One more to review and then I am finally caught up.
Also 15 minutes to go until my program starts on BBC4 so best get on with it.... this one should not take long.
......
And if only my mum had not called I would have made it.
### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Terminal Man - Michael Crighton
This one was okay but not brilliant. It seems like it is missing something and I am not sure what? On the surface of it it should be an interesting story and intriguing story. However, it does not deliver. It seems to lack depth, substance and an interesting main character.
Character wise, the one that seems to be most developed is Janet Ross. This is interesting as she is not even the most important character to the story... or at least, she shouldn't be. Janet Ross is supposed to take care of our main character's emotional welfare but at times the book seems to focus more on her emotional welfare and state of mind. Janet has issues with being a woman in a male dominated world, she feels that she has to defend herself all the time, that she is being treated differently than the male members of the team. There are several times that she has to "pull rank" on nursing staff as they think she is just a fellow nurse or some admin type person. She has to assert herself when she feels she shouldn't and it is like she feels she is not respected and her opinions do not matter. But not to worry our Janet has a therapist so I am sure in due course she will get rid of that chip of her shoulder. None of the other doctors in the story are interesting or worth mentioning.
The person who should be the focus of the story is Harry Benson. He suffers from a condition which triggers violent rages in which he becomes nearly invincible and hurts those around him. He has now become the first human to receive an implant that will help control his emotions via electrical impulses and a little computer implanted inside his body. The fact that he feels machines are taking over the world and people are trying to turn him into a machine are briefly mentioned but otherwise sidelined. So, we meet him, he gets the operation, he escapes from the hospital and is caught again. Unfortunately for me I did not really care that much or our Mr Benson. Why?? Mainly because he is not treated as a main character. You only get the briefest of introductions to him (well, to what is wrong with him). He is just "the patient" and he is not made interesting or humanised. He is kept at a distance from the reader and consequently I am not that bothered when he escapes his hospital room and goes on the "rampage". What does not help things is that Harry's story is not told from his point of view but from that of Janet Ross. This means that Harry is sidelined in what should be his story. I think it would have been great if we had been given Harry's perspective about what was done to him but we don't and that is a big let down. Probably the biggest flaw in the whole thing.
To be honest, Crighton could have had just had two characters in total in this book: Ross and Benson. Shifting between their perspectives of what was happened before and after the operation and about and how it impacted both of them would have been a great book. Unfortunately Crighton gives us an underdeveloped story and a load of useless characters.
One example of where the book falls down is the introduction of the friendly neighbourhood copper, Captain Anders. He is introduced towards the end of the story almost as an an attempt to give the story a worthy opponent to Janet Ross. However, it does not work for me. Anders and Ross are thrown together to find Benson (Janet to save him, Anders to kill him) but by then our Janet seems to be more interested in staying awake than really engaging with our dashing captain. Oh... did I forget to mention this? Naturally our Janet is soooooo determined to do right by her charge that she does not even sleep during most of the book. Aww....bless her. But, not to worry, she has a strong policeman to lean on. He will make that everything will be fine or at least ensure that the right guy gets shot in the end. So, yes Harry ends up dead, Janet gets proven right and I am sure that she will have a long and lasting relationship with Mr Anders and that chip on her shoulder.
Last but not least, if someone can tell me what the whole computer programs turning on each other has to do with anything then please, please let me know. I don't see it (answers on a postcard).
Overall I have to say this one was a disappointment. Could have been good but fails to deliver.
Title: The Terminal Man
Author: Michael Crighton
261 pages
Ballantine Books
ISBN #0-345-35462-1
Books to be read: 148
Monday 12 August 2013
Sunday 11 August 2013
The book from the movie
As both my laptop and my back seem to be behaving today I am chancing another review.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep - Philip K. Dick
To start with, let me just say that once they start making electric sheep.... I want one. How handy must it be that if your sheep gets a bit ill or starts to look a bit past its best that you just get it back to the manufacturer and voila... one refurbished sheep, good as new. When it gets low on energy, you just plug it in. I would probably see if I could get the sheep to a point where it started to baa really slowly because it had run low on energy... that has to be hilarious. But anyway.. enough about the sheep for now.
This is the story that the movie Blade Runner was based on and what a book it is! I liked it a lot. On the surface it is a story about a guy trying to kill his bounty. But... there is so much more to it.
One of the reasons I liked the book is that it is about people. Both human and non human. Real people at times behave more like androids and androids are built to be more and more human. It is about status, about what matters to the outside world. It is about suffering and if you suffer alone or not. If you are saved, who saves you? Are you saved by your own actions, is you fate your own or is it the others around you... can you even be saved and should you want to?
The book paints a pretty bleak picture of our future. Earth is a horrible place to live after the nuclear war. Some got out, some didn't. Those that had money got out and are now living in Perfectville with their androids serving them and obeying their every whim. Those that stayed live out their lives trying to keep safe from radiation and stop themselves from becoming too sick to be able to leave earth. The ones that are too sick already, the Chickenheads are the sub humans. Treated like idiots and outcast from most of normal society. On this earth, human emotions can be managed via a mood organ allowing you to dial up any emotion you want. You can dial yourself happy and dial your self depressed. You can have pets. Not real ones as they are either extinct or way too expensive. Electronic animals are readily available at reasonable prices if you know where to go. Most people probably have electronic pets but it is still best not to let the neighbours know you cannot afford a real pet. There are even pretend vets that fix your pretend animal. All this kind of makes you wander how real the people left on earth are and how real their life is when you compare it to that of the androids. At least the android does not pretend to be anything else than it is. People seem to be constantly fooling themselves and each other. Their lives are filled with 24/7 telly and controlled human emotions so who is really more human? Man feels himself superior to the machine but really the differences are very small indeed.
Deckard is a bit of a dark character. He seems very tired and thinks about getting out of the game after this one last assignment. As he needs all the help he can get he seeks out the ones that created the androids. This lands him on the doorstep of the Rosen Association and Rachael. As with all big businesses in the future, all is not what it seems there, they are up to something and Deckard almost gets tricked into helping them. But instead all he does is make an enemy for life. Rachael is a very interesting character. She pretends to be all innocent but almost manages to trick Deckard into changing sides. She preys on his emotions, uses his humanity against him. She sleeps with him in the belief that it will feed Deckard's sympathies for the androids and she is also the one who kills his goat.. his real goat!
The book is dark and perhaps a bit pessimistic but it is a cracking read!
Looking forward to reading more of Mr Dick's books... already have my sights on the next one. But... I am not allowed to buy books, must not buy books must not buy books! And yet.... it seems to be what I am programmed to do?!
Title: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Author: Philip K. Dick
244 pages
Del Rey Books
ISBN #0-345-40447-5
Books to be read: 149
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep - Philip K. Dick
To start with, let me just say that once they start making electric sheep.... I want one. How handy must it be that if your sheep gets a bit ill or starts to look a bit past its best that you just get it back to the manufacturer and voila... one refurbished sheep, good as new. When it gets low on energy, you just plug it in. I would probably see if I could get the sheep to a point where it started to baa really slowly because it had run low on energy... that has to be hilarious. But anyway.. enough about the sheep for now.
This is the story that the movie Blade Runner was based on and what a book it is! I liked it a lot. On the surface it is a story about a guy trying to kill his bounty. But... there is so much more to it.
One of the reasons I liked the book is that it is about people. Both human and non human. Real people at times behave more like androids and androids are built to be more and more human. It is about status, about what matters to the outside world. It is about suffering and if you suffer alone or not. If you are saved, who saves you? Are you saved by your own actions, is you fate your own or is it the others around you... can you even be saved and should you want to?
The book paints a pretty bleak picture of our future. Earth is a horrible place to live after the nuclear war. Some got out, some didn't. Those that had money got out and are now living in Perfectville with their androids serving them and obeying their every whim. Those that stayed live out their lives trying to keep safe from radiation and stop themselves from becoming too sick to be able to leave earth. The ones that are too sick already, the Chickenheads are the sub humans. Treated like idiots and outcast from most of normal society. On this earth, human emotions can be managed via a mood organ allowing you to dial up any emotion you want. You can dial yourself happy and dial your self depressed. You can have pets. Not real ones as they are either extinct or way too expensive. Electronic animals are readily available at reasonable prices if you know where to go. Most people probably have electronic pets but it is still best not to let the neighbours know you cannot afford a real pet. There are even pretend vets that fix your pretend animal. All this kind of makes you wander how real the people left on earth are and how real their life is when you compare it to that of the androids. At least the android does not pretend to be anything else than it is. People seem to be constantly fooling themselves and each other. Their lives are filled with 24/7 telly and controlled human emotions so who is really more human? Man feels himself superior to the machine but really the differences are very small indeed.
To help mankind through the worst of times the religion of Mercerism has been created. I don't quite get it myself. I am not quite sure what working together to support a man climbing up a hill has to do with anything but it seems to make sense to those who join in. Okay... I lie.. I kind of get some of it... I think. At times we all feel like life is hard, a struggle. When that is the case it is good that you can draw strength from others. You all share the same emotions, have the same struggles but together you can overcome it all. Just one thing you have to ask yourself once you link up with all the others... are you only supporting other in the struggle or are you the one struggling. Also, what is the point of the struggle if you have to go through it again the next day, and the next, and the next?
On earth androids are not supposed to be roaming free and those that are are hunted down by Deckard and his fellow bounty hunters. Deckard is up against the newest of the new in android/andy technology. Lucky for him there is a test that he can do that will separate the men from the androids so he always knows who the good en who the bad guys are. The book follows Deckard on his final hunt. There are 6 andys that he needs to get, he has to succeed where his colleagues have failed. He does succeed but it is not an easy fight.Deckard is a bit of a dark character. He seems very tired and thinks about getting out of the game after this one last assignment. As he needs all the help he can get he seeks out the ones that created the androids. This lands him on the doorstep of the Rosen Association and Rachael. As with all big businesses in the future, all is not what it seems there, they are up to something and Deckard almost gets tricked into helping them. But instead all he does is make an enemy for life. Rachael is a very interesting character. She pretends to be all innocent but almost manages to trick Deckard into changing sides. She preys on his emotions, uses his humanity against him. She sleeps with him in the belief that it will feed Deckard's sympathies for the androids and she is also the one who kills his goat.. his real goat!
Deckard does get his andys in the end but not before he has to contend with one slippery opera singer, one not so real policeman and an entirely fake police office that he never knew existed. He meets another bounty hunter who seems to be totally unaware of the world that Deckard knows. He may even be an android himself. Again... what is real and what is not. It sometimes depends on your perspective and whether or not you are an android.
Then there are the androids. Created by man to serve man. In reality some of them have become aware of what they are and what they are designed to do but have chosen to rebel. They just want to be free. Unfortunately for them that is just what they can never be.The book is dark and perhaps a bit pessimistic but it is a cracking read!
Looking forward to reading more of Mr Dick's books... already have my sights on the next one. But... I am not allowed to buy books, must not buy books must not buy books! And yet.... it seems to be what I am programmed to do?!
Title: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?
Author: Philip K. Dick
244 pages
Del Rey Books
ISBN #0-345-40447-5
Books to be read: 149
Saturday 10 August 2013
Slow week on the reading front
This week has seen me read only about 20 pages or so. I planned to read more but somehow life got in the way. I started going to the gym a bit more again so that meant that every two days I was in there cross training my little buns off. then i have stated to try and organise a get together with the cousins and that has taken up some time trying to figure out who can do what, where and when. Sitting down on the dreaded desk chair has made me back hurt a bit as well so I had to get the ice pack out on several occasions. Good news is the pain seems to settle down a lot quicker than it used to so it causes me less aggravation to get it back to relatively normal. Perhaps today will be a better day for reading? There does not seem to be a lot on telly so who knows?
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Postern of Fate - Agatha Christie
I am very sorry to say that this is not one of my favourite novels of Agatha's. Normally I love her books as they are tightly plotted, well written, have entertaining characters and keep you guessing as to whodunit. This one does not really deliver on any of that... unfortunately.
It is about a husband and wife team, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford who have moved to a new house and stumble cross a mystery. It all starts with a coded message in a book and then wanders aimlessly on towards the end. Tommy and Tuppence are a retired couple who seem to have been in the spying game (as mentioned on several occasions at the back end of the book). Apparently this means that they are best placed to solve the mystery of Mary Jordan. Really?? It is a bit of a coincidence that Tuppence finds the message in one of the books in the first place. It is then even more amazing that someone apparently still knows about what was involved in the whole sage and would even go as far as to want to kill them for it now.
It feels like Christie was not at her best when she wrote this one as it rambles a lot. Some of the conversations do not seem to flow correctly (Tommy "speaks" when it should be Tuppence as it in response to something he has just said or vice versa), none of the characters are really vibrant or jump off the page at you. They feel tired and old. Only the village kids Tuppence seems to have a bit of life to them. The dialogue feels confused, drawn out and slow. At times the dialogue does not even seem to relate to the case Tommy or Tuppence are investigating. Unfortunately that meant for me that I lost interest in the story and its characters.
In the book people keep referring to Tuppence as someone who is good at finding things out. It sees to me that she seems to get rather confused with all the information she is getting handed on a plate. She does not seem to be doing a lot of finding out at all. Tommy wanders off to London to do some "investigating" every now and again but it all seems disjointed and irrelevant to the main mystery. Tuppence wanders round tea parties and shops in the village to get her info. The story then sort of meanders to a slightly unsatisfying end where they have this dinner with some guy (who seems to be in the know about "these things") Tommy met during the story and some others who were involved on the sidelines. You never really find out what the whole secret is and what exactly its impact is on the present. There is some attempt to make the story more interesting by introducing someone who is out to kill Tuppence for what she knows but it is obvious who the murderer is. Even I saw that one coming and managed to beat the dog to the punch!
Sadly I have to say not one of her best.
(Big sad face)
Title: Postern of Fate
Author: Agatha Christie
221 pages
Fontana/Collins
ISBN #0-00-615297-X
Books to be read: 150
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Postern of Fate - Agatha Christie
I am very sorry to say that this is not one of my favourite novels of Agatha's. Normally I love her books as they are tightly plotted, well written, have entertaining characters and keep you guessing as to whodunit. This one does not really deliver on any of that... unfortunately.
It is about a husband and wife team, Tommy and Tuppence Beresford who have moved to a new house and stumble cross a mystery. It all starts with a coded message in a book and then wanders aimlessly on towards the end. Tommy and Tuppence are a retired couple who seem to have been in the spying game (as mentioned on several occasions at the back end of the book). Apparently this means that they are best placed to solve the mystery of Mary Jordan. Really?? It is a bit of a coincidence that Tuppence finds the message in one of the books in the first place. It is then even more amazing that someone apparently still knows about what was involved in the whole sage and would even go as far as to want to kill them for it now.
It feels like Christie was not at her best when she wrote this one as it rambles a lot. Some of the conversations do not seem to flow correctly (Tommy "speaks" when it should be Tuppence as it in response to something he has just said or vice versa), none of the characters are really vibrant or jump off the page at you. They feel tired and old. Only the village kids Tuppence seems to have a bit of life to them. The dialogue feels confused, drawn out and slow. At times the dialogue does not even seem to relate to the case Tommy or Tuppence are investigating. Unfortunately that meant for me that I lost interest in the story and its characters.
In the book people keep referring to Tuppence as someone who is good at finding things out. It sees to me that she seems to get rather confused with all the information she is getting handed on a plate. She does not seem to be doing a lot of finding out at all. Tommy wanders off to London to do some "investigating" every now and again but it all seems disjointed and irrelevant to the main mystery. Tuppence wanders round tea parties and shops in the village to get her info. The story then sort of meanders to a slightly unsatisfying end where they have this dinner with some guy (who seems to be in the know about "these things") Tommy met during the story and some others who were involved on the sidelines. You never really find out what the whole secret is and what exactly its impact is on the present. There is some attempt to make the story more interesting by introducing someone who is out to kill Tuppence for what she knows but it is obvious who the murderer is. Even I saw that one coming and managed to beat the dog to the punch!
Sadly I have to say not one of her best.
(Big sad face)
Title: Postern of Fate
Author: Agatha Christie
221 pages
Fontana/Collins
ISBN #0-00-615297-X
Books to be read: 150
Saturday 3 August 2013
One more for the road
I hope you will appreciate that I am giving up digging into my muffin for this one!
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Our Game - John Le Carre
I can be brief about this one. I did not like it.
It feels like it is all over the place, the main character is boring and annoying and the story at times does not know what it wants to be; a spy tale, a story of lost love and longing or a tale of the development of a man's political awareness.
My main gripe with this one is the main character Tim Cranmer. I found him annoying beyond belief. He keeps going on about this girl he loved so much, he pines for her, would do anything for her. To be honest, I don't care. He is supposed to be this handler for double agents surely he is capable of getting over a lost love? Fine, she left him for the double agent he handled but still. Mr Cranmer does not sound like a man I would want to spend 10 minutes with. He seems arrogant and utterly insensitive to others. Everything seems to be done onto him to make his life miserable and more difficult. Well boo hoo hoo!!
To be fair, Cranmer's trainee pet, Larry is not much better. He is an oaf who thinks he is a combination of a philosopher and a political revolutionary. Apparently he cannot balance a cheque book but he has managed to squirrel away millions of pounds to stage some kind of revolution in some small republic in Russia... really?! In the process of doing that he has also taken Cranmer's girlfriend away from him and made an enemy of the entire British Intelligence service. Then we have Cranmer's ex. She seems to be a cross between some clever musical savant and a stupid infatuated, easily influenced young girl with a talent for falling for the wrong guy. One of those types who "suffers for their art", wandering in and out of rooms either naked or in floaty dresses.
In the end it all just feels very confusing - both the people and the storyline. Cranmer seems to start out on a crusade to find Larry, probably because he thinks his ex girlfriend might be with him. He does find the ex... but their conversation and meeting kind of comes to nothing and is a great let down. Cranmer does not find Larry but for some reason gets involved with his cause. To be honest, the last thing I would want to do after being held by them for several days/weeks but it seems to make sense to Cranmer. For a man who seemed to care mainly about himself and his precious ex it seems a wildly out of character move to now want to start a revolution. Why does he all of a sudden decide to stop sitting on that fence? Cranmer never made uttered a single opinion all the time he was dealing with Larry and living with the girlfriend but now he picks a side? It did not make much sense to me but I have to say that by that time I just wanted the book to end.
In short... will not be picking up a Le Carre one again any time soon.
Title: Our Game
Author: John Le Carre
414 pages
Coronet Books
ISBN #0-340-64027-8
Books to be read: 151
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
Our Game - John Le Carre
I can be brief about this one. I did not like it.
It feels like it is all over the place, the main character is boring and annoying and the story at times does not know what it wants to be; a spy tale, a story of lost love and longing or a tale of the development of a man's political awareness.
My main gripe with this one is the main character Tim Cranmer. I found him annoying beyond belief. He keeps going on about this girl he loved so much, he pines for her, would do anything for her. To be honest, I don't care. He is supposed to be this handler for double agents surely he is capable of getting over a lost love? Fine, she left him for the double agent he handled but still. Mr Cranmer does not sound like a man I would want to spend 10 minutes with. He seems arrogant and utterly insensitive to others. Everything seems to be done onto him to make his life miserable and more difficult. Well boo hoo hoo!!
To be fair, Cranmer's trainee pet, Larry is not much better. He is an oaf who thinks he is a combination of a philosopher and a political revolutionary. Apparently he cannot balance a cheque book but he has managed to squirrel away millions of pounds to stage some kind of revolution in some small republic in Russia... really?! In the process of doing that he has also taken Cranmer's girlfriend away from him and made an enemy of the entire British Intelligence service. Then we have Cranmer's ex. She seems to be a cross between some clever musical savant and a stupid infatuated, easily influenced young girl with a talent for falling for the wrong guy. One of those types who "suffers for their art", wandering in and out of rooms either naked or in floaty dresses.
In the end it all just feels very confusing - both the people and the storyline. Cranmer seems to start out on a crusade to find Larry, probably because he thinks his ex girlfriend might be with him. He does find the ex... but their conversation and meeting kind of comes to nothing and is a great let down. Cranmer does not find Larry but for some reason gets involved with his cause. To be honest, the last thing I would want to do after being held by them for several days/weeks but it seems to make sense to Cranmer. For a man who seemed to care mainly about himself and his precious ex it seems a wildly out of character move to now want to start a revolution. Why does he all of a sudden decide to stop sitting on that fence? Cranmer never made uttered a single opinion all the time he was dealing with Larry and living with the girlfriend but now he picks a side? It did not make much sense to me but I have to say that by that time I just wanted the book to end.
In short... will not be picking up a Le Carre one again any time soon.
Title: Our Game
Author: John Le Carre
414 pages
Coronet Books
ISBN #0-340-64027-8
Books to be read: 151
You clever little thing
To try and bring down the stack of books to be reviewed some more I am going to go for another one.
But first.... after the last post:
Books to be read: 153.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Eagle has Landed - Jack Higgins
It took me about half the book to realise I had seen the movie made about this one and then had to stop my self from seeing Donald Sutherland as Devlin. It was a bit distracting but this one moved at such a good pace that I did not really have too much time to take my eye off the ball.
I really enjoyed this one and the twist at the end is priceless!
Essentially it is all about the Germans wanting to get one over on the British in WW2.
They have devised a clever little plan and want to see if they can throw the balance of power by kidnapping/killing Churchill. Bold at the best of times but especially bold when you have a band of loose canons all firing on full cylinders.
The way the plan comes about is almost haphazard. Some general makes some remark, someone takes it seriously, someone else does not, another looks into some options and then we have a plan which may actually work. The way it all comes about is almost funny. It is almost unbelievable that someone somewhere in the Hitler fold is so desperate to please him that they would come up with a suggestion so mad that it surely cannot be taken seriously. It is even more amazing that some actually work to make the implausible happen.
Next the books moves on to getting the band of soldiers together (a Band of Brothers they are not) . They are a mixed bag of people. Some with a personal axe to grind against Britain some just desperate to get back to the action. Many of the characters are military men and the books feels very testosterone filled. This leads to some friction here and there buts most of it is kept in check. I got on really well with the soldiers and the team members. They have enough detail to be human, believable and the way they work together as a unit and as a team is almost touching. They are brothers united in this damned war and they will be damned if they do not get out alive or die trying. Steiner and Devlin are two of the main characters and they are very likeable and entertaining. Steiner is a leader, a dedicated soldier who loves his troops and fights to keep them alive and together. He also in a way makes you look beyond his uniform and at the man in it. He fights on the wrong side but he is still human and cares about his men which makes him more palatable as the enemy. Devlin is a rogue. He has an axe to grind with the British and seems to enjoy getting himself into trouble. He does not have a lot of respect for authority but he seems to respect Steiner. The other soldiers are not too fleshed out but they mainly serve as background. What you can tell from them though is that they are dedicated to Steiner and willing to follow him anywhere. They know he will keep them as safe as he can and not put their lives at risk unless he has to.
Once the band is set it is time to go to England and to get down to business. They pretend to be a Polish regiment on exercise in the area and at first it all seems to go well and things move along swimmingly. Then the brown stuff hits the electrical air circulation device and things go bad... really bad. In the end there is a stand off in the village and lots of people end up dead.
A nice touch is the adding in of the "Americans". There is a regiment of them close to where our German soldiers are based and one they get wind of the trouble they get involved. Unfortunately for them their boss Robert E Shafto is an idiot. He is going to save the day but things do not go to well for them when they are confronted with German determination and grit and most of them end up dead. That seems to be it for the team.... but wait..... nope.... One man makes one final attempt to get at Churchill and he almost get the job done... almost!
When you think that then, surely this must now be the end of the road for this story we get another glorious little twist. This comes in the final bit of the book where Higgins tells you about how he got all the info together for this book and who he went to see to talk about what happened. I will not tell you what the twist is but it is delicious!
Great read, great pace, action packed, great characters, real human emotion in war time. Great Book with a capital B.
Title: The Eagle has landed
Author: Jack Higgins
383 pages
Pan Books
ISBN #0-330-26807-4
Books to be read: 152
But first.... after the last post:
Books to be read: 153.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Eagle has Landed - Jack Higgins
It took me about half the book to realise I had seen the movie made about this one and then had to stop my self from seeing Donald Sutherland as Devlin. It was a bit distracting but this one moved at such a good pace that I did not really have too much time to take my eye off the ball.
I really enjoyed this one and the twist at the end is priceless!
Essentially it is all about the Germans wanting to get one over on the British in WW2.
They have devised a clever little plan and want to see if they can throw the balance of power by kidnapping/killing Churchill. Bold at the best of times but especially bold when you have a band of loose canons all firing on full cylinders.
The way the plan comes about is almost haphazard. Some general makes some remark, someone takes it seriously, someone else does not, another looks into some options and then we have a plan which may actually work. The way it all comes about is almost funny. It is almost unbelievable that someone somewhere in the Hitler fold is so desperate to please him that they would come up with a suggestion so mad that it surely cannot be taken seriously. It is even more amazing that some actually work to make the implausible happen.
Next the books moves on to getting the band of soldiers together (a Band of Brothers they are not) . They are a mixed bag of people. Some with a personal axe to grind against Britain some just desperate to get back to the action. Many of the characters are military men and the books feels very testosterone filled. This leads to some friction here and there buts most of it is kept in check. I got on really well with the soldiers and the team members. They have enough detail to be human, believable and the way they work together as a unit and as a team is almost touching. They are brothers united in this damned war and they will be damned if they do not get out alive or die trying. Steiner and Devlin are two of the main characters and they are very likeable and entertaining. Steiner is a leader, a dedicated soldier who loves his troops and fights to keep them alive and together. He also in a way makes you look beyond his uniform and at the man in it. He fights on the wrong side but he is still human and cares about his men which makes him more palatable as the enemy. Devlin is a rogue. He has an axe to grind with the British and seems to enjoy getting himself into trouble. He does not have a lot of respect for authority but he seems to respect Steiner. The other soldiers are not too fleshed out but they mainly serve as background. What you can tell from them though is that they are dedicated to Steiner and willing to follow him anywhere. They know he will keep them as safe as he can and not put their lives at risk unless he has to.
Once the band is set it is time to go to England and to get down to business. They pretend to be a Polish regiment on exercise in the area and at first it all seems to go well and things move along swimmingly. Then the brown stuff hits the electrical air circulation device and things go bad... really bad. In the end there is a stand off in the village and lots of people end up dead.
A nice touch is the adding in of the "Americans". There is a regiment of them close to where our German soldiers are based and one they get wind of the trouble they get involved. Unfortunately for them their boss Robert E Shafto is an idiot. He is going to save the day but things do not go to well for them when they are confronted with German determination and grit and most of them end up dead. That seems to be it for the team.... but wait..... nope.... One man makes one final attempt to get at Churchill and he almost get the job done... almost!
When you think that then, surely this must now be the end of the road for this story we get another glorious little twist. This comes in the final bit of the book where Higgins tells you about how he got all the info together for this book and who he went to see to talk about what happened. I will not tell you what the twist is but it is delicious!
Great read, great pace, action packed, great characters, real human emotion in war time. Great Book with a capital B.
Title: The Eagle has landed
Author: Jack Higgins
383 pages
Pan Books
ISBN #0-330-26807-4
Books to be read: 152
Getting up and getting going
As I was up at about 8:30 this morning so far today I have been to the gym, tidied away some laundry, did some further laundry and did some dishes. Then, to entertain myself I have also read a few chapters of my present book and cooked myself a lovely meal.
Aforesaid meal is now soon to be followed by a coffee and a earlier acquired muffin.
Now.... if I could only get my laptop to behave and speed up a bit it would be a perfect day.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Suspicions of Mr Whicher or The Murder at Road Hill House - Kate Summerscale
I was a bit surprised by this one at first as I thought that it was a work of fiction, a novel. But it really isn't. After I got over that one I got on well with it. It was interesting to read but I do have a little gripe with it. The title is slightly misleading. Mr Whicher does play a big part in the book and he does have his suspicions about the murder that is described. The book does tell you about a murder that took place in 1860 and how it was investigated. But then it also tries to be a brief history of the profession of the new profession of "the Detective" and it then also wants to be a bit of an biography of Mr Whicher. At times it feel that it tried to be a bit too much of everything. I would have been happy with either of the things it wants to be but would then rather have a whole book about one or the other. Having said that, it is a good read!
We get the story of the murder and the aftermath. All the suspects are discussed and dismissed until there is no-one left. When you do find out who did it in the end it is sad for the family involved but it does vindicate Mr Whicher and his methods. It is interesting to see how the family and the community deal with the fact that a murder has been committed and that it was someone from the community that did it. I also did really like how Whicher was described and how his profession was highlighted. You learn a little more about the man Whicher and about what life as a detective was like for him. The descriptions of some of the cases he is involved with are very entertaining! Detectives were not always looked upon favourably and it seems that our Mr Whicher has his fair share of falling out of favour with the public and his bosses. At the time of the murder being a detective was a relatively new profession and it is fair to say that the way Whicher dealt with this murder had an impact on the further development of the profession and on the crime writers of that time.
I did find it really funny to realise that crime writing only really started to develop as a specific genre round the time of the murder. Apparently there were only a few writers telling detective stories. Strange when now it is one of the biggest genres in fiction.
The descriptions of the trial(s) and how witnesses were dealt with are very good and very detailed and informative. You can really tell how much things have changed since then both in how cases are tried and in crime detection. Another good thing is the book gives you the before and after of the murder and tells what happened to those involved. For Whicher this one was not so good an experience. People thought he got it wrong and he faced a lot of opposition form the locals in his investigations and during the trials. I would have loved to have seen more of Whicher's letters in clued but I think not many survived in the end... shame as his letters give you a good idea of what he thought of the case and give you a better idea of his character.
All in all, informative but slightly confusing book. If Summerscale ever decides to write Whicher's biography I will be sure to get it though.
Title: The Suspicions of Mr Whicher, or the Murder at Road Hill House
Author: Kate Summerscale
314 pages
Bloomsbury
ISBN #978-0-7475-9648-6
Aforesaid meal is now soon to be followed by a coffee and a earlier acquired muffin.
Now.... if I could only get my laptop to behave and speed up a bit it would be a perfect day.
#### SPOILER ALERT ####
The Suspicions of Mr Whicher or The Murder at Road Hill House - Kate Summerscale
I was a bit surprised by this one at first as I thought that it was a work of fiction, a novel. But it really isn't. After I got over that one I got on well with it. It was interesting to read but I do have a little gripe with it. The title is slightly misleading. Mr Whicher does play a big part in the book and he does have his suspicions about the murder that is described. The book does tell you about a murder that took place in 1860 and how it was investigated. But then it also tries to be a brief history of the profession of the new profession of "the Detective" and it then also wants to be a bit of an biography of Mr Whicher. At times it feel that it tried to be a bit too much of everything. I would have been happy with either of the things it wants to be but would then rather have a whole book about one or the other. Having said that, it is a good read!
We get the story of the murder and the aftermath. All the suspects are discussed and dismissed until there is no-one left. When you do find out who did it in the end it is sad for the family involved but it does vindicate Mr Whicher and his methods. It is interesting to see how the family and the community deal with the fact that a murder has been committed and that it was someone from the community that did it. I also did really like how Whicher was described and how his profession was highlighted. You learn a little more about the man Whicher and about what life as a detective was like for him. The descriptions of some of the cases he is involved with are very entertaining! Detectives were not always looked upon favourably and it seems that our Mr Whicher has his fair share of falling out of favour with the public and his bosses. At the time of the murder being a detective was a relatively new profession and it is fair to say that the way Whicher dealt with this murder had an impact on the further development of the profession and on the crime writers of that time.
I did find it really funny to realise that crime writing only really started to develop as a specific genre round the time of the murder. Apparently there were only a few writers telling detective stories. Strange when now it is one of the biggest genres in fiction.
The descriptions of the trial(s) and how witnesses were dealt with are very good and very detailed and informative. You can really tell how much things have changed since then both in how cases are tried and in crime detection. Another good thing is the book gives you the before and after of the murder and tells what happened to those involved. For Whicher this one was not so good an experience. People thought he got it wrong and he faced a lot of opposition form the locals in his investigations and during the trials. I would have loved to have seen more of Whicher's letters in clued but I think not many survived in the end... shame as his letters give you a good idea of what he thought of the case and give you a better idea of his character.
All in all, informative but slightly confusing book. If Summerscale ever decides to write Whicher's biography I will be sure to get it though.
Title: The Suspicions of Mr Whicher, or the Murder at Road Hill House
Author: Kate Summerscale
314 pages
Bloomsbury
ISBN #978-0-7475-9648-6
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