Book meme: Day 02
Jul. 22nd, 2010 11:27 amHi! Today I'm meeting up with my friend Garret at the Frick -- I am pretty excited to see the clocks. Well, and to see Garret. :)
I thought that before I left, I would do day #2 of the book meme very quickly. I'm so happy that it's catching on, and that so many of you are participating. (It's also very cool that some of you are adjusting the meme to be more in line with what you want to talk about!)
So: Day 02 - A book or series you wish more people were reading and talking about
Tana French!!! Oh, seriously, people, Tana French is amazing. I don't remember why![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
dianafox recommended her to me in the first place, but she loaned me In the Woods
and I loved it. I loved it so much that I went right out and bought her second book, The Likeness
. I haven't bought the third book (Faithful Place
) yet, but I plan to soon.
I'm not sure most people would technically consider these books a series. They are connected by all being about murder police in Ireland; each book is about a different character and a different time. The first book is about a whiny, self-absorbed, entitled dude investigating a murder he's trying to hide his involvement in (that is not a spoiler; it's in, like, the first chapter). The second book is about the female detective in the first book, but a year later -- she's investigating a murder, yeah, but the scenario is totally different now. And the third book, from what I can tell (carefully reading select parts of reviews whilst trying not to be spoiled!) is about the mentor of the woman from the second book having to confront his past and solve a murder.
The second book also has the benefit of having the woman going undercover, which I am a sucker for -- and I think the third book has the undercover thing as well. I love when people go undercover! I love the way, if it's done well, the people going undercover learn a lot about their own selves as well as managing to solve the mystery or whatnot.
Tana French's writing is amazing. You know how I was complaining about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo the other day? Well, everything that book gets wrong, Tana French gets right. The characters ring true. The scenarios are bizarre, but not outlandish or unbelievable. No one is magically attractive to every single person they meet. The problems the characters grapple with are realistic and interesting. Even the character I describe as "whiny, self-absorbed, entitled" is interesting and sympathetic.
I'm not saying that there are no flaws; sometimes things are clumsily executed, or a little predictable -- but I don't mind! I don't mind because I enjoyed the rest of the book, and the second book is tighter and better than the first, so I think French will continue to just get better and better. I know she's a bestseller already, and there's a lot of great press about her, but I still wish more people were reading her books, because they're dark and fabulous and enjoyable.
...okay, now you!! I'm really enjoying reading all the blog entries y'all linked in the last post. I hope you're all reading each other's too. So, as with last time, feel free to either comment on this entry with your answers, or link to a post you make to your own blog/journal.
( Other days of the book meme )
I thought that before I left, I would do day #2 of the book meme very quickly. I'm so happy that it's catching on, and that so many of you are participating. (It's also very cool that some of you are adjusting the meme to be more in line with what you want to talk about!)
So: Day 02 - A book or series you wish more people were reading and talking about
Tana French!!! Oh, seriously, people, Tana French is amazing. I don't remember why
dianafox recommended her to me in the first place, but she loaned me In the Woods and I loved it. I loved it so much that I went right out and bought her second book, The Likeness. I haven't bought the third book (Faithful Place) yet, but I plan to soon.I'm not sure most people would technically consider these books a series. They are connected by all being about murder police in Ireland; each book is about a different character and a different time. The first book is about a whiny, self-absorbed, entitled dude investigating a murder he's trying to hide his involvement in (that is not a spoiler; it's in, like, the first chapter). The second book is about the female detective in the first book, but a year later -- she's investigating a murder, yeah, but the scenario is totally different now. And the third book, from what I can tell (carefully reading select parts of reviews whilst trying not to be spoiled!) is about the mentor of the woman from the second book having to confront his past and solve a murder.
The second book also has the benefit of having the woman going undercover, which I am a sucker for -- and I think the third book has the undercover thing as well. I love when people go undercover! I love the way, if it's done well, the people going undercover learn a lot about their own selves as well as managing to solve the mystery or whatnot.
Tana French's writing is amazing. You know how I was complaining about The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo the other day? Well, everything that book gets wrong, Tana French gets right. The characters ring true. The scenarios are bizarre, but not outlandish or unbelievable. No one is magically attractive to every single person they meet. The problems the characters grapple with are realistic and interesting. Even the character I describe as "whiny, self-absorbed, entitled" is interesting and sympathetic.
I'm not saying that there are no flaws; sometimes things are clumsily executed, or a little predictable -- but I don't mind! I don't mind because I enjoyed the rest of the book, and the second book is tighter and better than the first, so I think French will continue to just get better and better. I know she's a bestseller already, and there's a lot of great press about her, but I still wish more people were reading her books, because they're dark and fabulous and enjoyable.
...okay, now you!! I'm really enjoying reading all the blog entries y'all linked in the last post. I hope you're all reading each other's too. So, as with last time, feel free to either comment on this entry with your answers, or link to a post you make to your own blog/journal.
( Other days of the book meme )
