lori_loves_reading's review against another edition
3.0
Very glad to have Lynley and Havers back but there was not much of them in this book. I didn’t care for the subject matter and it was a bit too long. Hope the next book in the series is better.
strwbrry_jamm's review against another edition
I have a lot of conflicting feelings for this novel. I had not read a single entry in this series before now and I don’t think I will after finishing Careless In Red. I only bought this book because the cover looked interesting and the brief description intrigued me. This is a fairly standard mystery/crime novel and there’s nothing wrong with that genre. The problem I have with this narrative is boring characters and a completely flaccid “twist.” In traditional who-done-it media, a complicated twist is revealed at the end, but here, the killer just confesses. It’s not written in a particularly interesting or unique way, the dialogue isn’t anything to marvel over, and the plot is just basic enough to hold my interest. Will probably never read this again but I don’t think I wasted my time either.
EDIT: completely forgot to mention the amount of sex in this novel. There is just SO MUCH of it. There’s an entire sub plot dedicated to it that goes nowhere and adds nothing to the overarching story. Easily the worst part of the entire experience.
EDIT: completely forgot to mention the amount of sex in this novel. There is just SO MUCH of it. There’s an entire sub plot dedicated to it that goes nowhere and adds nothing to the overarching story. Easily the worst part of the entire experience.
cdsmock's review against another edition
5.0
A wonderful addition to this great series featuring British sleuth Thomas Lynley and his right hand woman, Barbara Havers. Great characterizations, settings, and plot--a literary spin on a fun beach read!
thelaurasaurus's review against another edition
2.0
I hadn't read any of the Inspector Lynley books before, and I don't think I'll be bothering again. Aside from the various errors that the American author seems to have made with regards to the UK, it was just dull.
Why does every single person in this book have a Cornish (I presume) name???
Why does every single person in this book have a Cornish (I presume) name???
helenace13's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
I loved the way the book was written and the French is beautiful. But to me, the whole story doesn't make sense, the leads the police follows are paper-thin and it seems they are not motivated in finding the murderer. The book itself is absolutely massive because all of the different POV's, which I found to be more than a bit excessive.
pattieod's review against another edition
4.0
First-few-pages "spoiler" (not really a spoiler) Inspector Lynley is still devastated from the loss of his wife, and is walking the coast of England when he *gasp* comes a body! Imagine that!
In typical fashion, George weaves a web that involves most of the small coastal town, and both Lynley and Barbara Havers pitch in to find the murderer. You go in expecting a good read, and even though it took her a while, George doesn't disappoint - buy or check this one out for the beach.
And you might learn something interesting - like who knew that people in Cornwall surfed?
In typical fashion, George weaves a web that involves most of the small coastal town, and both Lynley and Barbara Havers pitch in to find the murderer. You go in expecting a good read, and even though it took her a while, George doesn't disappoint - buy or check this one out for the beach.
And you might learn something interesting - like who knew that people in Cornwall surfed?
elisala's review against another edition
3.0
L'amorce: un jeune homme est retrouvé mort au pied d'une falaise, avec son équipement d'escalade, ça ressemble à un meurtre, mais à y regarder de plus près, est-ce si sûr?
Comme d'hab, j'ai apprécié la manière dont l'auteur déroule l'intrigue, avec en parallèle un aperçu sur les vies des protagonistes, participant, ou non, à l'intrigue.
Par contre j'ai trouvé cette fois-ci que les à-côtés prenaient un peu trop de place et restaient un poil superflu. Comme si l'auteure n'avait rien trouvé de mieux pour garder le suspens que de le noyer dans des histoires, potentiellement des pistes. Les histoires en question sont par ailleurs souvent un peu trop moralisatrices : la famille, l'éducation, la filiation, la tromperie, un peu lourdingue au final. Ça ne m'étonnerait pas d'apprendre que Mme George a eu maille à partir avec des sujets équivalents, et pourquoi pas les intégrer dans ses livres? C'est de bonne guerre, mais ne pas en faire des tartines et des tartines eût été sans doute préférable...
Enfin, j'ai beau râler, c'est un livre que j'ai poursuivi presque avidemment afin de découvrir le dénouement, pas si décevant, finalement, contrairement à ce que je craignais...
Comme d'hab, j'ai apprécié la manière dont l'auteur déroule l'intrigue, avec en parallèle un aperçu sur les vies des protagonistes, participant, ou non, à l'intrigue.
Par contre j'ai trouvé cette fois-ci que les à-côtés prenaient un peu trop de place et restaient un poil superflu. Comme si l'auteure n'avait rien trouvé de mieux pour garder le suspens que de le noyer dans des histoires, potentiellement des pistes. Les histoires en question sont par ailleurs souvent un peu trop moralisatrices : la famille, l'éducation, la filiation, la tromperie, un peu lourdingue au final. Ça ne m'étonnerait pas d'apprendre que Mme George a eu maille à partir avec des sujets équivalents, et pourquoi pas les intégrer dans ses livres? C'est de bonne guerre, mais ne pas en faire des tartines et des tartines eût été sans doute préférable...
Enfin, j'ai beau râler, c'est un livre que j'ai poursuivi presque avidemment afin de découvrir le dénouement, pas si décevant, finalement, contrairement à ce que je craignais...
yvo_about_books's review against another edition
1.0
Finished reading: August 30th 2016
DNF at page 80
Spoiler
WARNING: upopopular opinion ahead!! Honestly, I've tried. I think this is only the second or third book I have ever DNFed and I still feel a bit guilty for doing so... I must have started reading Careless In Red at least four or five times before over the last two years, but I just can't bring myself to keep reading. There are too many storylines and the pace is slower than a sleeping snail. On top of that the descriptions are superlong, dull and the story itself just doesn't grab my attention either. It's honestly a shame because this book belongs to one of my favorite genres... And I'm aware Careless In Red is actually book nr. 15 in a series, but after this sample I don't think I want to read the first book after all. I know a lot of people seem to enjoy this series, but it definitely isn't for me.
Detective Superintendent Thomas Lynley retreated to Cornwall after his wife was murdered. There he spends six solitary weeks hiking the coastline, but he cannot seem to escape his memories. On the forty-third day of his walk, Lynley discovers the body of a young man who seems to have fallen to his death. He has no choice but to abandon his solitary life and has to ask for reinforcements. While the closest town seems to be an unlikely place for murder, it soon becomes clear that a killer is indeed at work. And this time, Lynley is not a detective but a witness, and even a possible suspect...
I always enjoy reading a good mystery/detective story, but somehow I never managed to read but a few pages at the time of this fifteenth book in the Inspector Lynley series. The pace is so slow and the descriptions are so long that it's really hard to stay focused, and I also found that it had way too many storylines going on. That said, I've only managed to read the first 80 pages, so things might improve later on. I guess I will never know...
P.S. Find more of my reviews here.
lazygal's review against another edition
5.0
I wondered how George would get the series out of the previous "incident" - would we have a Havers/Nkata book? Deborah and Simon? Here, George treads some of P.D. James' path, with the interior glimpses of Lynley struggling to return to life after Helen.
The mystery itself wasn't that difficult to figure out, even with all the false leads and the red herrings George provided.
The mystery itself wasn't that difficult to figure out, even with all the false leads and the red herrings George provided.