Rating: 
Summary: A whimpering second novel
Review: The second Rice novel is something of a mystery again. Rice weaves gay and straight characters in such a way that, while his main characters are gay, his novel resembles fiction written by straight authors in that the sexuality of the character is only part of the story. Neither book is a gay book. The novel involves several freshmen at a prestigious eastern university, who are trying to adjust to college life. Some are not what they appear. Jesse, Kathryn and Randall are hiding things from their past. Unfortunately, these hidden secrets, once revealed, are not all that compelling. The mystery part of the novel involves accidents that may have been murders. And these are never really clarified. The book engages the characters in engrossing conversation, but the characterization does not seem to move. Jesse Lowry, for one, is intriguing, but is dispatched with his secrets not fully explored. Rice's first novel has more power in its mystery. This novel whimpers.
Rating: 
Summary: Bad, bad, bad
Review: I sure wish I could give this book a negative amount of stars. I read Rice's first book; it was ok, and thought I would try my luck with this one. I am really sorry I did, and nobody gives out refunds for things becuase they [are bad]. When I read this book, I kept thinking about all those guys I knew back in college that were into that gothic artsy-fartsy world, with attitudes ten feet in front of them, only for them to end up working at blockbuster. If it weren't for his mother, Christopher Rice would be that guy at blockbuster. Get over yourself, Chris. Go off, mature, and then come back with another book.
Rating: 
Summary: A Good Solid Read
Review: It's been a long time since I've had a book that kept me curled up on the end of the sofa for hours past my normal bedtime. Even though there are a few rough twists of the plot, there's enough here to keep you riveted. I was fascinated at the way the author was able to bring the private thoughts of his characters right into my head. The thoughts going through Randall's head as he watches his supposedly straight roommate Jesse are real and raw and very private. I think Mr. Rice gave short shrift to the Jesse character though. This character rose quickly to dominate a few scenes, and then he is disposed of in a manner that leaves far more questions than answers. I suppose it was a way to make the book shorter, but it was hard for me to figure out how and why he ended up as he did. Likewise, the final scene of Eric's struggle with his young protege and the all consuming explosion in Eric's home. I thought that a bit contrived, as I doubt many policemen would fire a weapon in a room reeking of gas and with a hissing gas pipe in sight. Again, I suppose it was a handy way to get rid of characters that no longer served a purpose. Efficient, but not really graceful. In the end though, it's really a book about good versus evil. That it's wrapped up in the dress of an orgy performing cult based on someones interpretation of a painting is just another vehicle for a time honored subject for a novel. It's still a bit distressing to read a book chock full of gay characters and themes and have it so dark...Overall though, this book was much better than his first, and I'm sure as young Mr. Rice matures and gains experience, his future novels will be something to anticipate. The Snow Garden is well worth a few hours of your time.
Rating: 
Summary: Another great book from Christopher Rice.
Review: This book has a fascinating set of charachters, all of whom fit together in an enthralling web. The book stands out as a great read, it is unique in that it has a deeply developed set of charachters, entwined in a Hollywood drama plot. Eagerly waiting for the authors third book.
Rating:
Summary: "The Snow Garden" Turns Into Slush
Review: "People like snow because they think it unifies everything" says one character to another in Christopher Rice's sophomore effort; a superior follow-up to the dreary "Density of Souls." In terms of creating atmosphere, Mr. Rice is second to none even if I did have a hard time liking the characters in this book. I do feel that Mr. Rice has grown as a writer and should have continued success in future years, Mr. Rice loves and relies on high drama that at times gets to be so unbelievable. There are so many twists and turns in this giant jigsaw puzzle of a novel that while it looks and sounds good on paper; logically it didn't work for me. Still, I enjoyed the walk through this garden. Memorable Quote: "Make sure they aren't afraid to ask for what they want, at the same time you're making them feel as good as they can. You'll be surprised what you find out." (p. 307) In closing, I would love to see David Lynch direct a film version of this book, but I think there would need to be some improvements in the plot for today's demanding audiences.
Rating:
Summary: The Snow Garden: A Novel
Review: An electrifying new novel--a story of murder & sexual menace on a snowbound university campus--from the best selling author of A Density of Souls.
Rating: 
Summary: audio version of Snow Garden
Review: Reader good
Story line intriging
Characters were extremely disfunctional... which put a real downer on the whole experience....
Won't listen to it a 2nd time...
In fact the audiobook is an instant donation to my local library... someone else may like it...
Rating:
Summary: Too bad to be good - too serious to be good [stuff]
Review: This book kept me reading, but it makes me wonder, how old is this kid, 15? ... I think it could've been much more redeeming if the characters were at least LIKEABLE. Kathryn is an extremely boring non-personality - it's like Rice couldn't make up his mind whether she was supposed to be a tough chick or a sweet, naive, prudish "chipmunk." April's point of existence is to stand around and observe and make comments about Kathryn and Randall. Randall is...what? A huckster? An orphan, it goes no where. And I mean, there are too many villains - who's really the bad guy - Jesse, the grad student, or Michael Price??? Too many psychos in one place to be believable. All in all, Rice really couldn't seem to decide on the POINT. As I got further and further toward the end, I got more and more anxious, wondering - how can he tie up all these loose ends and bring it all together to make sense in just 100 pages...and he never did.
Rating:
Summary: who did the proofreading??
Review: I have to admit i am only up to page 50... but this is absolutely the worst editing in a "real" book i have ever seen. I am reading an Advanced Reading Copy and at first thought that was the reason for misspelled words, incomplete nonsensical sentences etc... But i just read your readers' reviews and apparently that is not the case.. The book is just poorly edited... I have a hard time really getting into the story since just about every page has an error. Needless to say it is very annoying.... maybe i will try to muddle thru but (how does this happen?????)
Rating:
Summary: A great second novel...
Review: Chris' novels (all two of them) have a habit of setting up these extremely detailed worlds, with characters that you really get to know and care about. Then, towards the end of his novels he brings those worlds crashing down with twists in the character's histories that wern't revealed-- sometimes not even to the characters themselves. It's a neat device to use, and it keeps the last third of the book VERY fast paced and riveting. I enjoyed Snow Garden alot. It had a wonderous level of detail in the writing. My only hope for his next book would be that he sneaks in some hints of what's to come earlier on so I can look back and go "OH YEAH! That's what that meant." Nice work Chris!
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