Kevin
The sequel to the outstanding Handmaid's Tale, this took a leap into the future of the story, leaving behind most of the characters of the original. All of the world building was done in the original novel so there was little to add here but this held its own as a stand-alone thriller set against the background of the original.
A must read for any true science fiction fan. Given that this was written over 200 years ago, the prose is understandably dated and, although this shouldn't detract from the novel, I struggled with the pace of it. I'm sure that if I read it again I would have a different interpretation and so would be able to reconcile many of the elements that I saw as inconsistencies but, for now, I can't say that I enjoyed it.
This has been sat on my TBR shelf for some time, waiting for me to pluck up the courage to tackle its nearly 700 pages. However, I was pleasantly surprised. Not the book I was expecting and not the story that we know, this focused on Boudica's early life, mythology and influences. However, there was enough of a story to keep me interested.
A heart rending story from one of the most diabolical events in human history, this was never going to be a light read. However, I felt that the writing style was very poor. All I got was a list of what people did and said to each other, never an understanding of how they really felt. I didn't feel any empathy and this let them down. This is an important story that needs to be told and re-told; I'm just disappointed that the author didn't do a better job.
For many, you either love this book or you hate it. As a work of literature, let's be honest, it's not great. The plot is fairly straightforward and the characters don't have great depth. What makes this book stand out are the references to 1980s pop culture. For me, some of it just passed me by whilst other elements gave me a real sense of nostalgia. Overall, a fun, if somewhat forgettable read.
I made a conscious effort to read more classic literature this year and this was top of my list. Unfortunately I was disappointed. What I was expecting was a swashbuckling high-seas adventure. What I got was an over-long, plodding narrative stuffed with excessive pseudo-scientific descriptions of the whaling industry. One hundred pages in and our narrator still hadn't set foot on a boat which only caught up with the fabled white whale in the last three chapters of the book (from page 514).
I really enjoyed parts of this book. There were some excellently descriptive narrative and the setting was intriguing, exploring the Island of Chios and the history of mastic. Unfortunately though, this was not enough to hold the whole novel together. There were too many characters introduced too quickly which meant that it was difficult to get to know them and understand their motivation, leading to a plot that, although not over complicated, was ultimately quite confusing. The last ¼ of the book was clearly just setting up for the sequel and the repetitive use of the short punchy sentences intended to add emphasis very quickly became annoying.
Annoying.
Overall, disappointing.
I'm clearly I the minority here but I just found this very dull. Clearly it was well researched but the endless references to ancient literature really didn't add anything. The idea of writing from 2 different perspectives was interesting but ultimately I felt that it just interfered with the pace of the story telling, not that there was much of a story to tell.
Rather disappointing. I was hoping for a heroic romp through Rome but what I got was a soft story, over stuffed with pseudo religious clap trap. Too many characters that I cared little or nothing about and unrealistic scenes that just didn't keep the action flowing. This book could have been 200 pages shorter. A real struggle to get to the end.
Written from a 5 year old's point of view, this could have been really terrible. However, I think it just about works. What let it down for me was the overall pace. Given that it was told from the young boy's point of view, there was a lack of detail, which felt right for the narrative but as a result, the book seemed over-long. This would have made a great short story. By stretching to a full novel, I felt that it became somewhat diluted and lost some of the powerful punch that it could have wielded.
