Home :: Books :: Audiocassettes  

Arts & Photography
Audio CDs
Audiocassettes

Biographies & Memoirs
Business & Investing
Children's Books
Christianity
Comics & Graphic Novels
Computers & Internet
Cooking, Food & Wine
Entertainment
Gay & Lesbian
Health, Mind & Body
History
Home & Garden
Horror
Literature & Fiction
Mystery & Thrillers
Nonfiction
Outdoors & Nature
Parenting & Families
Professional & Technical
Reference
Religion & Spirituality
Romance
Science
Science Fiction & Fantasy
Sports
Teens
Travel
Women's Fiction
Bookman's Wake

Bookman's Wake

List Price: $78.00
Your Price: $78.00
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 4 >>

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An Intelligent Mystery
Review: Having plowed through hundreds of murder mysteries that almost seem "by the book" (no pun intended), it was a delight to read "The Bookman's Wake," and be introduced to Cliff Janeway. I learned more about the field of rare books and small house printing than I knew at the beginning, and was completely entertained throughout. Intelligence in writing seems to be missing in many of today's "churn 'em out" murder mysteries; Dunning brings wit, education, and humanity to bear and it comes out just wonderfully. I literally could not put this book down until I reached the last page...and now I'm hungry for more from this author. The next time I go into a used book store, I'll be looking with a much more educated "eye" than heretofore. Kudoes to John Dunning!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: great book, very suspenseful
Review: I couldn't put this book down until I finished it. Excellent read

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A favorite
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed Dunning's second Janeway book. Being a book reader (and very minor collector), learning more about the book business was as fascinating to me as the mystery and both were fun. Please, Mr. Dunning, 5 years is too long. Where is #3 in this series? I'm waiting impatiently.

Rating: 2 stars
Summary: I was not impressed.
Review: I was not at all impressed with this novel. I have read far better mysteries; this one seemed trite and contrived. Granted, the parts relating to book collecting were interesting, but the actual mystery left me completely uninterested. I didn't even really feel compelled to finish the book. The dialogue was stale, and the characters were poorly developed and unbelievable. In my opinion, if you're going to read a mystery, you should try someone else.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The best mystery in years!
Review: If you have ever loved a mystery, this will blow you away. Although it is the second Janeway mystery Dunning wrote, it easily stands alone (and surpasses Booked to Die). You may think that a mystery about old books could not possibly be exciting, but this book is a thrill a minute, with a surprise ending that will knock your socks off. From an intense mystery buff, The Bookman's Wake gets an A+. And you'll never look at a book the same way again.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: An Exceptional Read
Review: If your one of those people like me that loves the smell of a new book, are picky about what you read, and find yourself organizing your books with your own little system, here is something special for you. Like Walter Mosley and Ross MacDonald, John Dunning's work is much more than a mere detective novel.It is a novel of intrigue and murder amidst the book world, or more to the point, those who love books and spend much of their time looking for that first edition copy of....

Cliff Janeway is the Denver bookman and part time detective who gets involved looking for a girl who may have in her possession a rare, and unheard of, Grayson Press edition of Poe's "The Raven", a book worth a fortune. Things are not always what they seem and as Janeway tries to help the young and frightened Eleanor the story becomes more complex and dangerous. This mystery is exiting and compelling, peppered with insights and observations about books from a writer who loves and respects them as much as we do.

This is a book you will love and respect after finishing it. It is a wonderful and exiting read and Cliff Janeway can stand side by side with Easy Rawlins and Lew Archer in American detective fiction. We are treated to keen observations about humanity during this twisty tale of books and murder. Dunning uses the rain in Seattle and the snow in Denver for atmosphere and there is almost a wistful feel to the ending.

Written in '95 this was the second Cliff Janeway novel. "Booked to Die" was the first and is also highly recommended. We can only hope Dunning will give us a third one day. This is a smart read that will be enjoyed by anyone who loves books. If you like an intelligent mystery with sharply drawn characters, and observations on our society as well, then this book is a must have for your library. A treasured find.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: Cliches and Claptrap Mar a Perfectly Good Essay
Review: In a word -- nauseating. It's a shame that author John Dunning felt it necessary to hang an implausible and downright annoying plot, filled with detective-story cliches and inconsistent cardboard characters, on the bones of a fascinating essay on the world of rare book dealing. The book would have been half the thickness without all the claptrap, and a far better read besides. To quote the character he calls "Eleanor Rigby" (eeewwwww), ... The only thing that kept me reading, after the first couple of chapters, was that core. The man knows books, and loves them -- and makes the reader love them as well -- but he's no mystery writer. P.D. James is safe for the forseeable future, methinks.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Praise for The Bookman's Wake
Review: John Dunning definitely knows his stuff--As a lifelong bibliophile, it's a joy to discover an author who not only writes an excellent mystery, but gently instructs us in fascinating subjects as well.

While I thoroughly enjoyed Cliff Janeway's tips about book collecting, the part of the story that gripped me was the detail and insight Dunning gives into the passion "small press" publishers have for their art. In a time when more and more attention is focused on electronic dissemination of information, it was a great pleasure to find characters who still care about the feel and smell of paper, the look and design of type, and the artistry and craft of making books by hand.

As Janeway would no doubt tell you, buy two copies of this book, one to read and one to add to your collection!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Who is John Dunning?
Review: John Dunning ran the Antiquarian bookstore in Denver for many years. The setting in _Booked to Die_ describes perfectly the row of stores that inhabit East Colfax. However the store that Janeway opens is not at all like the store he owned. The Antiquarian was large and covered two floors. The store and inventory were sold 3-4 years ago and a great bookstore was lost. John also hosts a radio show called Tune In Yesterday which showcases and broadcasts old-time radio programs. He is writng another encyclopedia of Old Time Radio to be released in October of '97'. He told me once that it takes him approximately 4 years to publish a new book and so we may have a long wait for a sequel to The Bookman's Wake. A first edition of Booked to Die will sell in Denver for over $200.00

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: this is a gem
Review: my criteria for a 10 in fiction are: interesting, informative, believeable characters, engrossing, satisfying. add a valid sense of place, good theme, ironclad structure, useful and/or unique insights, entertaining and, folks, that works for me. Mysteries are seldom 10's for me, I normally listen to them as books on tape as I do chores or commute.

If you love books. If you like well-crafted mysteries that are not transparent in their outcome from chapter 4. If you'd like to feel like you've not wasted your time just being 'entertained...'

Buy this. Rent this. Borrow this. Ask the library to get a copy. Do it now!


<< 1 2 3 4 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates