Rate this book

Claire DeWitt And The City Of The Dead (2011)

by Sara Gran(Favorite Author)

3.7 of 5 Votes: 4

ISBN

0547428499 (ISBN13: 9780547428499)

languge

English

genre

Fiction

publisher

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

series

Claire DeWitt mysteries

review 1: I really enjoyed this powerful book - Gran mixes differing styles of crime/mystery writing to great effect. She maintains a consistent, absorbing tone and there's a sense of rhythm to the writing that all the best crime writers have, with even a slight touch of magic realism - something I don't always like, but in this context added to the feel of the story and character. Having just been to New Orleans for the first time, she captured the atmosphere of the city again for me, while expressing the rage and horror of the floods and their aftermath. I never felt her characters were stereotypes, investing them with humanity and complexity, and she introduces sexual abuse into the plot without it feeling exploitative - you feel the emotional impact of what the characters live t... morehrough.
review 2: This book certainly has the proper amount of grit and atmosphere to pique the interests of noir fans, but it is sorely lacking in plot development and fluidity. New characters and back stories are introduced at every turn, forcing the reader to pause, re-read (or rewind) to determine just where this story is headed. (Hello? Did I nod off? How did I get from A to B to C?) Many of the characters are so boring and lacking in any meaningful dialogue (how many times can we use the "F" word?) that I found myself rolling my eyes in frustration. Why did I stick with it until the end? Claire DeWitt herself was a rather interesting, unconventional personality and the philosophy behind her detective skills made for some of the only interesting material in the book. less

Download links for: Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead

Advertising