Amazing

The Millenium books are the best books I've read in a while! Something I can really get my teeth into! A real shame there won't be any more!

Captivating thriller

I'm not a regular thriller reader, but when there's a cultural phenomenon i'm happy to take a punt. Last time i did this was with the Da Vinci Code, which was indeed a 'page turner', but at the end i felt cheated by formulaic trash writing. Larsson's books are page turners, too, but the huge difference is that they are intelligent, and well written & translated, with well-developed characters. Okay, the protagonist is perhaps a bit improbable in the cold light of day, but if she worked on the checkout at Tesco she wouldn't make for a best-seller - and Larsson's skill is that an improbable character doesn't become an implausible one. He's also well served by a translation that's for the most part completely unobtrusive, as a good translation should be. Perhaps the only caveat is that the ploy of giving extraordinary details of techno gear looks a bit daft from a distance (both geographical and temporal). Presumably spelling out the precise spec of every computer or mobile phone that Lisbeth uses lent an international flavour to the original text, and differentiated her cutting-edge kit from standard gear, but it's just intrusive now, when the cheapest computer you can buy far exceeds hers in every respect.<br /><br />I wouldn't take another Dan Brown as a gift, but didn't hesitate to order 'Hornet's Nest' before i got to the end of 'Fire'.

Excellent, compelling read!

A compelling crime thriller...quite slow to start but well worth the read! Has led me to purchase the following two to discover what happens to the amazing lead character! Brilliant!

The best book in the Twilight-Saga

The best of the Twilight-sags. Can't wait till the movie comes out on November 2011 - hopefully :o)

Powerfully brilliant

This is an extremely powerful and emotive book. One which will make you laugh out loud, pause and reflect on an upsetting passage or shake your head in disgust at some of the scenes which will make you truly angry. It takes an exceptionally creative and talented author to craft such a book which will provoke such a range of emotions which arise at various moments as the reader progresses through the story.<br /><br />I bought this book on a whim to take on holiday with me and to be honest, wasn't expecting an awful lot. I usually read historical fiction and wouldn't normally touch this sort of book with a barge pole. Having finished the book with a renewed outlook on some of the racial issues prominent within Southern America during the sixties, I can firmly say I am glad I have had the opportunity to read this book. I would urge anyone to read this book, but particularly other males who may not normally think to read a book of this sort (and I was one!)<br /><br />The story follows the lives of three women in Jackson, Mississippi. Two black maids and one white female who struggles to integrate into a circle of snobbish misguided housewives. Racial tensions at this time had never been greater resulting in widespread injustice and violence. The women come together to work on a project which will either highlight the plight of the black maids or stir up a wasps nest in which everyone involved will be stung.<br /><br />The story is narrated at intervals by these three very different women all of whom struggle to fit into a community which is predominantly racist and dominated by cliques and exclusive groups composed of bigots and snobs. The story is heart rendering in places where personal accounts describe raw, open wounds which heal slowly in a community where exclusion abounds and persists.<br /><br />This is definitely a book which promotes thinking and reflection. One of the best reads I have had in an age.<br /><br />Recommended to all. <br />

Great read

Highly recommend this book. The unusual premise of each chapter being the same day one year on means that the story can focus on key events/emotions so other events that are relevant but not important can just be mentioned and you do not need to be bogged down in detail. Funny and sad, I also enjoyed the fact that the main characters were not always likeable and went through stages in their lives where they did not always make the right choices. It was a perfect holiday read this year.

Absorbing

The only positive quality about the book is that the pages are relatively absorbent which meant I could at least use it appropriately. Even so it's expensive toilet paper

Very entertaining, but we've been here before..

I enjoyed the subject matter and story telling in 'The White Queen' Volume 1 of this trilogy, and so looked forward to 'The Red Queen' with some anticipation. The history and events surrounding the War of the Roses is narrated this time by Margaret Beaufort, mother of the future Henry VII and leading woman in the House of Lancaster. The book starts with a young Margaret, a mere 12 year old girl, married off to Edmund Tudor the half brother of the then king Henry VI. Margaret is portrayed as an innocent child bride with a strong belief in god and her own sense of right and destiny, comparing herself to Joan of Arc, awaiting the voice of God upon bended knee. Margaret as a woman of the time seems to be powerless and a little more than a piece of property owned by first Edmund, and then following his death, by Henry Stafford and then Lord Stanley. Throughout her life and marriages she is portrayed as annoyingly pious, self-righteous, and single-minded in her belief that her son Henry is destined to be king. Whereas Elizabeth Woodville 'The White Queen' is portrayed as being complex, mysterious and a little ellusive, Margaret by contrast is a rather unsubtle, unlikeable and seemingly rather 2-dimensional character. <br />Although this is Volume 2, it actually takes the first third of the book to get to the point in time where Volume 1 begins. In fact they could easily be swapped or read in a different order with little problem. Both books finish at the same point in time after Bosworth, although I understand Margaret actually outlived her son and became for a short time regent to the young Henry VIII (who probably inherited some of his grandmother's personality!)<br />An enjoyable book, I think it is probably best read a little time after reading 'The White Queen', due to the obvious, and perhaps unsurprising, similarity of the two books resulting in a strong sense of deja vu. <br />I will certainly read the third installment, but hope for some different and fresher material!

Not great...

I am really disappointed with Dan Brown's latest book. I was looking forward to reading it as I have enjoyed all his previous books, but I just didn't manage to get into the story.<br /><br />The issues I had with the book were that I didn't feel any connection with the new characters, felt that the plot didn't flow as it was broken up by too many 'facts' and I couldn't personally understand the links that the characters were making to move the plot forward. For this reason, I found myself scanning certain pages and wishing I could hurry up and finish it. <br /><br />I hoped that the ending would be explosive and make up for the lack of coherence in the story, but apart from the one twist near the end (which I have to admit I DIDN'T see coming), the end of the book was a total let down. The book made out that it was going to reveal something that would change the reader's life, but no, I feel exactly the same as I did before starting the book, but maybe a little bit more confused!<br /><br />If he brings out another book I think I'll give him another chance though because I've enjoyed his others so much in the past. Fingers crossed his next one has the same charm as the Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons!

Started with care, took my time

And thoroughly enjoyed this book. I recently read Emotionally Weird by the author and was slightly put off by reading anything else. I am glad I did not base all of her work solely on that book, I enjoyed When Will There be Good News? and decided to venture back into life with Jackson Brodie. I was unsure of his character in that book, but now this book has filled much more of the back story and I have grown to love such a character who seems to operate outside of everything not just the law.<br /><br />Jackson is going on a tour of the country, in main to catch up with his second wife who tricked him and he fell for it. Pride is an issue for Jackson. Also he is reliving some of his past, and through the Yorkshire countryside, visiting places he had been in his childhood he starts to understand the importance of his future that lies with the children he has fathered. His narrative takes us through his past and what he is currently working on - a case of finding Hope McMaster's real birth mother, but everywhere he goes someone has been before him and there is also some on his tail. How come he is not always first? And why did he make a rash decision and take on something that was not his, when he can barely look after himself. <br /><br />The narrative of Tracey Waterhouse is alongside Jackson's as an ex WPC at the time of a murder which dropped off the radar in the mid seventies when all focus was on catching the Yorkshire Ripper. A theme covered with detail by Kate Atkinson that you knew she had researched the subject enough to make it relevant to the time of the flashbacks without it taking focus off the actual murder that Tracey Waterhouse witnessed the aftermath of. Tracey now retired and working as a security guard in a shopping centre also makes a rash decision. And as her past comes back to her and the seemingly solved murder in the seventies seems more relevant, she goes on the run. Did she really know anything?<br /><br />Tracey's rash decision is witnessed by Tilly an aging actress who is obviously caught up in the beginnings of dementia. Tilly sees but does not understand what Tracey has done, if anything wrong at all. But then Tilly is linked to them all in some way and we see her unravel as Jackson tries to bring all the pieces of thread together. <br /><br />Atkinson uses the skill of three strong characters to tell the story not just in the present but in the past as well. The past for all of them. The other characters which also intertwine so seamlessly are all relevant and the passages set in the Seventies, have a Gene Hunt, Sweeney edge to them, especially with the comradeship and workings of the police force. The author does not miss the opportunity to mention these modern day images within the context of the story line. <br /><br />I confess it takes me a while to get into Atkinson's books and I stick with it because once I am in the story I just need to keep turning the page to find out how it all comes together. This book was no different, but it did not take me long to become captured by the plot line as it effectively went from the Seventies back to the present day picking up and dropping people as it needed them. What surprised me was the humour within the book; it is there and if like me you were captured, the humour just bounced off the page and me laugh. It kept the story real especially and reminded me despite the outcome of the murder, the police and their colleagues the social workers and even the people they deal with, in this book namely a number of prostitutes have their own way of dealing with events and emotions. <br /><br />Definitely a different sort of crime novel, not your average detective novel - no goody and baddy with the other one the victim. A novel with many layers, and not necessarily ones where the truth is going to be made clear to all, including the reader. The result is not always what we want and perhaps in reflection, I could have wanted more from this story - a neat wrapping up of all the unravel threads. Not so, because life is not like that and Atkinson does a very good job of making us the reader think whether the result she writes about is the right one legally or perhaps morally.

Another great book.

This was a great read, it fits in brilliantly with the first two books.<br />Eclipse is well written like Twilight and New moon.<br /><br />If you've seen the films, then I think the books give a much better idea of what's going on in the character's minds, Eclipse is no different in this regard, I loved it, can't wait to read Breaking Dawn now (I've just started it and it seems to be just as good IMO, I'll post a review for it when I'm done)

Unputdownable

Loved this book, not yet finished and looking forward to the final pages and the end of the saga. Hope Katherine will be writing more books. Will look forward to her next one.

recommened reading!

This is an excellent addition to"The Secret" and goes a little more in depth to the teachings concerning the law of attraction. It makes it clearer, breaking it down into simple concepts. Terms like"what you give is what you get returned" and"do unto others as you would have them do unto you" now make more sense to me than they did before. The Power reminds me of the law of karma, and once again it brings that law to life."As you think, so shall it be" because nothing happens without first thinking about it, and the Power helps you to think a little more one directionally about your goals and all of the good things in life which you desire. It's a really helpful which counteracts todays climate of financial doom mongering that we hear repeatedly on the news. What I really took from this book is that it is far better to focus your mind on what you want rather than to focus it on what you don't want - you have more chance achieving what you want by doing that. Together with the book The Awakening of Spiritual Awareness, you will have your mind awakened.

Great lovestory

Fantastic lovestory, beautifully written, I enjoyed the book so much, could not let it go. Must read the books before the films.

buy them all!

Well.....my first thought when i watched the first film was to go to my library and hire them but then i looked on amazon and saw that they were so cheap! it was barely worth the diesel to get me there. And now...? Im an avid reader and get very submerged in books, when i get a good one, but i have never read any book twice. until now. the books are so full of little details and observations that you may skim over without a second thought the first time but become obvious when you read them the second. its hard to describe, you have little OH! RIGHT!? moments all the time when a piece drops into place about things you now know are going to happen but its subtly hinted at at various points. <br />Ive now bought all four books (and read them all twice or more) off amazon for the price, virtually, of one hardback from waterstones or whsmith! <br />I wont give anything away about the stories but they get better and better with each book and breaking dawn is astounding in the imagination and thought that went into it, im actually really sorry that i finished it and thats there's no more! (breaking dawn is the thickest book, nearly two inches, and its that moreish - i read it in less than two days!)

What's all the fuss?

I was curious about this book as it seems to have generated quite a buzz, but I found it very disappointing. The main issue is poorly explored, I thought the characters were shallow and lots of the themes very gratuitous. It will be well thumbed amongst the teenage population I suspect due to its graphic, if unimaginative sex scenes. Maybe I've totally missed the point, but I'd hoped for a more subtle and insightful exploration of a very topical issue.

£5 worth of excellent sense

This little book is one of the most important books of the decade. It is totally readable and should be read by all. I give it as presents as it is less than the price of twopints of beer and much better for you!