Ripley Under Water

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Summary: Inspiration for books writes
Review: A lifelong friend of Patricia Highsmith - we studied together as Princeton juniors - I was pleasantly surprised to find certain of the more, how shall I put it?, the seamier events of my life reproduced with such aplomb by my authoress friend. Of course, she added a little here and there - she actually was involved, with myself, in the relationship with the young 'lad' in The Boy who followed Ripley and of course the murder of Dickie Greenleaf was largely her idea; and responsibility, I might add, since she fictionalised herself as the Gwyneth Paltrow character. Well, I could add more, but keep on enjoying my youthful 'adventures'; now 62, I can't seem to work up the energy for them anymore, and Pat is long dead (4 years this week... have one with St Peter on me, my darling), but, never mind... the blood-stains are still in the basement whenever I need a reminder. SEE YOU LATTTTERR

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Summary: Put this book in the water and flush!
Review: After thoroughly enjoying two other "Ripley" adventures, ("The Talented Mr. Ripley", and "Ripley Under Ground"), I was extremely disappointed with this effort. The protagonists are not particularly believable or compelling, and the plot is contrived. The author's attempt to build tension or suspense fails miserably, and the climax is disappointing. Avoid this book unless you enjoy descriptive passages of the lovely baubels that the idle rich treat themselves to.

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Summary: This sequel's all wet....
Review: Fans of the Ripley series will find a few enjoyable moments, particularly in the characterizations of the well known characters of Tom, Mme Anette and Heloise. Otherwise, there is little suspense and even less ultimate payoff. Strangers to the Highsmith works will most likely be left completely non-plussed. This is a particularly dated and unclever work.

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Summary: This sequel's all wet....
Review: Fans of the Ripley series will find a few enjoyable moments, particularly in the characterizations of the well known characters of Tom, Mme Anette and Heloise. Otherwise, there is little suspense and even less ultimate payoff. Strangers to the Highsmith works will most likely be left completely non-plussed. This is a particularly dated and unclever work.

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Summary: Some questions
Review: Fascinating and sinister. The whole art of the noir genre is that you get to be on the side of the criminal and many other writers have done this. Highsmith is the mistress of the art, however. She gets us really indignant at those who persecute someone just for a few murders. I was initially critical of the way the motivation of some characters is left unexplained but now realise that that adds to the hypnotic atmosphere. I notice a dispute between reviewers about the time interval between books in the series. In The Talented Mr Ripley he crosses the Atlantic by boat. This one seems set in the eighties or nineties. What were the publication dates? In what periods are the stories set? Also I could not quite understand both the Pritchards drowning by falling into their garden pond accidentally. The pond is five feet deep with cement sides and mud at the bottom. David might have been trapped in the mud but he shouts to Janice from the water. Did she push him in?

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Summary: Worst of the series
Review: Having read all of the Ripley books in order, I must echo other reviewers in saying that this is the weakest of them all. A promising plot is overcome with unanswered questions, and an ending that just falls flat. All due credit to Highsmith for making the novel entertaining and interesting, and I would have given the book more stars had the ending been more interesting. As it is, kind of disappointing.

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Summary: Worst of the series
Review: Having read all of the Ripley books in order, I must echo other reviewers in saying that this is the weakest of them all. A promising plot is overcome with unanswered questions, and an ending that just falls flat. All due credit to Highsmith for making the novel entertaining and interesting, and I would have given the book more stars had the ending been more interesting. As it is, kind of disappointing.

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Summary: A capstone for the Ripley Series
Review: Having read the Ripley books in order, I found this final effort the perfect bookend to "The Talented Mr. Ripley", since Ripley once again finds himself struggling to gain the upper hand with an adversary. However, the antagonist, David Pritchard, is the antithesis of the character Dickie Greenleaf, whom we met in the first book. I was riveted by "Ripley Under Water," particularly since Ripley had previously stated that he always felt he would meet his end under water. How sad to say "Goodbye!", and how more than intriguing to read the review of the "Ripley inspiration"! How he could refer to "Marge" as "the Gwyneth Paltrow" character confounds me, however, because I felt the actress was totally miscast in this role. I hope we hear more from him!

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Summary: Not The Best, But Still Worthwhile For Fans
Review: Highsmith's Ripley novels declined precipitously, from the pure brilliance of the first three ("Talented Mr. Ripley," "Ripley Underground," "Ripley's Game"), to the less dynamic "Ripley Underwater" and the rather sad "Boy Who Followed Ripley." The latter two are poorly plotted but well-written (as always with Highsmith). Whatever you do, don't start with this one-- begin with "Talented Mr. Ripley" and move along chronologically-- then pick this up and read it (if you wish), as it fills in some neat little gaps in our understanding of Tom and his friends. But compared with the first three, this and its successor are mostly dispensible....

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Summary: Tasty cat and mouse game
Review: I have read all of the Ripley books in sequence, and am delighted to find that this last effort is the best since the "Talented" character appeared. It shares the flavor of "Strangers on a Train," that squirmy, claustrophibic quality of having control pulled from your grasp. Ripley is fascinating to me -- a completely amoral character for whom you feel sympathy -- and I find him at his most haunted and haunting in this book. My one regret: It is the final Ripley adventure.