

On the downside, this did not have the style reminiscent of Agatha Christie, that I found charming in the first book. It was rather sinister and gory, and somehow I can't imaging senior citizens in their 70s and 80s going about actively sleuthing such cases. They sound more like 50-something, with repeated references to frequent trip to the restroom to give an impression of an older age. I am okay with Donna, but I find the character of Chris just too ridiculous to be the chief of police.

 

The Child Finder

  - Rene Denfeld

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A very well written thriller, where past and secrets are revealed layer by layer, the atmosphere is gradually built up so you can feel the beauty and menace of dense forests of upper reaches in Oregon. The background of the story is child abuse, and it gives one a sense of horrific abuse, without being gory or graphic, which I felt was a great skill on the author's part.

Skulduggery Pleasant

- Derek Landy

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I had put this in my TBR, as it was showing up with high recommendations in middle-grade/YA fantasy lists, and perhaps on my virtual reading group also. I have enjoyed several books in this genre, most notably Harry Potter and The Hobbit.

The story was just about okay, but I found the writing really childish in most places. The dialogues typically go like this: A said "lets do this", so B said "its a good plan". I have read and enjoyed a lot of children's fiction in last few years so I can say that it has less to do with target audience, and more to do with the style. It could have been fun had it been better written. I finished the first book, but though I had two more on kindle, I didn't want to continue with it.