Morgan'S Run

Rating:
Summary: Too much graphic description of things best left unsaid...
Review: This book would have been great adventure with an admirable main character but I don't find it entertaining to read descriptions of how difficult it is to wipe one's butt in prison, or how one character had sex with sheep. I prefer some things to be hinted at rather than have to wade through a detailed description. After a while, the casual lewdness and perversity of some of the characters disgusted me and I could not finish the book.

Rating:
Summary: Can't Wait
Review: This is one of those books that you can't wait to finish so you know how it concludes -- but then you are sad because you don't have it to read anymore. McCullough says there will be sequels. I can't wait.

Rating:
Summary: Thought provoking
Review: This is the first book I have ever read by Colleen McCullough so I was able to open this book with no expectations. The novel was descriptive, precise, and extremely thought provoking. She is a wonderful writer. It was obvious to me (even before I knew anything of the writer) that much investigation had been done in preparation for this book. She entertained me enormously. I have read many reviews here that hint they were not especially pleased with Richard Morgan's last great love, I on the other hand beleive the choice was perfect. I also enjoyed her descriptive narratives about all the little things, such as making Brown Bess, and the art of sharpening saw blades. How can a book really take you back to the time period without giving a person a glimpse or two of the way things actually were? I cannot wait for the sequel to this novel. I have found out that the settlement on Norfolk Island did not last,which makes me wonder what direction she will take for the sequel. I am waiting impatiently for the next installment.

Rating:
Summary: A huge read
Review: This is the first of Colleen McCullough's books that I have read, and having visited Norfolk Island, I was interested in the history as well as the semi-fictional side to the novel. It is so thoroughly researched with so much historical detail, I must admit it is very hard going, and had I not had an interest in Norfolk Island to begin with, I don't know if I could have finished the whole book. However, once the main character starts to build a life for himself on the Island it becomes a far easier read and for me, held more interest.
Colleen McCullough is currently suffering failing eyesight and I sincerely hope she manages to write a sequel to this novel.

Rating:
Summary: A tough read but rewarding
Review: This was a dark but enlightening read as to life in parts of Britain in the 1700s, and also the journey to the first penal colony in Australia. Characters are well-developed, Richard Morgan can be a hero for us all. Had tried to read Robert Hugh's Fatal Shore but quit half way through. Will go back and try it again. Great book for history buffs.

Rating:
Summary: History At Its Best
Review: What a wonderful way to learn history! Take a certain period, take a special group of people (the convicts), transport them around the globe, under horrible conditions. Then see what strong spirits and resourcefulness can accomplish. I found Richard Morgan to be that perfect central character--strong, focused, weak in self esteem, but strong in his faith and dedicated to survival. I truly look forward to continuation of his life and times, which the author promises us...GO, GIRL!

Rating:
Summary: Ho Hum
Review: What an unbelievably boring book! It's a bunch of facts and numbers and dates strung together - as if the author was bound and determined to use every bit of historical research that she had found. The main character is a stick - the story is supposed to show how he became a stronger and better man through adversity and hardship, but instead he is so perfect and aloof and godlike, he isn't interesting or sympathetic at all. I was very disappointed in this book, because I had really enjoyed her previous books. The Thorn Birds, An Indecent Obsession, A Creed for the Third Millenium all had far more interesting and believable characters, and storylines that were far more engrossing and weren't sacrificed to historical detail. I plowed my way through Morgan's Run, hoping the story would finally take off, but it never did.