Rating: 
Summary: First half, amazingly great. Last half, disappointing.
Review: The first 180 pages or so of this novel held me spell-bound. I was in stunned amazement at the writing, the trick with the point of view, the characters and the way the story unfolded. I thought it was not only the best thriller I had read in years, but the one of the best novels I had read in years. Unfortunately, the book itself starts to unravel as the story moves toward answering the traditional mystery/suspense questions. Who did it? Will they get away with it? Will they kill again? As we get closer to the end, the story makes less and less sense until I found it disappointing and annoying. These faults are not horrible, and the ending is not as brainless as many other thrillers, but you expect so much when the beginning is so good. The story twists and turns in ways that cheat the reader and force the characters to make illogical choices. Did he or didn't he? Does she know or not know? These twists should be suspenseful, but they are not. They call into question the story's integrity. Do these characters even remember what they said and did and who they are? I won't give away the plot, but a minor example is the thing with the wetsuit at the end. Yeah, right. What baloney. It still might be worth a read, if you like psychological thrillers and you're pretty forgiving.
Rating:
Summary: Loses credibility
Review: There's a lot to like about this book. But when the psychologist treating Pilot begins dating Pilot's brother Eric, the book lost credibility for me. Especially because Pilot is telling his therapist that he thinks his brother killed their younger sister (and, of course, the psychologist is reporting all this back to the suspect/brother). Oh, she -- the psychologist -- does briefly ponder whether it is Ok to be dating Eric. She resolves this by asking the brother if there's anything wrong about them seeing each other. He says no, and bang, they're back in the sack. Please. It is too bad the author stumbled with this because the point-of-view and voice were interesting and unique.
Rating: 
Summary: How to categorize this book?
Review: This is one of the most entertaining and original novels I have read in a long time. As you might guess from the title of this review, a big reason for that is that it defies being placed in a neat little category. Smith is an excellent writer, with a true gift for timing and a mastery of the English language. He delves deeply into the into reality, and how frequently, we believe what we are told, rather than what detect with our own senses. In that regard I wouldn't hesitate to call this book literature. On the other hand, the vehicle for Smith's psychological explorations is a mystery, or thriller, and it is undoubtably an entertaining novel. Finally, there are parts of this book that are as disturbing and creepy as anything in Danielewski's "House of Leaves", which might lead one to consider this book "modern fiction". Ultimately, Smith grasps elements from all these genres, and weaves them into a masterful tale of suspense and madness. "Raveling" is a true rarity in that it is both entertaining and profound.
Rating:
Summary: Intense!!
Review: This is Peter Moore Smith's first novel and a great one at that. It's the story of two brothers, one a brain surgeon the other a schizophrenic and the mysterious disappearance of their sister 20 years earlier. I couldn't put this book down. It kept twisting back and forth, unraveling and raveling. I truly enjoyed this debut novel and can't wait for Mr. Smith's next thriller! Superb!
Rating:
Summary: This is defintely a unique read
Review: This is the first book by Peter Moore Smith and It's not bad for a rookie novel. The bad parts are that Pilot telling his Psych about his brother killing his Sister gets old quick. Also this book is very confusing because Pilot is like able to see what other people are doing. The good thing is that this novel finally picks up toward the end.
Rating: 
Summary: An Intense Thriller
Review: This is the story of the Airie family and their attempt to delve into long buried secrets and uncover a truth...what happened to their sister/daughter Fiona so many years ago? After her disappearance the entire family fell apart, unraveled. Now they are trying to piece together the puzzle and return the family to some semblance of normality. Pilot is the most interesting character. The story is told through his eyes and the fact that he is omniscient is chilling. We see things from his perspective, even when he isn't really there. He is also schizophrenic. We are inside his mind throughout this story so we're constantly wondering if we're seeing and hearing the truth or just his version of it. Pilot is adamant that his brother Eric, the neurosurgeon, is the killer...or is he? Psychologist Katherine DeQuincey-Joy steps into the picture to uncover the dark family secrets and pull Pilot from his psychosis. She is a fascinating character with her own problems to solve. This is a wonderful, fast paced, intensely written novel. I look forward to reading more books by this author.
Rating:
Summary: Suspenceful and riveting...
Review: This novel is for sure one of the most riveting that I have read. I was completely absorbed into the minds of the characters, and as the plot thickened, my own thoughts and suspicions grew. This is most definately a chilling book that will have you glued to your spot. The pages will flip themselves.
Rating:
Summary: Decent Debut Novel
Review: This novel is the story of the 20 year old disappearance of Pilot's sister Fiona. Pilot is a paranoid schizophrenic or is he? Pilot's brother is a well respected neurosurgeon responsible for the care of both his "sight impaired" mother and mentally challanged brother. As Pilot begins to remember the details surrounding his sister's disappearance, the beloved neurosurgeon begins to give Pilot medication which brings on a psychotic episode. He wants everyone to believe that Pilot is nuts so that when he, Pilot, reveals the truth, no one will believe him. Fortunately, Pilot's therapist does believe him, sort of. Unfortunately, the therapist gets involved with the handsome brother and he attempts to manipulate the therapist by getting information about Pilot's progress and by feeding his own form of information to the therapist. To say that this is a major conflict of interest and violation of doctor/patient confidentiality is an understatement and tends to detract somewhat from the credibility of the novel. The shrink however, is probably a lot more like Pilot than she is the handsome brother as she has issues (major ones) of her own. I wish the author had explored those issues in depth a little more. It could have added an interesting element to the storyline. As a result of these 2 characters, the story is written from a very unique perspective, that of a paranoid schizophrenic who knows and sees all in a voyeuristic (?) sort of way and his shrink, who is a little off center in her own right. Although the plot is somewhat predictable, the novel is well written and the author definitely has the a promising literary future.
Rating:
Summary: The unraveling of a family.
Review: Told in the first person, by a man named Pilot after his father's love of flying; we are entrenched in the bizarre happenings of a family gone awry. We meet Pilot, who is a paranoid schizophrenic, right after he has suffered a psychotic event, where he believes he remembers what happened to his sister Fiona who disappeared at the age of seven. The book takes off in several directions leaving the reader wondering what is real, and what is the meandering mind of a psychotic. His mother tells us in the first paragraph that she is seeing ghosts. Pilot's brother Eric is a neurosurgeon that seems to deal with it all quite calmly and efficiently. Their father is out of the picture but that is still yet another slice of the story to be dealt with. The author does a superb job of climbing inside the chaotic mind of someone who is deranged, but all is not always as it seems. There are many characters on the stage set by this novel, and there are several suspects. The truth is so gruesome it is not for the faint of heart. I found this book unnerving, but I also could not stop listening to it. Kelsana 5/8/02
Rating:
Summary: very clever work!
Review: We all understand the concept of unraveling - "to disengage or separate the threads of" (Websters), but this novel explores the title concept of raveling, or rejoining those separated threads. In this instance it is the threads of Pilot Airie's sanity that are rejoining to discover the truth about a family tragedy. This novel works well - complex characters, well crafted plot, and deep suspense - but it is the literary quality of the writing that make this novel memorable.
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