Cams
I enjoyed this a lot. I read it because I'd heard Kelly Macdonald interviewed on BBC6 Music and thought the story sounded intriguing. It was. I always try to read books before watching TV adaptations, so that's what I did.
I loved this story, and the writing style was right up my street too. It reminded me a little of a British John Irving, although it is the first Ian McEwan novel I've read whereas I've read a few of Irving's. It's a book I can see myself rereading and recommending.
“You can't build happiness on someone else's pain.”
I enjoyed the Twitter bits in particular. I've never seen that in a novel before. I bet @bobblypops is grabbing a lot of followers, eh? lol
Luca Veste mentioned this book on his podcast with Steve Cavanagh (Two Crime Writers and a Microphone - recommended!) so I thought I'd give it a whirl. Started on Sunday on grass mowing duty and finished today on a nice dog walk. Two stars seems a little unfair, but it's not quite a three so my actual rating would be 5/10.
“You can't build happiness on someone else's pain.”
I enjoyed the Twitter bits in particular. I've never seen that in a novel before. I bet @bobblypops is grabbing a lot of followers, eh? lol
Luca Veste mentioned this book on his podcast with Steve Cavanagh (Two Crime Writers and a Microphone - recommended!) so I thought I'd give it a whirl. Started on Sunday on grass mowing duty and finished today on a nice dog walk. Two stars seems a little unfair, but it's not quite a three so my actual rating would be 5/10.
I really enjoyed this one. The writing was top drawer and the characters had depth and were completely believable. I will definitely be following up Harry Hole books.
When I say depth, the whole book has a kind of depth to it that, up till now, I've found lacking in crime fiction for the most part. Maybe I've just not been reading the right ones.
This is my third time reading these chronicles. I'm 45. I must've been in my late teens the first time I read these and I now wonder how I could've understood them at that age, but I know that I did. My past self undoubtedly got something different from them.
The novel covers emotion in a more deep and meaningful way than anything else I've read: love, fear, desire, greed, self-pity.
“There is also love in the world.” Those words have stayed with me since the first time I read them, and I feel them more now than ever before. They help me to cherish what I have and to understand why I am here. Each time I read them, I understand a little better.
Reading on Kindle is great too, as the dictionary is only a fingertap away. Where does he get that knowledge of vocabulary from?
This is my third time reading these chronicles. I'm 45. I must've been in my late teens the first time I read these and I now wonder how I could've understood them at that age, but I know that I did. My past self undoubtedly got something different from them.
The novel covers emotion in a more deep and meaningful way than anything else I've read: love, fear, desire, greed, self-pity.
“There is also love in the world.” Those words have stayed with me since the first time I read them, and I feel them more now than ever before. They help me to cherish what I have and to understand why I am here. Each time I read them, I understand a little better.
Reading on Kindle is great too, as the dictionary is only a fingertap away. Where does he get that knowledge of vocabulary from?
I enjoy a crime thriller now and again with my favourite crime writer's probably being Ian Rankin. I listened to the audiobook version of this and the background of the main character was the thing that really drew me into this, and the fact that he was dragged back in by circumstances. Dare I mention Jason Bourne? I guess I just did.
The pacing was good and I enjoyed it enough that I will definitely consider reading more of the series. Having followed this with the mighty Stephen King's Mr Mercedes, I can wholeheartedly recommend The Defence.
I can also wholeheartedly recommend Steve Cavanagh's podcast, Two Crime Writers and a Microphone. That was how I found his novels and, through that podcast, my list has grown almost as quickly as my lawn this summer. And don't even get me started on the hedge. All I can say is that yard work, as you call it, and audiobooks go together like a pint and a roll-up; and crime novels are the perfect genre for that kind of work. Give the Defence a try and get your lawn in good order, then reward yourself with a pint and a fag.
It drew me in quickly and made my dog walks longer, which is always a good sign. It did seem a little far fetched in a lot of ways, but the writing was strong and the plot reasonably well thought out. To be fair, I'm probably not in the target demographic, being a mid-40s male, although that's maybe a little unfair. I bought it after hearing an interview with Steve Kavanagh and Luca Veste - Two Crime Writers and a Microphone, episode 27, which I very much recommend.
If you're going for the Audible version, the narrator is excellent by the way.
Average nourishment. Not an earth-shattering tale by any means, but reasonably average and mildly entertaining. It's no Stand, that's for sure. I like Stephen King novels for dog walks on the headphones and I'm trying to catch up on my Goodreads challenge, so I needed something that would be easy listening to draw me away from my podcast list for long enough to get through a book. It helps that grass-cutting season is once again upon us.
Just got the super bumper edition of all the Sherlock Holmes stories read by Stephen Fry on Audible. I'm not sure I'd have enjoyed this quite so much if anyone else had been reading it. Plot wise, it's a 3. Performance by Stephen Fry, 4. Writing style and engagement, 4. The descriptive writing at the beginning of the second part, the back-in-time part, is excellent. It drew me right in and felt just a little bit like Steinbeck. Not a lot mind you, but enough that I was drawn right in which, up until then, the novel hadn't done.
Just got the super bumper edition of all the Sherlock Holmes stories read by Stephen Fry on Audible. I'm not sure I'd have enjoyed this quite so much if anyone else had been reading it. Plot wise, it's a 3. Performance by Stephen Fry, 4. Writing style and engagement, 4. The descriptive writing at the beginning of the second part, the back-in-time part, is excellent. It drew me right in and felt just a little bit like Steinbeck. Not a lot mind you, but enough that I was drawn right in which, up until then, the novel hadn't done.
This was a nice wee change of pace from what I normally read. As a recovering alky myself, I could relate quite well to a lot of the main character's problems and it seemed pretty well researched in that respect. I never did have memories gradually come back though after blackouts. The author explains that short term memories aren't actually made, yet Rachel's memories gradually begin to return. I found that a little too easy of a device to reveal more of the plot.
The pacing was terrific though.
This was a champion wee read. Great plot, cons within cons within cons. It got me out on longer dog walks just to get more of the story into me on the headphones. The pacing was just right, the characters — superb, and the moving around of the timeline for maximum surprise effect was deftly done. The performance of Michael Page in the @audibleuk audiobook was really well done too - great use of voices. Highly recommended. Thank you to the @theincomparable for the rec!
A quick wee enjoyable read, covering some big topics such as racism and egotism. Might be a good one to read with my son (9) on the school run as Wil Wheaton reads it well and there is a lot of dialogue to drive the plot forward, not to mention some pretty decent humour. And who wouldn't love a dog that could set off explosives!
Audible version is excellent. The felly has a good grasp of ‘that accent' and manages the weegie accent well too. In fact it's one of the best Audible reads I've heard. Makes Begbie sound like one mental scary cunt, which is just what he is.
And that big where Renton's got withdrawal and sees the bairn on the ceiling. It's disturbing, and not in a good way.
