Andrew K. (kuligowskiandrewt) -
My commute to and from work has recently been eased by listening to the Audio CD version of Faye Kellermans Day of Atonement. This is the 4th book in the series, and while I liked this look into the lives of (now newlywed) Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus, it did not grab me as much as the previous 3. Why not? (Without any spoilers more significant than would be included in a typical cover blurb)
1) The size and/or the pacing. The reading of the book took up 10 full CDs, at an estimated 70 minutes each. I didnt feel there was enough substance to justify a full 10 CDs (or the equivalent page count). I think the book accurately reflected the police process of investigating and tracking down leads not all of them destined to pan out to anything but as any honest detective will admit, that process is not as exciting as they make it appear on cop shows.
2) The majority of the book was devoted to tracking down a runaway. Eventually, the characters encountered the more serious crimes that are the basis of most murder mysteries, but the first of those does not occur until well past the ½ point of the book. Perhaps if the crime spree started a bit earlier??
3) Approximately half of the book takes place in the Jewish sections of Brooklyn. Unfortunately, our narrator, Mitchell Greenberg, was not able to significantly alter his tone of voice to differentiate between the characters who resided in that area, at least not without losing the accent. To me, every local male over the age of 40 sounded just like Jackie Mason to the point where I wondered if they got Mr. Mason to make an uncredited guest appareance!
4) There was too much tension and not enough affection expressed between our lead characters. Perhaps the author was trying to warn us that this is what happens when you devote your honeymoon to solving a possible crime a family missing person instead of more traditional activities. BUT I did not feel the same pull between Peter and Rina in this novel as I did during the first 3 and not coincidentally, I did not LIKE them as much as I did during the first three books.
Despite all of this, I consider Day of Atonement to be a good book. My issue is that the first 3 books in the series were GREAT, so simply good is a step in the wrong direction.
1) The size and/or the pacing. The reading of the book took up 10 full CDs, at an estimated 70 minutes each. I didnt feel there was enough substance to justify a full 10 CDs (or the equivalent page count). I think the book accurately reflected the police process of investigating and tracking down leads not all of them destined to pan out to anything but as any honest detective will admit, that process is not as exciting as they make it appear on cop shows.
2) The majority of the book was devoted to tracking down a runaway. Eventually, the characters encountered the more serious crimes that are the basis of most murder mysteries, but the first of those does not occur until well past the ½ point of the book. Perhaps if the crime spree started a bit earlier??
3) Approximately half of the book takes place in the Jewish sections of Brooklyn. Unfortunately, our narrator, Mitchell Greenberg, was not able to significantly alter his tone of voice to differentiate between the characters who resided in that area, at least not without losing the accent. To me, every local male over the age of 40 sounded just like Jackie Mason to the point where I wondered if they got Mr. Mason to make an uncredited guest appareance!
4) There was too much tension and not enough affection expressed between our lead characters. Perhaps the author was trying to warn us that this is what happens when you devote your honeymoon to solving a possible crime a family missing person instead of more traditional activities. BUT I did not feel the same pull between Peter and Rina in this novel as I did during the first 3 and not coincidentally, I did not LIKE them as much as I did during the first three books.
Despite all of this, I consider Day of Atonement to be a good book. My issue is that the first 3 books in the series were GREAT, so simply good is a step in the wrong direction.
