Rating: 
Summary: Lehane Tangled Up in Twists
Review: Like his work in Mystic River, Lehane once again falls into the trap of the obvious twist in Shutter Island. With a plot conceit utilized in a recent Oscar-winning film, Lehane sets us up for the big, flip-the-script moment -- but for some reason we feel like we've already seen this before. Although Lehane's work always had cinematic qualities, it seems as if he's taking his writing cues more and more from Hollywood. Shutter Island showcases all of Lehane's strengths -- character, dialogue, morality plays -- but it also contains his weakness for sticking in a surprise ending, no matter how unsurpising it actually is.
Rating: 
Summary: "Shutter Island" is awesome!
Review: Dennis Lehane has another hit on his hands with "Shutter Island." I read this novel in one sitting because I got hooked right from the first page.U.S. Marshall Teddy Daniels and his partner Chuck Aule are sent to Ashecliffe Hospital for the Criminally Insane to find escaped patient Rachael Solando, who is a murderess. They run into problems, however, like the hurricane that hits the island their first night there and they begin to find that a lot of strange things are going on in the hospital as well. However, nothing is as it seems at Ashecliffe, and that made the story even more intriguing. As a result, I found I had to keep reading to find out the real truth while also trying to figure out how it will end. My advice to anyone who chooses to read this novel is to NOT try to figure out the ending because the odds are that you won't. I really loved this story and highly recommend it to anyone who is a fan of thrillers. Add it to your MUST READ list today!
Rating:
Summary: A Pulitzer and Booker Prize Winner for sure!
Review: It is difficult, no, near impossible, to believe that Dennis Lehane could continue to top his previous books, but Shutter Island is proof positive that Lehane is destined to be one of the English language's leading writers of this, or any other century. If you don't buy this book fast to ensure you get a first edition, you're going to be sorry. Above all Lehane is a master story teller, and Shutter Island is riveting. Combine this with Lehane's command of the language and ability to write exciting, vibrant and beautiful phrases, and sentences, and you begin to understand why this man is destined to become a National Treasure! If you like books, you'll love Shutter Island. Thank you Dennis Lehane!
Rating:
Summary: wow...wow...wow!
Review: Teddy and Chuck...Shutter Island...psychiatrists...
Dennis Lehane...you rock! That's all I'm going to say
right now.
Rating:
Summary: Wow!!!
Review: Dennis Lehane has given another flawless example of why he's at the head of the pack of mystery writers. Set in 1954, two federal marshalls are sent out to Shutter Island which is the home of the Ashecliffe Hospital for the criminally insane. A patient by the name of Rachel Solando has escaped and she's considered very dangerous. No sooner do they arrive than a fierce storm ravages the island, stripping it of power and stranding the detectives. What follows is a page a minute jaw dropper as one mystery unravels into another. Ultimately the less you know the better. All I can say is it plays out brilliantly with a guaranteed shock ending you won't see coming. Halfway through I kept saying to myself, 'this would be such a great movie', and then I read the rights have already been snapped up. What I marvel at is how unlike everything else he's already written this is. This feels almost Ira Levinish, or more recently something M. Night Shyamalan would have penned. It's the book that everyone will be talking about, and hopefully not revealing too much.
Rating:
Summary: Not only a great story but absolutely great writing
Review: All the other 5 star reviews have said what a terrific story Lehane has written (as usual) but let me just say a few words about his writing. This guy just makes me put the book down regularly and just ponder and appreciate how amazing he is with the English language. He is a true delight to read. If you haven't read a Dennis Lehane book yet, what are you waiting for?
Rating:
Summary: Expertly Written Mystery
Review: In the summer of 1954, U.S. Marshal Teddy Daniels and his partner Chuck Aule travel to the Ashecliffe Hospital for the criminally insane on Shutter Island off the coast of Massachusetts. They are searching for Rachel Solando, a patient who mysteriously vanished out of her locked room. Stonewalled at every turn, the marshals are frustrated when one of the facilitiy's leaders, Dr. Cawley, refuses to honor their request for patients'and doctors' records. With the eerie reappearance of the missing Rachel, a violent hurricane ensues. As Teddy searches for patient Andrew Laeddis, the firebug who started the fire that killed the marshal's wife Dolores, he learns that no one remembers having seen or heard of this missing sixty-seventh patient. With a sense of foreboding, Teddy's dreams are expertly woven into his reality as he discovers the nature of the hospital's use of hallucinogenic drugs. And when his partner goes missing, Teddy is determined to find Chuck and flee the island. Fearing for his sanity, Teddy begins to suspect that no one can be trusted, and he may never be able to leave the island. With a nightmarish reality, author Lehane ensconces the reader into the very heart of a mental hospital gone awry, with experimentation on human subjects. Actual events are intertwined with hallucinations in a fast moving plot that leaves the reader wondering how many patients actually descended into insanity after entering the hospital. Brilliantly executed, this novel will leave the reader transfixed with its breathless conclusion.
Rating:
Summary: I challenge anyone to solve this one!
Review: I first became a fan of Dennis Lehane with the Angela Gennaro/ Patrick Kenzie series. With the publication of 'Mystic River' I was certain that I'd be disappointed but I was wrong. This week as I read 'Shutter Island' I doubted that Lehane could continue to impress me with his incredible writing skill. I will never doubt again. We are introduced to 'Shutter Island' by Dr. Lester Sheehan, a former psychiatrist at the facility, who in the twilight of his life is reminiscing about the four days in September of 1954 when U.S. Marshall Teddy Daniels came to investigate the disappearance of Rachel Solando. Rachel, an inmate of Ashcliffe Hospital for the criminally insane had escaped from the highly secure facility and was nowhere to be found on the island from which escape was thought to be impossible. Teddy and his partner, Chuck Aule, are left with a cryptic message and many suspicions about what the doctors and staff at Ashcliffe might be hiding from the authorities. In this well written and superbly crafted mystery the clues are there for us to solve, but I challenge anyone to solve this mystery before the final chapters. 'Shutter Island' is a must read for all mystery buffs.
Rating:
Summary: Not Lehane's Best, But Not A Bad Book
Review: _Mystic River_, Dennis Lehane's previous book, is a modern classic. It is his best book and it should have won him an Edgar award in the year it was published. His Kenzie-Gennaro series is also very strong, with a couple of titles real stand-outs (_A Drink Before the War_ and _Darkness, Take My Hand_). Unfortunately, his new book just isn't in the same league. Now, this is probably going to earn me a lot of "unhelpful" votes, but _Shutter Island_ just isn't that great a book, especially when you compare it to the work Lehane has done previously. The book reads like a screenplay, which perhaps it might have been. It has twists and turns galore, including one giant concluding twist that may leave readers saying "Huh?" I enjoyed the book and its very sad conclusion, but I just can't go along with the others who've said that this is or might be Lehane's best book. Compared to his usual flawless command of the dark heart of humanity, _Shutter Island_ has to be seen as little more than a trifle. Sure, you'll enjoy it, but I don't think the book will stay with you the way the more mature _Mystic River_ does. By all means, you should read this novel, especially if you're a Dennis Lehane fan, but don't feel like you have to rush right out and get it now.
Rating:
Summary: BLIND SIDED
Review: Lehane's latest novel proves why he is a master storyteller. There are good authors and great authors but very few, like Lehane, are brilliant. Lehane manages to creatively and brilliantly weave this story in such a way that the reader is blindsided and completely knocked off balance. He did a wonderful job of it in Mystic River and has done a masterful and utterly amazing job of it in Shutter Island. At the conclusion of this novel, the reader might start to question his/her own sanity.
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