Sunday, January 30, 2011

Liang, Diane Wei: The Eye of Jade

Although sold as detective fiction, the book seems to be more a relatively simple exposition of life in present day China. The
heroine is a private detective though such activity is illegal so she advertises as an information consultant. Much of the book is taken up with the background to her life and to that of some of her friends with the detecting element intruding only from
time to time. Even with this, the case she has is one given her by a family friend which turns out to relate to her mother's
past. Almost believable but not very good.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Taylor, Bernard: Mother's Boys

Published in 1988, the book has one advantage over most modern ones - it is relatively short with little expansion of the
background descriptions beyond what is necessary. Tightly written, I was drawn to it through seeing again recently the film
of the same name which stars Jamie Lee Curtis as the eponymous mother. Accepting the change of country from the UK to the USA as a given, the film does more or less follow the book until around half-way though one episode is greatly ( and
understandably) curtailed in the film. From then on the film veers into melodrama with the mother as a sort of villainous
dea ex machina whereas the book maintains the chilling overtones of the first part which is about the relationship of the
two older boys with their mother into the disturbing scenes which bring the story to a close. As one would expect, this does
provide a much more acceptable denouement. I do not know the author but will not be averse to reading something else of
his.

Harrison, Kim: Where Demons Dare

Continuing where the previous novel left off, the adventures of Rachel Morgan and her friends are developed in this novel in an interesting and well-written way. The emotional links Rachel has are expanded in several directions and her powers are
also expanded in a logically acceptable way. At 500 pages, this is a lengthy book but one's interest is held as Rachel puts
her soul at risk for her friends. The pacing of the book is well maintained through the earlier expositions to the dramatic
finale. The close does seem to bring things to a close though there remains the possibility of future tales.

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Fforde, Jasper: Something Rotten

The continuing adventures of Thursday Next who has returned to the real world of Swindon from the realms of fiction. In what seems to be the final book, she is re-united with her husband and foils a plot to destroy the world while dealing with
Hamlet and his romance with Emma Hamilton as well as avoiding assassination attempts. Well up to the standards of the
prvious books, the story unfolds at a galloping pace even with the detours along the way. Entirely credible provided one
suspends disbelief not only to accept the world of this novel but also its conflict with the rules dealing with time travel in
other books. The final chapter which tidies everything up somewhat unusually is possibly the weakest part of the book but this does not really detract from the overall high standard.