arthur_pendrgn's review against another edition
3.0
The pov from the villain was a great addition to what would have been a non-remarkable novel. Those sections were somewhat gut-churning. Block did a great job establishing that character. This was a bit different than the other Scudder books. Seriously, though, why leave the gun behind at the end knowing how the villain operates?
usbsticky's review against another edition
4.0
Spoilers ahead.
First of all this book actually follows book #15 and you should read that first. The plot is a bit unusual in that it isn't really linear or standard. It goes a bit all over the place. It also runs afoul of one of my pet peeves: alternating POVs. In this case, the murderer's and Scudder's POVs. I dislike switching between narratives because it's like reading 2 different books, one chapter each time. And (author) Block doesn't tell you much about the killer's POV in the beginning so you're reading blind and not having a frame of reference of where it's going.
Spoilers really, don't read if you don't want it spoiled.
The killer's POV gets clearer as you read on and after a bit you start to understand that he framed someone for the death of 3 kids he killed. Late on you realize that the killer is the same guy from the last book and the suspense ends there.
Meanwhile from Scudder's POV, he's hired by a fellow AA member who is suspicious of a man she's dating because he's super secretive and she doesn't know anything about his life. In fact, he could be the killer and Scudder does his investigative bit.
The two POVs start to merge when a woman is murdered by the killer and she's someone in Scudder's circle. And after a while they realize that the killer is the same one from the last book. And the killer also reveals that he murdered the 3 kids. After that it's a race to catch him before he kills more people.
Overall, I like the non-linear plotline because it's not cookie cutter and refreshing. As the series matured Block has also taken to discuss certain subjects not to do with crime, using dialog between characters. He's done suicide, religion, death and some other subjects. In this book he touched upon the death penalty. Other authors do this with varying success. Some of the Hornblower clones successfully included discussions on the inequity and injustice of the naval and social system of contemporary Britain. And in another series I read, the author unsuccessfully hijacked her Italian crime novels into some kind of social justice tirade and I stopped reading that.
Anyway, I feel sad that this series will be coming to an end as I read #17 next. I think it changed a lot from book #1 and in fact I will be reading that again just to get the feel of it but this series has been a very good one.
PS: I think the difference between Block and hot shot best seller authors is that the latter writes for consumer consumption and sales whereas Block writes what he wants and you can like it if you want. Some authors who got rich and famous stopped writing for consumer consumption and their works turned to crap. But Block's work has not followed that trajectory. His work didn't get better or worse, I think it got different.
First of all this book actually follows book #15 and you should read that first. The plot is a bit unusual in that it isn't really linear or standard. It goes a bit all over the place. It also runs afoul of one of my pet peeves: alternating POVs. In this case, the murderer's and Scudder's POVs. I dislike switching between narratives because it's like reading 2 different books, one chapter each time. And (author) Block doesn't tell you much about the killer's POV in the beginning so you're reading blind and not having a frame of reference of where it's going.
Spoilers really, don't read if you don't want it spoiled.
The killer's POV gets clearer as you read on and after a bit you start to understand that he framed someone for the death of 3 kids he killed. Late on you realize that the killer is the same guy from the last book and the suspense ends there.
Meanwhile from Scudder's POV, he's hired by a fellow AA member who is suspicious of a man she's dating because he's super secretive and she doesn't know anything about his life. In fact, he could be the killer and Scudder does his investigative bit.
The two POVs start to merge when a woman is murdered by the killer and she's someone in Scudder's circle. And after a while they realize that the killer is the same one from the last book. And the killer also reveals that he murdered the 3 kids. After that it's a race to catch him before he kills more people.
Overall, I like the non-linear plotline because it's not cookie cutter and refreshing. As the series matured Block has also taken to discuss certain subjects not to do with crime, using dialog between characters. He's done suicide, religion, death and some other subjects. In this book he touched upon the death penalty. Other authors do this with varying success. Some of the Hornblower clones successfully included discussions on the inequity and injustice of the naval and social system of contemporary Britain. And in another series I read, the author unsuccessfully hijacked her Italian crime novels into some kind of social justice tirade and I stopped reading that.
Anyway, I feel sad that this series will be coming to an end as I read #17 next. I think it changed a lot from book #1 and in fact I will be reading that again just to get the feel of it but this series has been a very good one.
PS: I think the difference between Block and hot shot best seller authors is that the latter writes for consumer consumption and sales whereas Block writes what he wants and you can like it if you want. Some authors who got rich and famous stopped writing for consumer consumption and their works turned to crap. But Block's work has not followed that trajectory. His work didn't get better or worse, I think it got different.
bundy23's review against another edition
3.0
Incredibly disappointing ending to this series. A serial killer who's impossibly smart, ridiculously cute and super-intelligent returns from the dead and it's just nowhere near believable. The beauty of Matthew Scudder is that he feels totally real and then we get a bad guy like this and it just ruins everything...
zeroiv's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
jakewritesbooks's review against another edition
3.0
I really do truly love this series. I didn’t expect to tear through it as fast as I did and now I’ve only got a few to read. Stupid pandemic.
I’m also glad I read this series when I did. Had I gone through it in my early-20s, when I read my first Scudder, I don’t think I would have appreciated the solemn nature of Block’s famous detective, nor the shoe leather detective work he is known for.
This is in many ways the last Scudder book in which he is present in the present. Block actually wrote three more: one is a flashback novel, another a collection of short stories and the third a novella that places Scudder in modern times, no doubt trying to solve that One Final Case.
So I had high hopes for this one and for the most part, they were reached even though I knew what was coming (more on that later). Scudder is hired to look into something, it becomes a bigger something than he anticipated, so he goes traipsing around the city and shenanigans ensue.
But of course, there’s an overlying plot here. And it features…sigh…a diabolical serial killer.
Diabolical serial killer novels are my least favorite mystery reads by a factor of ten. I hate em, I hate that they often revolve around mutilated women and children, I hate how generally bland and uninteresting the characters are. Hate, hate, hate.
Block is a great writer so he manages to elevate this no matter what. But grrr…it just feels too familiar. There are already plenty of Scudder vs. Serial Killer novels in this series and I wish he would’ve let his hero go out on a different note.
It’s still a Scudder book and thus, I enjoyed the hell out of it. I just wish it would’ve had a different plot.
I’m also glad I read this series when I did. Had I gone through it in my early-20s, when I read my first Scudder, I don’t think I would have appreciated the solemn nature of Block’s famous detective, nor the shoe leather detective work he is known for.
This is in many ways the last Scudder book in which he is present in the present. Block actually wrote three more: one is a flashback novel, another a collection of short stories and the third a novella that places Scudder in modern times, no doubt trying to solve that One Final Case.
So I had high hopes for this one and for the most part, they were reached even though I knew what was coming (more on that later). Scudder is hired to look into something, it becomes a bigger something than he anticipated, so he goes traipsing around the city and shenanigans ensue.
But of course, there’s an overlying plot here. And it features…sigh…a diabolical serial killer.
Diabolical serial killer novels are my least favorite mystery reads by a factor of ten. I hate em, I hate that they often revolve around mutilated women and children, I hate how generally bland and uninteresting the characters are. Hate, hate, hate.
Block is a great writer so he manages to elevate this no matter what. But grrr…it just feels too familiar. There are already plenty of Scudder vs. Serial Killer novels in this series and I wish he would’ve let his hero go out on a different note.
It’s still a Scudder book and thus, I enjoyed the hell out of it. I just wish it would’ve had a different plot.
melissalynne81's review against another edition
5.0
My favorite of the series. I love these characters so much. Matt, Elaine, T.J.,Joe (the sarcasm Joe used was just perfect. I laughed out loud), they’re all just so wonderfully done, so realistic.
Such an amazing series.
I feel like there’s problems with the killer though. Definitely a serial killer, a very organized serial killer. I have a problem with the array of victims he has. Usually serial killers have a specific type they stick too but this guy was all over the place, women, men, children. I kind of also wish it has been someone from an early book as opposed to a complete unknown. He was definitely very creepy though.
This book had me on the edge of my seat.
Such an amazing series.
I feel like there’s problems with the killer though. Definitely a serial killer, a very organized serial killer. I have a problem with the array of victims he has. Usually serial killers have a specific type they stick too but this guy was all over the place, women, men, children. I kind of also wish it has been someone from an early book as opposed to a complete unknown. He was definitely very creepy though.
This book had me on the edge of my seat.
johnnygamble's review against another edition
3.0
I felt it to be unnecessarily graphic, and also too reminiscent of Ticket to the Boneyard especially in its climax.
rfwads's review against another edition
2.0
This book was alright. This is my first book by this author and I gotta say I'm not a huge fan of his writing style. I thought that the idea and plot was creative and interesting but the way it was written made it difficult to really enjoy.