usbsticky's review against another edition
3.0
As with most Lawrence Block's books I like the characters and the setting. In this series, I don't like the plot formula that Block uses and repeats.
Spoilers ahead:
This is the plot formula:
1) The set up. Bernie steals something. There is a dead body involved. He is framed for the murder.
2) Bernie investigates, puts something into motion. This part is hidden from the reader. We only know what he does to some degree but it's not explained.
3) The reveal where Bernie gathers everyone and then explains how everything goes together.
Sometimes the reasoning isn't very credible but mostly it's not entertaining. Block goes through some hoops to make the events complex. But readers are not really interested in manufactured complex plots. They are interested in the characters and how they react to events in the book. There is also often a lot of stretched dialog where two people talk about something which should only take 1-2 sentences but Block stretches it to a page or two, or even more. I've learned to fast read though them. This is like my 6-7th book in the series. I'm not sure how many more I can suffer through.
Plot, seriously don't read this unless you want it spoiled: Bernie's landlord wants to raise his rent 11x. The rest of the plot is about a set of stolen baseball cards (hence the title) and a dead body. The plot is so contrived that I'm not going to describe because it was so uninteresting. The book ends up with Bernie owning his own building. We're not told how he gets the money though or how much it was. At this point I'm continuing the series through inertia.
Spoilers ahead:
This is the plot formula:
1) The set up. Bernie steals something. There is a dead body involved. He is framed for the murder.
2) Bernie investigates, puts something into motion. This part is hidden from the reader. We only know what he does to some degree but it's not explained.
3) The reveal where Bernie gathers everyone and then explains how everything goes together.
Sometimes the reasoning isn't very credible but mostly it's not entertaining. Block goes through some hoops to make the events complex. But readers are not really interested in manufactured complex plots. They are interested in the characters and how they react to events in the book. There is also often a lot of stretched dialog where two people talk about something which should only take 1-2 sentences but Block stretches it to a page or two, or even more. I've learned to fast read though them. This is like my 6-7th book in the series. I'm not sure how many more I can suffer through.
Plot, seriously don't read this unless you want it spoiled: Bernie's landlord wants to raise his rent 11x. The rest of the plot is about a set of stolen baseball cards (hence the title) and a dead body. The plot is so contrived that I'm not going to describe because it was so uninteresting. The book ends up with Bernie owning his own building. We're not told how he gets the money though or how much it was. At this point I'm continuing the series through inertia.
bundy23's review against another edition
4.0
Bernie adopts a cat, and I'm a total mark for cats. Also, he gets framed for a murder FOR THE SIXTH TIME IN SIX BOOKS and has to solve the case to clear his name. Probably the best book in the series so far.
hedon's review against another edition
4.0
bought it to have something to read in the airport, never heard of the writer before. enjoyed it a lot, fast, breezy, funny read.
deborama's review against another edition
4.0
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13239480
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13239480
danberman's review against another edition
3.0
that makes three of these books in a row with the exact same ending
lobo1tomia's review against another edition
5.0
Annak ellenére, hogy valaki ceruzával beleírta a könyvtári példányomba, hogy Belene kezdj! Tök szar! (egy másik valaki meg kijavította tollal az első szót, hogy “Külön írandó!“) ez egy tökéletes Bernie kötet. Kezdjük ott, hogy már ajánlásban is szerepel Sue Grafton és végigvonul az egész regényen szinte az összes regényére való hivatkozás az adott időpontig (1994-es az eredeti történet) az ABC sorozatból. Sőt Carolyn és Bernie eszmecseréje Kinsey szexuális beállítottságáról külön említésre méltó. Meg az a sok egyéb hivatkozás azokra a női krimiírókra, akiknek megjelenését magyarul mindig hiányolom, eleve nekem különösen kedves dolog. Aztán meg ott van Raffles, a macska, az hogy kerül Bernie-hez és hogy alakul a kapcsolatuk még az olyan amúgy állatokkal nagyjából közömbösen viselkedő embernek is roppant bejövős, mint amilyen én vagyok. Persze ez is Blockot dicséri. Na meg az eszmefuttatás a 3+ macskák tartásáról… Meg Bernie Robin Hood szerű akciói… Már csak ezek miatt a részek miatt is érdemes elolvasni ezt a kötetet. S még sorolhatnám, s ezek annyira jól el voltak helyezve a regényben, hogy észre se vettem a szokásos fordulatokat, mert teljesen elbűvölt a körítés.
Komolyan mondom, most így visszagondolva az előzőekre, nálam eddig ez a mindent vivő Bernie.
Részletek: http://olvasonaplo.net/olvasonaplo/2010/09/13/lawrence_block_a_betoro_aki_eladta_ted_williamst/
Komolyan mondom, most így visszagondolva az előzőekre, nálam eddig ez a mindent vivő Bernie.
Részletek: http://olvasonaplo.net/olvasonaplo/2010/09/13/lawrence_block_a_betoro_aki_eladta_ted_williamst/
captainjaq's review against another edition
4.0
This one had more puns than I remembered but still, a light, easy fun read.
mburnamfink's review against another edition
3.0
Everybody needs comfort food reading once in a while, and this was sitting on my shelf. I'm not sure that this is a great mystery novel, or even a great book, since I'm not a fan of the genre, but the characters are fun, the plot flows and twists, and everybody gets together at the end for the reveal of the killer.
salgal's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Love this character.