ed_moore's Reviews (345)

The Man Who Died Twice is the sequel to 'The Thursday Murder Club, a book I read last year. It's a murder mystery but its much more light hearted, given the protagonists are four pensioners. Though I'm not one for light hearted things, death and destruction please, it still contains death and destruction but on a lighter note, so yeah it was fun. The plot mystery was just as developed as more serious crime books and has the same satisfaction, keeping you guessing to the end. I would recommend it, however I preferred the first book in the series. 

It's been a while since I finished a book partly as I read two at once but also because of life, anyway here we are again! "The Whistler' is a thriller/crime book about a corrupt judge operating on Native Indian land, and the large task of exposing the judges crimes. It was a book typical of Grisham, cold, gritty and ruthless, unafraid to dive into the darkest elements of human nature, therefore in my eyes, a fantastic read. I wouldn't say the characters are overly loveable but in the nature of crime books, it was plot driven and therefore didn't affect my opinion on or enjoyment of the book though it wouldn't be 

For everyone.

This book was so good! The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes is a prequel to the Hunger Games trilogy. following the antagonist of the trilogy Snow as he mentors district 12's tribute in the 10th games. It was so painful to read, and I promise I'm not spoiling things here, knowing that having read the trilogy. somehow Snow would turn into the villain and that Lucy Gray, who grew to be such a loveable character though flawed in her own ways, she completely manipulating me too in fully siding with her, wouldn't survive the games as a lack of District 12 victors is the case come the trilogy. Collins also does an amazing job creating a dislikable protagonist, who isn't the type of villain you get attracted to, yet are still so fascinated to follow in the hopeless desire that his inevitable fate may somehow be deserted. The twists and turns were heartbreaking and the story was crafted so well Im often critical so if you haven't read it I'd thoroughly recommend. Going into it knowing snows arc was painful,

as was knowing the fate of Lucy Gray, I missed the part that mentions a victor other than Haymitch in the first book, so was sure that she wouldn’t survive the games. What followed was more painful, snows arc didn't shake me but Lucy’s actions and escape did, to think she was going to die as I began reading, and in the end not know her fate other than going out there alone, is deeply saddening.

 In final analysis, the saddening undertone of the book, relations to wordsworths poem and metaphors in both that ballad, the prequel and the trilogy left me questioning almost everything. 

I'm glad to say that the second read of this year was much better than 'Death Of A Salesman', only failing to achieve five stars due to how slowly I get through non-fiction books, given the stories aren't particularly gripping! 'What I Learned On The 6.28' is a book diary written by a radio presenter, of whom on his morming commute into London would read on the train. Each month he read a different genre such as poetry, plays, crime or autodictat. Within the exploration of these genres many insightful topics were discussed such as the cliche openings 'it was a dark and stormy night', whether authors should be considered separate from their work if they have a bad reputation, and that interestingly due to the consumption of beer to hydrate, how many of the actions of history were done influenced by alcohol.  The book had a pleasant final note being written across 2019 it considered cultural phenomenons of the 2010s such as the MCU and Hamilton, concluding the importance of reading as a form of escapism and insight whilst the pandemic dawned on the word. Overall it was a charming and unique book of which if you can cope with non-fiction and are invested in reading, I would highly recommend.

I hate that my first read this year is rated so low, but I'm not one to heavily praise things. Admittedly, I had to read this for my English Literature class as we study it next term, and it washf good. It's about a salesman called Willy Loman who's hit rock bottom in life and I look forward to a tragedy but this had little plot, little to no character development nor like ability and was really hard to understand and Follow. Overall I wouldn't reccomend!