Rating:  Summary: More than an eroctic thriller Review: What makes this novel so special is the sense of doom that you can feel in the very first pages. Erotism and blood have always made an interesting combinition in literature. Moore succeeds in both arousing you and also making you feel very uneasy. Although there are no description, and the character's name mentioned just once, everything is so vivid. The female point of view on sex, the nature of language, along with poetry, are what's best in this novel.I heard that director Jane Campion is currently editing a movie based on that novel, with Meg Ryan starring. The ending has also been changed... That's too bad. Read the book first.
Rating:  Summary: Haunting. Review: After reading the many mixed reviews on this book, I thought I would take a chance on it. I wasn't sure what to expect when I first started reading it. In fact, I was even feeling a little cynical since I had read all the negative reviews beforehand, so I was surprised by how fast I got pulled into the storyline. I was anxious to find out what was going to happen in the end, and because of that, I ended up reading this book in a matter of hours. It is a quick read, despite the short choppy prose and the many twists and turns that it takes. Though I think the book could have done without a lot of the definitions for Franny's street lingo dictionary she was working on. I really didn't see how that had any relevance to the actual plot. One other thing that I loved about this book was the author's way in describing things, especially the sex scenes. She went about doing this so that it wasn't too corny or mundane, as a lot of 'erotic thrillers' tend to be. Overall, I'd have to say that I do recommend this book. The ending is what had the biggest impact on me and is still haunting me.
Rating:  Summary: worth reading Review: I really enjoyed reading this book. I loved the way the main character used her words. I liked hearing the many different translations for words that she was saying. I don't want to give anything away so I'll just say I didn't like the ending. I thought everything happened to fast. The relationship that Franny and Malloy had happened so quickly. I think it should have developed more. But I really did like the book. It was one of the most suspenseful and thrilling books that I have read in a long time. I would have liked to have known more about Franny's past. But the author really put me in her shoes. This is the first book I have read by this author. But it encourages me to read more by her.
Rating:  Summary: Emotionally exotic Review: This book is the most amaizing book I have ever read in my life. The way she described the passionate sex scene in the bar basement and the sex scene on the desk was amaizing. Her choice of words and excitement through out the book kept me wanting more. I could feel the way she felt as she wrote the words.
Rating:  Summary: Very Raw Gritty Disturbing, And A Bit Sickening..... Review: Give the author credit for brutal candor, and a direct, though at times wondrous, writing style. Greenwich Village NYC is seen here as very disturbing, nearly devoid of sympathy or sympathetic characters. We can only hope these cops are the awful exception. The 30-plus single NYU English teacher narrator seems a bit naive, or maybe overly hardened. The book really works as a guide to the Village dark side...More hard bitten than any Raymond Chandler, and with prose at times even more mesmorizing...A real jolt and definitely not for the faint hearted, but you'll want to finish this until the bitter end.
Rating:  Summary: look beyond the hype Review: I bought this book in paperback in Penn Station in Manhattan for my commute from NYC to Philadelphia. Frankly, I read most of the book during the 75 minute commute. But I have re-read it dozens of times since then. In fact, I bought a hard cover version of the book and so long discarded that original paperback. I think this is one of those books/music/etc. that you either get or you don't get. Not to say that if you don't get it you are missing anything, just that you are not of the sensibility to relate/?enjoy? this kind of entertainment. I loved this book and just read it again, for the umpteenth time, this weekend. For me, it is one of those books that you discover something new every time you read it. There is also poetry in the book if you open your mind to it. Worth a try....if you like it, you'll love it...if you don't like it, well it's a short book.
Rating:  Summary: A ridiculous book... Review: Despite it's mixed reviews, I decided to give this book a try. I should have known better. It is absolute dreck. The choppiness of the writing makes it difficult to follow. It's almost as if it was written in a stream of conciousness style, except I doubt there was much conciousness behind it to begin with. The "heroine" of the novel, while booksmart, is so incredibly lacking in street smarts that it makes her character totally unbelievable and ridiculous. She's such a highly selfish and pathetic character, that I found myself groaning in parts because of the stupid situations that she puts herself in. Without giving it all away, the "shocking" final scene is hardly that. Anyone with half a brain will figure it all out long beforehand. The clues are there, and so patently obvious, that the "twists" fall flat, and the character in question gets what she deserves for hampering the murder case that she's involved in.
Rating:  Summary: A Rose by any other name ... Review: Despite what Moore may have had in mind while writing this novel, her combination of florid, poetic prose and graphic sex and violence just don't mix. This book is the literary equivalent of a snuff film. Never mind what Moore was trying to achieve (and her radiant, angelic author photo on the hardcover edition makes it seem as if she sees herself as literature's savior)with her story, underneath the prose, there is a by the numbers thriller full of red herrings, the obligatory surprise revelation, and a violent, sick ending that tries to go one better than "Looking for Mr. Goodbar." Whatever Moore was trying to say gets lost amidst the gore and sex. This is a novel best forgotten.
Rating:  Summary: Actually quite boring... Review: I read all of the reviews here before reading this book, so I expected to either love it or hate it. Unfortunately, it inspired no strong emotion in me whatsoever. I found myself wishing she had written something with the secondary characters as the leads, as I was much more intrigued by them (the main character's best friend and one of her students) than I was by Frannie or Malloy. They were not fleshed out enough to hold my interest, so I'm glad it was a short book. My favorite part was a sample of her student's writing, and I would have preferred it if "he" had written the entire novel. The "erotic" sex scenes others raved about were very brief, brushed-over encounters - not poorly written, just not well written. I have not read any of the author's other works to see if she has written sex before, but these read like a first try. Even the ending - which I was sure from the hints would disturb me - fell flat, as it seemed the author was trying so hard to shock that she became unrealistic. I just closed the book and thought 'it wouldn't really be like that'. I would not have given this zero stars even if I could, however, because the book did teach me some interesting street slang.
Rating:  Summary: Thoroughly Unpleasant Review: 'The Whiteness of the Bones' was one of my favorite books when I read this. I expected gritty and I expected dark eroticism but was chagrined to find a weak plot, an unsympathetic heroine and a nauseating ending. The word 'chum' now fills me with horror... When I finished the book I promptly threw it away rather than keep such bad juju in my house. I was left with a profound sense of disgust and disappointment that such a talented author could spend her time creating something that was, perhaps, technically laudable, but reprehensible on practically every other level.
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