C.S.

The character of Alifair has matured into the increasingly annoying alter-ego of Dave Robicheaux. She remains the one-dimensional voice of righteousness and control in this novel.Her "voice," has no hint of femininity, yet I cannot imagine how a different reader would make her seem young or more womanly. It's the writitng, not the reader. I would have preferred Alifair to be less prominent, although, given the plot-line, having Dave's daughter involved is hardly optional.The level and nature of the violence in this novel are beyond both the believable (given the timespan of the novel), and the acceptable.

No. I would love to get friends reading this series, but would not have them begin with this one. It is not representative of the series, or the author.

We get more intimate contact with Dave's inner life in the book, and Patton does a great job.

I don't think so, really, although I hate to say it.

This is a fascinating story that could have made a very provocative, engaging read. Unfortunately, the flat-line monotony and nasal tones of the reader's "Sirene" allow none of the poetic flow or emotion of the language to shine through. It is very difficult not to drift off in the middle of her unvaried cadence.

This is the best sort of book to read in paperback on an airplane. If it's left behind, it won't matter. No one would miss the writing and the story is one we've all read before. The story recalls any of twenty other books written - and written better - by anyone from Jeffrey Archer to Danielle Steele. No one expects Sheldon to be dense, provocative, or philosophical. Readers do, however, expect a Sheldon book to be accurate and well-plotted enough to lead readers to suspend disbelief, and never look back. A Sheldon book is written to convey to readers a palpable degree of tension, and an engrossing story. This book is none of these. I agree with the other reviewer that the author seems not to have done enough research into any of the subjects he/she was writing about. This is a superficial read with a contrived plot and forgettable characters. I wouldn't bother.

Reading this has certainly turned me off anything co-written by Tilly Bagshawe.

The person who translated this Mankell novel did him no favors. Poor word choices and an obsessive dedication to word-for-word translation rendered the dialogue wooden and the narrative ponderous. Certainly a good translator will capture the culture differences reflected in the original language and recreate the Swedish forthrightness, introspection, and coolness, but this translation left the reader nothing to work with and flattened an otherwise entertaining read.

To sum it up in one word, "bland" would do it. The characters are flat, the language uninteresting, and the plot failed to hold this reader's attention. When the reader is not annoying, she is merely dull. If you're looking for something to read on the plane or the beach, this might be for you.

This title was quite a disappointment. The improbable plot is dependent on a law enforcement officer making one bad decision after another. It is further complicated by a highly unlikely series of events which escalate both in absurdity and violence as the story progresses. The dialogue is in places cliched and in others, just plain awful; the narrator doesn't have a lot to work with and can't get through the countless annoying renditions of "My Two Front Teeth" without setting the listener's teeth on edge.

Somewhere between a Harlequin Romance and a Nancy Drew mystery, the word "mediocre" would cover it. The storyline is not credible, the characters one-dimensional and the ending,as unlikely a resolution as it is, provides the book's only moments of true tension.

This book may well have started out as a high school creative writing assignment and not made it much beyond. That a publisher was found for it is amazing. Though the plot is not objectionable,none of the characters is has been developed beyond the level of a 30-minute sit-com. The dialog is dreadful. It is corny, stilted and uninspired, with a child who sounds no different from any of the adults. The reader does nothing to help the situation. She has a rather annoying style, and there are unpleasant mouth noises as she speaks. Not worth even the $4.95.....

This book is well-written, tightly structured and effective. It's a good book, better than many. Even the narration is a notch above good. But the violence and cruel twists of it were too much for this reader. I simply couldn't finish.

I have become so tired of the same ol' sociopaths/pathology gore/old boys' squadrooms and guns, guns, guns. Here the characters are interesting, plot complex and writing intriguing enough to keep me up at night and get me looking forward to the next book. I recommend it for anyone looking for something a bit different