<<I am a big fan of Val's. She is so accessable and
nice when you meet
her in person, even if she were a boring, bad writer, you
would want to
read her books, just to have "another nice visit" with
her.>>
Not me, I'm too cantankerous to extend that kind of credit
even to
myself.
<<But she is truly one of my favorites who just doesn't
publish often
enough. Her Kate Brannigan books are really PI novels of the
best
caliber; take place in Manchester and she has a house
(and
boyfriend/house-mate) we (at least me) would all like to
have. Her two
newest ones (Mermaids ?? and Blood in the Wire) certainly put
that
Cornwall dame to shame for forensics and psychological
suspense.
Mermaids Singing is about...>>
Alas, the mermaid book was my introduction to McDermid last
week. The
friend who lent it to me warned me that it might not be my
kind of novel
(or in general, a "guy" kind of thing). She was right. The
book turned
me off completely and I couldn't get past page 50 or so. I
may give it a
second chance some day, but I'm in no hurry to do so. To be
blunt about
it, what turned me off was that I could not discern a strong
authorial
voice. Another disappointing book I read recently is Sara
Paretsky's
_Windy City Blues_, a collection of short stories. Just out
of respect,
a story titled _The Maltese Cat_ *must* be at least good.
It's a point
of honor. This book was a real trial to read.
Regards,
Mario Taboada
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