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nicolcc12's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 en realidad.
El libro, a rasgos generales, me gustó, sin embargo, sólo hasta que llevaba más de la mitad llegó a engancharme, pero lo hizo bien.
La primera mitad, desde mi experiencia, contrasta mucho con la segunda, pues mientras leía la primera parte del libro sentía que automáticamente me metía a un reading slump y no solía leer más de 5 páginas de corrido porque me aburría, pero para el final toca temas muy interesantes para mí y que me llegaron a la patata, tanto para indignarme como para sacarme una lagrimita y, hay que decirlo, sus personajes están bastante bien.
Como última cosa, ¿Alguien me puede explicar el final de Jack? Odio que sea tan abierto >.<
El libro, a rasgos generales, me gustó, sin embargo, sólo hasta que llevaba más de la mitad llegó a engancharme, pero lo hizo bien.
La primera mitad, desde mi experiencia, contrasta mucho con la segunda, pues mientras leía la primera parte del libro sentía que automáticamente me metía a un reading slump y no solía leer más de 5 páginas de corrido porque me aburría, pero para el final toca temas muy interesantes para mí y que me llegaron a la patata, tanto para indignarme como para sacarme una lagrimita y, hay que decirlo, sus personajes están bastante bien.
Como última cosa, ¿Alguien me puede explicar el final de Jack? Odio que sea tan abierto >.<
novelesque_life's review against another edition
4.0
RATING: 4 STARS
I watched the movie version first (starring Clint Eastwood) with my dad. I love reading credits as you sometimes learn that there is a book out there, that has so much more information. I liked the movie so much, I decided to try the novel which did not disappoint. While there are differences in the two mediums, the suspense in both were great was great.
I watched the movie version first (starring Clint Eastwood) with my dad. I love reading credits as you sometimes learn that there is a book out there, that has so much more information. I liked the movie so much, I decided to try the novel which did not disappoint. While there are differences in the two mediums, the suspense in both were great was great.
lisa11111's review against another edition
4.0
A bit graphic for me but an incredibly intriguing story
chromeorange's review against another edition
2.0
This is a very low 2-star.
This is the kind of book I might have liked when I was younger. I was less critical, less picky, and less socially aware. I'd pick up a Tom Clancy or Clive Cussler novel and really just read it for the adventure. A beach read. For some people, this is that kind of a book for them. However, even under the low standards of a "guilty-pleasure" novel, this book still sucks. It's clear that it's David's first book. How it became such a success is beyond me, aside from the audacity of the subject matter.
PROs:
None, really. It's publishable, but there's nothing else that's good about it.
CONs:
1) Dramatic irony on steroids. You know exactly who did what from Chapter 1 onward, so the whole book is a practice of dramatic irony; that is, when the reader knows more than the characters...and I really hate it. It's frustrating to know the right thing to do while having to read about characters continually doing the opposite.
2) Here's how the book goes:
a) Crime happens
b) Investigation makes some progress
c) Criminals kill a key person or steal a key piece of evidence
d) [REPEAT B AND C]
It comes to the point where so many people have been killed, and so much evidence has been retrieved by the bad guys, that you're left thinking "there's no way they can wrap up all of this
3) Not unpredictably given it's a men's (?) mystery book from the 1990s, but women are written horribly here. They're all either super obnoxious, make horrible decisions, or just serve to be a pinata for the men in the story; something for them to throw their frustrations at and beat on (figuratively).
4) Because of #2 above, the book ends with basically
5) You know when the author has to write a whole blurb after the book saying "I truly don't think the Secret Service are as evil as I wrote them in this book" that it was poor writing. No group should be written so unrealistically evil that you have to apologize for it afterwards. But they were. The continually commit murder and/or felony cover-ups on behalf of the president with little resistance. They're professional, highly-trained law enforcement officers. I can imagine they'll keep family drama secret (like an affair) but not clearly criminal activity. I just don't buy it at all. They're not in a mafia.
Overall, this book hit every fault of bad mystery novels: the reader knows who did it from the beginning, bumbling investigators, artificially-extended plot, and lifeless/uninteresting characters. The entire selling point about this book is "it's about the president." Whoa, edgy. Or at least it was in the 90s...
This is the kind of book I might have liked when I was younger. I was less critical, less picky, and less socially aware. I'd pick up a Tom Clancy or Clive Cussler novel and really just read it for the adventure. A beach read. For some people, this is that kind of a book for them. However, even under the low standards of a "guilty-pleasure" novel, this book still sucks. It's clear that it's David's first book. How it became such a success is beyond me, aside from the audacity of the subject matter.
PROs:
None, really. It's publishable, but there's nothing else that's good about it.
CONs:
1) Dramatic irony on steroids. You know exactly who did what from Chapter 1 onward, so the whole book is a practice of dramatic irony; that is, when the reader knows more than the characters...and I really hate it. It's frustrating to know the right thing to do while having to read about characters continually doing the opposite.
2) Here's how the book goes:
a) Crime happens
b) Investigation makes some progress
c) Criminals kill a key person or steal a key piece of evidence
d) [REPEAT B AND C]
It comes to the point where so many people have been killed, and so much evidence has been retrieved by the bad guys, that you're left thinking "there's no way they can wrap up all of this
Spoiler
without someone confessing to everything" which of course is exactly what happens.3) Not unpredictably given it's a men's (?) mystery book from the 1990s, but women are written horribly here. They're all either super obnoxious, make horrible decisions, or just serve to be a pinata for the men in the story; something for them to throw their frustrations at and beat on (figuratively).
4) Because of #2 above, the book ends with basically
Spoiler
nothing the protagonists do having mattered. Evidence they gain is lost (because of their own ineptitude) and witnesses they have are are all dead. So what was the point of any of 90% of the book?5) You know when the author has to write a whole blurb after the book saying "I truly don't think the Secret Service are as evil as I wrote them in this book" that it was poor writing. No group should be written so unrealistically evil that you have to apologize for it afterwards. But they were. The continually commit murder and/or felony cover-ups on behalf of the president with little resistance. They're professional, highly-trained law enforcement officers. I can imagine they'll keep family drama secret (like an affair) but not clearly criminal activity. I just don't buy it at all. They're not in a mafia.
Overall, this book hit every fault of bad mystery novels: the reader knows who did it from the beginning, bumbling investigators, artificially-extended plot, and lifeless/uninteresting characters. The entire selling point about this book is "it's about the president." Whoa, edgy. Or at least it was in the 90s...
jordongreene's review against another edition
5.0
Awesome! I'll definitely be picking up another Baldacci book soon!
lemanley's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed reading this story of power and intrigue. Some of the characters seemed like nice people and others were own-right hateful and difficult to like. The novel kept me trying to decide what would happen next. I love David Baldacci's writing style and this one kept me reading with interest to the very end.
claytonhults's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Very unlikeable characters that are horrible people, but the writing makes it seem like the author thinks there’s only one character that truly does anything wrong. I admit the last third is exciting, but I think the author is a kind of one-trick pony when it comes to shocking the reader. It makes me want to reread Birnam Wood because they have something in common when it comes to theme or message and I know Birnam Wood does it much better
ltramz's review against another edition
3.0
Saw the movie years ago. Really enjoyed all the stuff that was not in the book.
lsvicente537's review against another edition
2.0
All in all didnt love it. My main flaw with the story was that at the end, the answer was just kind of given instead of being figured out or deduced. Here are my other notes:
-The start of this book does not play well in the current 2019 Me Too climate or the current political/Trump climate
-Every man in this story comments on Kate’s appearance and how “she should really eat more” and how “they remember when her figure used to be more appealing to the male eye”
-more people died than I was expecting
-The start of this book does not play well in the current 2019 Me Too climate or the current political/Trump climate
-Every man in this story comments on Kate’s appearance and how “she should really eat more” and how “they remember when her figure used to be more appealing to the male eye”
-more people died than I was expecting