Book Description
From the author of the critically acclaimed novel A Brother's Blood, comes a haunting story about an Irish housekeeper who must discover the truth when her friend, the parish priest, is accused of horrible crimes.
Maggie Quinn has had her share of misfortune: Having grown up poor and fatherless in Galway, she was forced to quit school early and find work to support her ailing mother and her own child. But when a tragedy of her own making strikes, it is too much for her to bear. Plagued by feelings of guilt and sorrow and by losing her faith in God, she runs from her past; first by fleeing Ireland for America and later by drowning her sorrows with the bottle. Maggie hits rock bottom when she makes an unsuccessful suicide attempt. While recuperating in a hospital bed, she meets the remarkable Father Jack Devlin. With his compassion and love, Maggie once more finds her faith and a reason to live.
For the past eighteen years, Maggie has devoted herself to the man who saved her life. But now Father Jack, the beloved if controversial priest in the small town of Hebron Falls, Massachusetts, is accused of having done terrible things to altar boys many years before. At first Maggie is convinced that the accusations are only lies brought out by Father Jack's enemies. Yet as she sifts through the memories of her life with Father Jack, doubts begin to emerge: Could she have been blind to a darker side of her friend all these years? And when new information surfaces regarding the unsolved murder of a young altar boy with possible links to Father Jack, her faith is once again put to the test. Maggie must search her memory and her heart to help her decide what to believe. The Blind Side of the Heart poignantly captures one woman's struggle to remain loyal to a friend while at the same time she is forced to examine her conscience to arrive at the truth.
Customer Reviews:
Wonderful and Thought Provoking.......2001-07-07
This is a fantastic book, well written, with wonderful characters and a slowly unfolding story that challenges you to determine the truth. Maggie, the main character, is a flawed, big hearted, loyal woman whom I loved from the beginning. She is pushed to confront doubts about Father Jack, her employer and friend of 18 years, and the man she credits with saving her life, as he is charged with child sexual abuse and murder. The gathering speed of the runnaway train of public opinion that turns the reputation of a priest against his own interests is facinating. This book is never pat or easy, but very engaging.
Decide for Yourself.......2001-05-26
Blind Side of the Heart is a rare find. Character and plot were developed fully, but the author left enough unwritten that you found yourself drawn into the story. And, I was not left disappointed at the end - even though the main conflict in the plot is not resolved for you by the author. I hate books that are complex enough to engage your mind throughout, then get tied up way too neatly in a trite ending. Not the case here.
If you like a truly good story with fleshed out, authentic characters centered around an issue that strikes home, read this book. It is an enjoyable study in human nature that forces introspection.
Makes for an Interesting Discussion.......2001-03-30
I enjoyed The Blind Side of the Heart and the characters within. How many of us are confronted with terrible, gut-wrenching "secrets" (even if they are rumors) about someone we love; we most often turn to our "blind side of the heart", which is what Maggie does in this novel. Maggie is a wonderfully written character and I liked her immediately. She finds herself confronted with circumstances that, at first, she finds unthinkable, but as the story unfolds she has those little nagging doubts and a lot of "what if's" ~~~ The reader must dig into their own minds and hearts and decide what they believe to be true. I finished the book two days ago, and I'm still not sure what I believe. It will be something to ponder for some time to come. That is why I believe it would make an excellent discussion for any book group!! At times, the author got just a little too "wordy" for my taste or I would have given the book 5 stars. It is definitely worth reading and I plan on reading more by this author.
Couldn't put it down!.......2000-05-19
Michael White's book is beautifully written! The quick-witted Ma Quinn had me in stitches as I flipped the pages. When this Irish woman cursed in her broken Gaelic, I laughed, and then was "sobered" by the remarkable insight he brought to this female character--right on the mark. Of course a priest being accused of horrific crimes is tragic and sets a somber mood, but at the same time, you're seeing it through the eyes of a somewhat dysfunctional-somewhat normal woman with her own set problems. I believe there's a little of Ma Quinn's insecurity in all of us. As I reflect on the book months after reading it, I put aside the situation into which Ma Quinn was drawn, and I begin to focus on her. She is a survivor--a tough, witty, sarcastic, and even contankerous woman. But she survives the situation, her wit unscathed. If you think Michael White writes well, then you should him teach! Thank you Dr. White! (Alanna)
A BELIEVABLY WELL-TOLD TALE!.......2000-04-25
Maggie "Ma" Quinn has had her share of trouble and grief. Irish born, poor, and fatherless, she struggles through her life living hand-to-mouth. Her mother, a devout Catholic and of very ill-health, is never available enough to show Maggie the ways of life, leaving Maggie to fend for herself. Unfortunately for Maggie, she takes after her father in character--he, a wild-eyed drunk who is killed one bleak night when he stumbles into the path of a passing lorry. Maggie remembers him as given to short bouts of heartbreaking tenderness when he wasn't passed out in a pub somewhere. Though she tries to please her Mother by being the "good little Catholic girl", her reckless side wins out again and again. Inevitably, she finds herself pregnant at sixteen and "deep in her cups", just like her Father. The birth of her son, Eion, doesn't change her much, though it does give her pause more than once to consider the consequences of her actions...to no avail. In one fateful moment, she goes against her better judgement and leaves her then 3-year-old boy alone for a quick afternoon romp with a man who has been flirting with her for months. Eion wanders into a pond and drowns. This, and the death of her Mother shortly thereafter, sends Maggie into the darkest time her soul could endure...a vicious, downward spiral. Trying to escape from her personal guilt and torment, and her loss of faith in God, she travels to America. She succumbs to her demons anyway, unsuccessfully attempting suicide. Awaking in a hospital bed, disoriented and confused, she meets Father Jack Devlin, who sits vigil by her bedside. Thus begins Maggie's redemption...and Father Jack's eventual downfall. Father Jack becomes Maggie's saving grace, taking her in and turning her life around. Father Jack is known for taking in "stray souls" and giving them a second chance at life. Eventually, these good-samaritan gestures come back on him and bite him when one of his former altar boys makes allegations that involve sexual abuse...and which leads to rumours of murder. The wages of unconditional loyalty and passion, truth and deception are all cleverly woven into a rich, warm tapestry of a story by Michael C. White. Detailing every delicate nuance of the human heart during times of strife and conflict, White tells a sometimes disturbing, often beautiful tale of lives caught up in events beyond their control. At the center is Maggie whose loyalty and faith in love seem to come from "The Blind Side of the Heart". An excellent moral story that draws you in and holds you, long after the last page is turned. Read it!
Average customer rating:
- Super Reader
- They should use this book as prison punishment
- Entertaining
- Excellent parody set in the Taltos universe
- Pure joy -- in the right hands
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The Phoenix Guards
Steven Brust
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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Similar Items:
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Five Hundred Years After (Phoenix Guards)
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The Paths of the Dead (The Viscount of Adrilankha, Book 1)
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The Lord of Castle Black (The Viscount of Adrilankha, Book 2)
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Dragon (Vlad)
ASIN: 0812506898 |
Book Description
A thousand years before the birth of Vlad Taltos, the Dragaeran Empire is a hotbed of intrigue, sorcery, intrigue, swashbuckling adventure, and intrigue. For those who would be heroes, it is a delightful time to be alive--and an easy place to die.Khaavren of the House of Tiassa is a son of landless nobility, possessor of a good sword and "tolerably well acquainted with its use." Along with three loyal friends, he enthusiastically seeks out danger and excitement. But in a realm renowned for repartee and betrayals, where power is as mutable as magic, a young man like Khaavren, newly come from the countryside, had best be wary. His life depends on it. And so does the future of Dragaera.When swordplay beckons, it's all for one--and one for....The Phoenix Guards.
Customer Reviews:
Super Reader.......2007-08-04
This is the story of Khaavren and friends, as told by Paarfi the historian. The books are set about 1000 years before the events in the Jhereg series.
That the character of Khaavren, a somewhat naive young man who fancies himself with a sword is rather similar to that of Dumas D'Artagnan, is, of course, completely intentional.
They should use this book as prison punishment.......2007-03-15
Don't get me wrong. I loved reading Dumas. This is nowhere near as good. Frankly, the inane, stupid, repetative, and annoying dialogue in this book should be used in english classes as an example of how to completely bore a reader to tears. If it was done as a sketch on SNL for 5 minutes it would be annoying, let alone EVERY SINGLE TIME characters in this book speak. The most notorious example of the pointlessness of the writing in this book is the chapter where they discuss in minute and silly detail the provisions for their trip. If that wasn't boring enough, a character that was absent during the discussion walks in and they REPEAT THE LIST OF WHAT THEY ARE TAKING AGAIN. Yep, that is high drama. Add to that the pointless, poorly written, and repetitious duels that occur randomly between annoying dialogue and you have a book that is not fit to be read by intelligent human beings.
If they tried to put this in prison libraries they would be sued for cruel and unusual punishment. Ever read the Eye of Argon? this is *almost* as stupid.
Don't waste your time.
Entertaining.......2006-12-16
I won't bore you by saying the exact same thing every review has said about Dumas; suffice it so say that the writing style is quite different and I found it very entertaining. If you've enjoyed a Douglas Adams book you may enjoy this because the characters and their interactions have that same sort of absurdity to them. Over the course of the book the writing style did verge on the edge of annoying but it safely pulled back just in time. The dialog and characters are certainly the main feature of this novel. The plot is there to keep the characters entertained.
Excellent parody set in the Taltos universe.......2006-07-24
This parody of Dumas's Three Musketeers is brilliantly set against the backdrop of the world of Dragaera, the universe in which Brust's Vlad Taltos novels are set. The work is incredibly engaging, and employs the wordiness that Dumas used out of necessity to create some of the most amusing passages ever seen in fantastic literature. On top of this, Brust manages to tie the story in with his previous works, Brokedown Palace and the Taltos novels, and even though he has inconsistencies between them, his use of Dumas's style (and storyline) also lets the reader believe that any errors are there simply to duplicate, emulate or parody the errors Dumas himself made with his writing. All in all, an excellent story, well-written and fabulously executed.
Pure joy -- in the right hands.......2006-06-19
This is absolutely not a book for everyone. Are you bored by unnecessary detail? Are you confused by long words or sentences? Do you require a fast pace or a complex plot? If so, you should probably look elsewhere.
Do you enjoy reading for the simple act of reading? Do you feel you could appreciate sentence structure as an art form? Does your heart leap at daring adventures and understated humor? (Alternately, have you read Brust's Vlad Taltos series and developed an interest in the setting?) If you answered yes, welcome aboard! This and its sequels are in homage to the Three Musketeers series, of course, but knowledge of those books is in no way a requirement.
The Phoenix Guards is "written" by Paarfi of Roundwood, a historian who is not being paid by the word, but could probably fool most publishers. He spends paragraphs describing clothes, he interrupts the story for tangentially related trivia, he frequently explains at length what he's not going to explain and why, and he generally takes twice as long as necessary to say anything. The dialogue, too, is padded with circuitously polite phrasings. If it weren't for Paarfi, this novel would be a mere chapter in a history book.
Well, some of us eat that stuff up. The sentences may be long, but they are never ungrammatical, and seldom is information repeated. The tangents may be unnecessary, but they flesh out the world beautifully. The dialogue may be padded, but it establishes a set of immensely likeable characters nonetheless. Indeed, Paarfi himself becomes a distinct character over time.
Best of all, the whole unwieldy mess is delivered with constant wit and humor, often at its own expense. Brust wrote like this, after all, because he found it entertaining -- his books outside this series bear no resemblance to it (and also tend to be quite good, by the way). If you can get into the mindset of this book, there's nary a flaw to be found. If not? Scroll back up to the top of this page and do a search for Jhereg.
Book Description
In which our Heroes--Khaavren, Pel, Aerich and Tazendra--are reunited again a mere five centuries later....just in time for an uprising that threatens to destroy the Imperial Orb itself!This is the story of the conspiracy against the Empire that begins in the mean streets of Underside and flourishes in the courtly politics of the Palace where Khaavren has loyally served in the Guards this past half-millennium.It is the tale of the Dragonlord Adron's overweening schemes, of his brilliant daughter Aliers, and the eldritch Sethra Lavode.And it is the tale of four boon companions, of love, and of revenge....a tale from the history of Dragaera, of the events that changed the world!
Customer Reviews:
Super Reader.......2007-08-04
The continuing adventures of Khaavren and his friends Pel, Tavendra and Aerich, who, in and of themselves, are not particularly dissimilar to Athos, Porthos and Aramis.
This intrepid group of adventurers must again join forces to prevent bad things from happening.
Khaavren is now a long-established member of the Guard, so he is just a little more privy to what goes on, and a tad more clueful.
I Don't Get It..........2007-07-31
How can Brust write not one, but two books in the wordy, flowery Dumas-style that I (truthfully) despise, yet somehow get me to love both of them?
This book is not as wordy as The Phoenix Guards, but it has its moments. The action can be slow in the beginning and middle, but the end makes up for it.
The Novelty Wore Off.......2007-04-21
Overall a pretty good read. The novelty of the writing style from Phoenix Guards has worn off but the plot did improve over Phoenix Guards. Based on these two books I'm sure I'll get around to reading more of Brust's work in the future.
Does not live up to its predecessor.......2006-07-24
In The Phoenix Guards, Brust managed to pull off an effective parody of Dumas while furthering the backstory of the world presented in the Taltos novels. Five Hundred Years After, unfortunately, fails to live up to expectations when placed in such august company. Where the first was thoroughly enjoyable, this story feels incomplete, and the writing feels forced. Perhaps this is due to the fact that this story was less a parody of Dumas's work than a glimpse into events that had happened in the Taltos universe, but regardless of what the cause, Paarfi, the faux-auteur that Brust has created, does not seem to have the same humour as one would expect.
On a whole, the novel is good, but not great. Still, it is well worth a read as long as you continue through and finish the entire series. When placed in the middle of the previous and following books, the style fleshes out, but as a standalone work, it definitely does not live up to the expectations formed after reading its predecessor.
An entertaining jaunt into Dragaeran society........2002-10-26
What would the Three Musketeers have been like 500 years after they originally fought together, in say oh, on our timeline, April 2125.
In The Phoenix Guard Brust introduced his three musketeers, and they had a similar parting of ways, but now forces are gathering to cause problems, Mario walks the world, and the friends get together again to save it.
I enjoy the adventures of Vlad Taltos, but this book and it predecessor are perhaps the most entertaining of the lot. Taltos is an outsider in the Dragaeran Society, Khaavren, Aerich, Tazendra, and Pel are within it. Their adventures are no less enjoyable than those of Athos, Porthos, Aramis, and D'Artagnan. Written with the same tongue and cheek perspective as the Taltos series, these books provide an intersting view of classical characters.
Customer Reviews:
The Jade Phoenix enters the pantheon of legendary warriors.......2004-07-15
Falcon Guard completes The Legend of the Jade Phoenix Trilogy, the story of the remarkable Jade Falcon warrior Aidan Pryde. He earned the bloodname of Pryde in Bloodname, but as this novel opens he has never been able to rid himself of the taint surrounding his name. He was a trueborn warrior, but he earned his warrior status in a second, illegal Trial staged by his training commander Ter Roshak, posing as a freeborn to do it. Although he later declared his true identity, earned the right to keep his warrior status, and went on to win a Bloodname against incredible odds, he still had not distanced himself from his scandalous history. Even now that the long-awaited assault on the Inner Sphere has begun, his command has been relegated to mop-up actions far from the front lines of battle he yearns to fight in. Until now, that is.
He has been given command of the Falcon Guard, a throwaway group of old warriors and insubordinate, troublesome fighters marked by a disgraceful defeat on the planet Twycross, but it still represents a chance to fight on the front lines for the glory of the Clans against the Inner Sphere planets - and to show how effective a commander he can be. With his loyal freeborn friend Horse by his side, he calls upon Joanna, the Falconer who trained him and with whom he has had a long and complicated history, to whip the misfits into shape. Among his new charges is his own daughter - although he does not know he has a daughter or, as a trueborn warrior born of artificial genetic manipulation, really even understand the concept of parenthood.
The battlefield of Tukayyid will determine the outcome of the Inner Sphere invasion; victory opens the way for the invasion of Terra itself, but defeat establishes a 15-year period during which the Clan can do nothing to advance their forces. For Aidan Pryde, it is the chance to achieve the honor he has always sought, to remove forevermore the taint attached to his name, his career, and his genetic heritage. Thurston brings the field of battle to vivid life in these pages, offering readers a thrilling look at a massive engagement of Battlemechs and warriors in a fight for victory, pride, and heritage. It's a thrilling, satisfying conclusion to a classic Battletech storyline.
Battletech Falcon Guard.......2000-05-19
I thought the book is a great piece of literature. It was my first book in the series of Battletech. After reading this I was sort of disappointed by the other stories I read later on in the series. The book contains lots of action which is usually intriguing in these kind of political books. It was the best book to start with. I was sort of saddened by the ending. This is a book that is special and stands out, so buy this book and read it.
Arguably the best battletech book ever.......1998-12-30
I had this one special ordered. This masterpiecie gracefully dictates the struggles and fights at Turdyyad, and has the highest position in my personal library. Adian Pryde is one of my favorite characters in liturature,and whenever I think of clan Jade falcon, I see the cover of Falcon Gaurd, with Adian's Timberwolf stomping across the tattered battleground of turkyadd, lasers blazing, and missiles flaring. This is an extremely epic novel, and I will forever cherish it.
The Spirit of the Clan Warriors.......1998-05-17
This book is probably the best I have read about the spirit of the Falcon Warriors in the War at Tukayyid. Dishonoured in the eyes of his fellow MechWarriors and assigned to the lowly Falcon Guards, Star Colonel Aidan Pryde rises once again as the Jade Pheonix to bring his Clan and the Falcon Guards to glory on Tukayyid. The fighting scenes depicted in here are well written and should be a book not to be missed by a loyal Jade Falcon fan.
Average customer rating:
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Falcon Guard (Legend of the Jade Phoenix-Battletech series)
Robert Thurston
Manufacturer: RoC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books | Alternate History | Anthologies | Arthurian | Contemporary | Epic | General | Historical | History & Criticism | Magic & Wizards | Series
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ASIN: 0140152482 |
Average customer rating:
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Phoenix Guards
Steven Brust
Manufacturer: ST MARTINS PRESS *
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000Q33M2O |
Book Description
This digital document is an article from The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR), published by The Register Guard on April 2, 2003. The length of the article is 970 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Area rugby club raising interest and welts.(Sports)(The Eugene club is a win away from a berth to the regionals in Phoenix)
Publication:
The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR) (Newspaper)
Date: April 2, 2003
Publisher: The Register Guard
Page: B1
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
This digital document is an article from The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR), published by The Register Guard on March 24, 2003. The length of the article is 1327 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Athletic Tigers next for Phoenix.(Sports)(Top-seeded LSU faces Wisconsin-Green Bay in the NCAA's second round today)
Publication:
The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR) (Newspaper)
Date: March 24, 2003
Publisher: The Register Guard
Page: E1
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
This digital document is an article from The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR), published by The Register Guard on December 28, 2001. The length of the article is 460 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Bellotti irritated by Ducks' effort.(Sports)(UO Football Notes: Coach says his team was "not sharp" in Thursday workout in Phoenix.)
Publication:
The Register-Guard (Eugene, OR) (Newspaper)
Date: December 28, 2001
Publisher: The Register Guard
Page: B5
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Customer Reviews:
From guinea pigs and rabbits to fancy pigs, birds of prey.......2002-05-10
Now in a newly revised, expanded and updated fourth edition, BSAVA Manual Of Exotic Pets is the British Small Animal Veterinary Associations is comprehensive and indispensable reference to the biology, care, treatment, medical problems, special features, and more of raising a broad selection of unique and unusual pets ranging from guinea pigs and rabbits to fancy pigs, birds of prey, lizards, ornamental fish, invertebrates and more. A superbly presented, "user friendly" compendium of sound and reliable information for any aspiring pet owner seeking for something more unusual and noteworthy than the typical cat or dog, the BSAVA Manual Of Exotic Pets is a highly recommended addition to personal, professional, academic, and community library reference collections.
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Catheter Ablation of Cardiac Arrhythmias: Basic Concepts and Clinical Applications
Douglas Packer , and
William Stevenson
Manufacturer: Blackwell Publishing Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 1405131179 |
Book Description
Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation of Cardiac Arrhythmias has been so extensively updated for its third edition that the book now features a new title: Catheter Ablation of Cardiac Arrhythmias: Basic Concepts and Clinical Applications. The editors bring you 21 polished chapters, each updating the fundamentals and progressing to advanced concepts, providing state of the art knowledge with highly relevant material for experienced electrophysiologists as well as fellows in training.Leading pathologist Sy Ho provides important anatomic insights, which are integrated with new information from imaging technologies. All chapters include practical how-to tips and a review of potential pitfalls, allowing you to benefit from the experience of the leaders in catheter ablation.This streamlined new edition of Catheter Ablation of Cardiac Arrhythmias will remain the leading text for all clinicians in the field.
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- Guilty Pleasures
- Fast, fun, Saturday reading.
- trash done poorly
- Passable cyberpunk
- A Slumming Angel
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Redrobe
Jon Courtenay Grimwood
Manufacturer: Simon & Schuster UK
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0743224124 |
Customer Reviews:
Guilty Pleasures.......2002-10-03
This one is a lot of fun (and probably shouldn't be). The anti-hero, AXL, is a tangle of self-contradictions that make him not so much complex as convoluted. He has built a reputation for being good at things that no one should ever be good at, and he frequently wants to fail even as he struggles desperately to succeed. The resulting tension kept me turning the pages long after I should have gone to sleep. I'm not sure the plot ever did make sense to me, but I'm fairly confident that the author never intended that it should. While this may violate a fundamental rule of story telling (the whole thing must make some sort of sense in the end), it strikes me as a recognizable -- if distorted -- view of real life. As weird as Grimwood's vision of the future is, it's not any stranger than a world that can produce the likes of Jerry Springer and the infamous 'Bum Fights' videos. If you are a fan of cyberpunk, this is as darkly distopian as it gets. Dress warm, make sure your gun is loaded, and I'll see you on the other side. ;)
Jeff Edwards, Author of "Torpedo: A Surface Warfare Thriller"
Fast, fun, Saturday reading........2002-09-27
The gun is a lot of fun, the world is interesting, Axl entertains. It's a Pulp Fiction type of read, with some of Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash and William Gibson's Neuromancer. While not brilliant -- and not overly deep -- It is good and deep enough, and I enjoyed it enough to buy Grimwood's other release, Remix.
trash done poorly.......2002-06-29
I picked up this book looking for a light, relatively trashy and fun read. And clearly that is the kind of book Grimwood was aiming to write. This book is without a shred of literary pretension. (In one particularly irritating stylistic turn which persists for about 3 chapters before, fortunately, vanishing, Grimwood starts virtually every other sentence with the phrase "Mind you...") Redrobe ultimately sinks to such a low of poor plotting and thin characterization that it even fails to make the grade as trash.
Redrobe is the story of Axl, erstwhile abused youth turned film star turned mercenary turned assasin for hire turned McDonald's burger flipper. If you think this string of disparate occupations will be cleverly tied together in the narrative, think again. Grimwood's fairly lame attempt at injecting humor by giving gun-toting tough guy, Axl, a job at the golden arches seems to have been ripped off from Neal Stephenson's pizza delivery boy, Hiro Protagonist. Only in Stephenson's book the food services profession of his hero makes sense. Not so here. Axl's past is as incomprehensible and randomly thrown together as are his (and all of the other character's, for that matter) motivations for any of the action that takes place in the book. Hero Axl is described in at least a dozen different and mutually contradictory ways such as sullen and laconic as well as explosive and hyperactive. Yet somehow his actions manage to support none of the pages of cliche which are lavished upon describing him. Unfortunately, none of the books' characters manages to win even an ounce of sympathy making it very difficult to get through. Axl is trying to be a gritty, anti-hero but only manages to come off as whiney and fairly dumb. The only character in the book who is at all interesting is Axl's gun who through a series of fairly poorly plotted and illogical coincidences, ends up as a silver flying monkey. Unfortunately, as said monkey has near god-like powers, he spends most of the novel flitting in and out of the action playing the part of an almost literal deus ex machina and then conveniently vanishing or refusing to help (for no plausible reason) when his powers would obviate another pointless shoot out. I couldn't help but feel that the talking gun was a pastiche on Jonathan Lethem's Gun, with Occasional Music. And again, the original does it much, much better.
But anyway... the story revolves around Axl's quest to find the dead pope's sister and thereby discover what said pope did with all of the vatican's squandered money. There is enormous potential for humor and irony in this but this goes largely unexploited by Grimwood. The story plays out in a series of tedious episodes which drag along, punctuated by random extreme violence. My biggest objection to the gratuitous violence is that most of it is completely wasted as the description's are so dull and vapid you are hard pressed to feel anything. The fact that I could read through pages describing some of the most horrendous acts of torture and violence without even wincing tells me that Grimwood should have spent less time on dreaming up hyperbolic gross out scenes and more on developing some vivid, or at least marginally meaningful, language. I have been far more disturbed by far lesser scenes of violence than redrobe serves up merely because they were described by someone who at least sounded as if they knew what they were talking about. Grimwood's talk of torture, rape, and other mayhem comes off incredibly phoney. It's somewhat like reading the description of a violent fight as written by a 12 year old: there's plenty of gore and other "gross out" effects to bulk it up but no sense whatsoever that Grimwood has the merest clue what he is talking about. The plot finally limps home to a weak and disappointing ending which leaves the majority of the questions raised by the book completely unanswered. By the time I got to the end, however, I was not at all surprized by this, as the plotting is overall so full of holes and inconsistent that I scarcely expected all of the random threads that had been thrown out to be addressed, let alone neatly tied up.
This book is packed with a lot of genuinely interesting and potentially very amusing ideas. Unfortunately, they don't hold together at all as a cohesive unit and go largely unexploited. I found it to be overall a boring and frustrating read. The characters, dialogue, and politics of the book are extremely hollow. I think Mr. Grimwood was aiming for gritty and dark with this novel, but it comes off more as adolescent and fairly tepid. As far as advancing any new ideas in the cyberpunk genre, look elsewhere. Any cyberpunk elements of the novel have been directly lifted from Gibson et al and are sort of randomly strewn about leaving me wondering if Grimwood even understood the ideas he has so obviously cribbed. As a fun, trash novel this book might have some potential if your expectations are extremely low. Overall, I found it too poor even to enjoy on that level.
Passable cyberpunk.......2002-05-09
If you really love cyberpunk, then you'll probably enjoy Redrobe. If not, you'll probably spend a lot of time trying to figure out how corporate names could be so completely confused with adjectives.
Grimwood is intelligent and clearly working at developing a complex image of the future. He still takes a lot of shortcuts supplied by the genre rather than trying to elevate it. Too much emphasis on visual flash and terse descriptions as an attempt to keep a high pace. Unfortuately the story is not well crafted and seems slapdash rather than lightning fast.
I'm holding this book up to high standards, though. I think the obvious comparison to Gibson doesn't do Grimwood any harm. Redrobe's characters are much more three dimensional. Nor do I think that Neal Stephenson has the market cornered on good craft. Stephenson has some serious need of an editor.
Still, the Locus tag/dig on the front of the book rings true: "rapidly developing into a novelist worth watching." He's not there yet but we'll see.
A Slumming Angel.......2002-01-15
Jon Courtney Grimwood inspires comparison with William Gibson due to his ability to develop highly intense situations and characters with real vitality. However, my first inclinations on reading redRobe were to think of Neal Stephenson and Raymond Chandler, as his characters and the world he paints make one want to explore them. redRobe moves very quickly between the slums of Mexico City and an orbital safe-zone for political refugees, each and all drawn in vivid colors with no time or space allowed for anything close to overfamiliarity. The characters involved range from a gun with AI (not to mention personality) to a dead pope. I hate to give any details, as the story and characters (note how I keep coming back to characters) are best left to unfold as Mr. Grimwood has written them. It evokes the best reaction I can imagine from any fiction, which is to make me want to read everything written by the author. I've followed Cyberpunk from it's inception, and this is some of the best.
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Redrobes,
Neil Boyton
Manufacturer: Benziger Brothers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
Children's Books
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ASIN: B00087D4KI |
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Differential Diagnosis: Small Mammals
Anna Meredith , and
Sharon Redrobe
Manufacturer: Butterworth-Heinemann
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0750642505 |
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Exotic Animal Handbook
Sharon Redrobe , and
Anna Meredith
Manufacturer: Butterworth-Heinemann
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0750640685 |
Book Description
A concise, balanced, and reasonably priced introductory text, World Religions (the revision of World Faiths, Second Edition) takes a historical approach to the ideological and cultural aspects of several religions. More than just a collection of facts about beliefs and mores, this unique text offers students a complex portrait of each religion, with scholarly viewpoints interspersed throughout.
Books:
- The Complete Henry Bech (Everyman's Library)
- The Complete Metalsmith: An Illustrated Handbook
- The Dark Bride: A Novel
- The Fierce and Beautiful World (New York Review Books Classics)
- The Four Wise Men
- The Garden Planner and Record Book (Record Books)
- The Lesser Blessed: A Novel
- The Marriage at Antibes
- The Most Amazing Thing
- The Never Ending Pigeon Saga
Books Index
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