Rating: 
Summary: A new, dark edge
Review: A very disappointing novel, on the whole. Marley's early life is invented with some imagination, but after that we learn little of his long business career. Osmun's newspaper prose style evokes nothing whatsoever of Victorian England and the novel is not at all Dickensian in flavor or inventiveness. Sentences are short and rhythmically monotonous, repeating "Marley" as their subject over and over again. I think anyone who undertakes to elaborate and extend one of Dickens's stories at least needs to make a good job of giving a Dickensian feeling to the story and achieving a prose style that at least suggests a Victorian setting.
Rating: 
Summary: Very disappointing
Review: As one who loves both Dickens and imaginative books which "fill in the blanks" of characters in classic works, I had hoped that Marley's Ghost would be an enjoyable novel. Instead, I found it extremely disappointing.Some of the flavour of the Victorian era was hinted at in, for example, references to debtor's prison, but it did not come across strongly, and much of the essence of the time about which Dickens' work was such apt commentary was absent. Ebenezer Scrooge, as Dickens depicts him, is not a wicked criminal, but one whose heart was hardened, and who could easily see himself as merely a "good man of business," the same words he used to praise Marley's ghost. The eternal popularity of a Christmas Carol undoubtedly is in that one can meet those like Scrooge in any time period, and it would seem a fair guess that Scrooge would have had a partner much like himself. Osmun's depicting Marley basically as a fugitive prisoner, guilty of murder at a young age, does not fit that mold, and little attention is given to his extensive business career. I imagine Osmun was attempting to capture the sordid reality of much of the "real Dickens' London" in the prison and miserable sex scenes, but one was left more with an impression of life behind bars than of the period. It is very disappointing that so little was done with such a promising, intriguing premise.
Rating: 
Summary: why use the "f" word at all??
Review: mark hazard osmun is a spledidly gifted writer. i absolutely loved the book and am saddened that i cannot recommend it to my family and friends. i see no point to using the "F" word one time. it ruins it for many people, and is silly to only use it once. the movie "midnight run" used it very effectively hundreds of times, but once is out of place in this book. the sexual scene in the prison is gratuitous also. it is not needed as such; mr osmun is talented enough to write about that in a different way and say the same thing, without being obnoxious. people who read books of this type dont need or expect that. there is plenty of literature available for people who do want to read explicit descriptions of sex, and it is way out of place in such an otherwise WONDERFUL book.
Rating:
Summary: why use the "f" word at all??
Review: mark hazard osmun is a spledidly gifted writer. i absolutely loved the book and am saddened that i cannot recommend it to my family and friends. i see no point to using the "F" word one time. it ruins it for many people, and is silly to only use it once. the movie "midnight run" used it very effectively hundreds of times, but once is out of place in this book. the sexual scene in the prison is gratuitous also. it is not needed as such; mr osmun is talented enough to write about that in a different way and say the same thing, without being obnoxious. people who read books of this type dont need or expect that. there is plenty of literature available for people who do want to read explicit descriptions of sex, and it is way out of place in such an otherwise WONDERFUL book.
Rating:
Summary: A Must Read...for this time of year
Review: Mark Osmun successfully captures the imagination with this twisted tale of greed and compassion. Though Marley lived his life on the dark side, you can't help but cheer him on during his journey through pain. Given a life of merciless and solitude, you sense his heart is capable of more. A great read!!
Rating:
Summary: Provacative
Review: Mark Osmun's great imagination has taken us behind the scenes of a story we have read or watched on television annually since we were kids. Even with our familiarity with the story we knew virtually nothing about Jacob Marley, without whom The Christmas Carol would never have been written. Five stars for cleverness alone. To his credit, Osmun chose not to imitate the Dicken's style yet he put coal dust in my teeth together with a clostrophobic shortness of breath as I read through Marley's experience. Marley's journey is a wonderful metaphor for the journey we all travel as we ask questions about good and evil and our relationships with God and our fellow man. Marley's quest to save Scrooge is a journey of love from a man who has known everything but love. "When the time comes - How will you choose?"
Rating:
Summary: Marley'sGhost - Flesh & the Devil
Review: The beauty of Mark Osmun's book, "Marley's Ghost", like that of other good "prequels", is that it puts flesh on the bones of a character who, in the primary work, was left two-dimensional, or berift of humanity in order to serve a symbolic purpose. Marley, in Dicken's "A Christmas Carol", was just such a character -- central, really, to all action and development that followed his appearance, but nothing more than (literally and figuratively) a spectre agent. Anyone interested in Dickens, or in A Christmas Carol, will enjoy Marley's Ghost for the highlighting it gives, not only to the book it attempts to presage, but also to the ideals and concepts that Dickens clearly tried to impart in A Christmas Carol: humanity, existentialism and, ultimately, the redemption that may connect the two. That it also breathes life into Marley and makes him a complex though altogether human character -- and tells a story of his own personal trials and redemption in Victorian England -- is almost a bonus. Without giving away too much, the book also rounds out the symbolic facades of some of the other characters (both corporeal and incorporeal) who move the action to its climax in A Christmas Carol. P.S. This reviewer has heard one or two complaints about Marley's Ghost that go as follows: on one hand, a few have commented that Osmun's book is not written exactly in Dickens' style and wording, and on the other hand, that it is too Dickensian. To both sides, may I simply say that while a prequel certainly invites comparisons in style and syntax, it should be judged by the extent to which it elucidates the original and not only captures the theme but somehow bolsters or underlines that theme, without slavish imitation. I think Osmun has succeeded on all counts.
Rating:
Summary: Marley'sGhost - Flesh & the Devil
Review: The beauty of Mark Osmun's book, "Marley's Ghost", like that of other good "prequels", is that it puts flesh on the bones of a character who, in the primary work, was left two-dimensional, or berift of humanity in order to serve a symbolic purpose. Marley, in Dicken's "A Christmas Carol", was just such a character -- central, really, to all action and development that followed his appearance, but nothing more than (literally and figuratively) a spectre agent. Anyone interested in Dickens, or in A Christmas Carol, will enjoy Marley's Ghost for the highlighting it gives, not only to the book it attempts to presage, but also to the ideals and concepts that Dickens clearly tried to impart in A Christmas Carol: humanity, existentialism and, ultimately, the redemption that may connect the two. That it also breathes life into Marley and makes him a complex though altogether human character -- and tells a story of his own personal trials and redemption in Victorian England -- is almost a bonus. Without giving away too much, the book also rounds out the symbolic facades of some of the other characters (both corporeal and incorporeal) who move the action to its climax in A Christmas Carol. P.S. This reviewer has heard one or two complaints about Marley's Ghost that go as follows: on one hand, a few have commented that Osmun's book is not written exactly in Dickens' style and wording, and on the other hand, that it is too Dickensian. To both sides, may I simply say that while a prequel certainly invites comparisons in style and syntax, it should be judged by the extent to which it elucidates the original and not only captures the theme but somehow bolsters or underlines that theme, without slavish imitation. I think Osmun has succeeded on all counts.
Rating:
Summary: THIS WOULD MAKE A GREAT MOVIE!
Review: THE WRITER IS A VERBAL ARTIST. ALL MY SENSES WERE TUNED TO EACH SCENE FROM THE DAMP COAL MINES AND THE LONDON STREETS TO CANDLELIT DISCUSSIONS AMONG SPIRITS. MARLEY'S GHOST IS A DELIGHTFUL TREAT THAT BRINGS, NOT ONLY ENJOYMENT, BUT MANY MOMENTS OF REFLECTION. IT'S A BOOK THAT MAKES YOU THINK! HOPE HIS NEXT BOOK COMES OUT SOON. THIS IS A GREAT READ FOR EVERY SEASON.
Rating:
Summary: Does Dickens Proud
Review: Thoroughly enjoyed this book - found it hard to put down. Have read most of Dickens and Osmun "does Dickens proud". Highly immagnative with a fine plot and excellent writing. Morley becomes a real person in the Dickens tradition and Scrooge's past is finally understood. Obviously lots of careful research to assure authentic and realistic period description. Never clear where the author is taking you until you get there. The "Marley's Ghost" section is stunning in its conception and its execution. Osmun feels strongly about the exploitation and suffering of children and adds to Dickens body of work in this area. An ambitious and successful undertaking. Recommend it highly for young adults up to old timers like me.
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