A Hole In The Universe – Mary McGarry Morris

Again, something I wouldn’t have thought I would have liked, but I really enjoyed this quirky little tale of Gordon, who has spent the last 25 years in prison for a crime he really didn’t commit.

Now, Gordon has to feel his way through the modern world, trying to reconnect with his family, struggling to cope with the demands of those around him who seek more from him than he feels ready to give and who are often less of a decent human being than he is, for all that they look down on him as a 'monster' and killer.

Gordon was such a sympathetic character it would have been hard not to empathise with him and it was an engaging and poignant journey. And it had a happy ending – or at least to be getting that way.

Neverwhere - Neil Gaiman

I absolutely adored this fantasy. A wonderfully quirky but believable world, genuinely creepy villians, a real sense of peril and intriguing characters. Just loved every moment and it left me with a huge smile on my face. Fantastic!

Breathless - Dean Koontz

Koontz has always been one of my favourite horror/suspense authors, but, lately, his books have begun to disappoint and, sadly, this one was a bit of a let-down.

The main plot was entertaining enough to begin with - our hero and heroine were typical Koontz characters and the plotline more than familiar. But towards the middle, the book descended into a mishmash of illogic. The ending was very rushed and a bit of an anti-climax. Then there was the odd insertion of several subplots with characters whose stories ran parallel to the main plot and were entirely unconnected to it for most of the book.

In the end, a couple of these characters interacted with the heroes, but only in the most glancing way and very briefly. And, in one case - Henry - somewhat bizarrely. It was hard not to conclude that the author shoehorned these subplots in to pad out the main plot which wasn't enough for a novel on its own and whose main elements merely rehashed several previously excellent novels such as Watchers.

Very disappointing. But I have a lot of Koontz books to get to, so I'm hoping for something better and more like classic Koontz to come.

LabRat smile


Athos: If you'd told us what you were doing, we might have been able to plan this properly.
Aramis: Yes, sorry.
Athos: No, no, by all means, let's keep things suicidal.

The Musketeers