Christopher Clark

Advantages: Well written, full of suspense
Disadvantages: A slightly disappointing ending

...Introduction In my now desperate quest for crime fiction that I have not already read, I came across this book in my local library and thought it looked readable. I was not disappointed, at least not until the last chapter or so. This is not an author I had heard of before, although his first novel apparently was well-accepted in the US at least. Well worth a read if you haven't already. The author Jess Walter is the author of three novels, 'Land of the Blind', 'Over Tumbled Graves' and 'Citizen Vince', one piece of investigative journalism, 'Every Knee Shall Bow' and was co-author with Christopher Darden for 'In Contempt'. Walter lives in Spokane, Washington, which is also where this book was based. The plot Caroline Mabry, a detective with the Spokane police force, is run-down and fed up with her job and is put onto the graveyard... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: fairly short, easy to read
Disadvantages: ending becomes obvious after reading a few of her books

...I have read several of Mary Higgins Clark's books and i found them all gripping. The books are easy readers and fairly short, which means that the story progresses rapidly keeping the reader entertained. The downside to Mary Higgins Clark's books is that after reading a few the ending becomes clear soon after starting a new story, but that doesnt stop the pages in the middle been gripping. I have often stayed up late into the night reading her novels and will probably continue to in the future. I would recomend these books to anyone, even if you arent a fan of crime novels. I would specifically recomend where are the children, I found it to be slightly different from the other books I have read by Mary Higgins Clark but still interesting, and it kept me up late into the night.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful

Advantages: Great SF
Disadvantages: None

...Way back when (1950 to be precise), Arthur C Clarke wrote a lot of short stories; one of these was called 'Guardian Angel', and in my opinion is one of Clarke's best, because of the build up to a climax in the last line, revealing the identity of the 'Overlords' who became the guardian angels of the title. This short story (available in the collection 'The Sentinel') developed shortly afterwards into the novel 'Childhood's End' - indeed the first part of the book follows the plot of the original story. The book is strong on human emotion, and (for a short book set over an extended time period) the characters are very well developed. This is one of Clarke's best early works, and I have no qualms about recommending it very highly.... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average somewhat helpful