Rating: 
Summary: A winner from a great author
Review: A masterful novel filled with compelling characters, dense plot, and powerful language. Watkins once again breathes life into young men who struggle to come to terms with their past. From the first chapter, I was hooked, and not until the last page - and many, many intervening stories about his past - did I fully understand Peter Wedekind, the main character. Watkins deserves more attention than he is getting, and this is one of his best!
Rating:
Summary: The Story of My Dissapearance
Review: A terrific piece of work by Paul Watkins. This writer has crafted a wonderful story of love, horror and mystery so well plotted and with such splendid character development that this book is a must for new writers to study and a great read for thriller readers. From the very first line, you are hooked. I found this book on a new paperback carousel and read the first page. Boom, I'm a Watkins fan and as a developing writer myself, I find his style as easy to read as Scott B. Smith's "A Simple Plan." More, please, I say to Mr. Watkins.
Rating:
Summary: Paul Watkins can't write a bad book!!!
Review: Every time I read a Paul Watkins book (and I've read 'em all!) I am totally amazed at his ability to draw interesting characters and put them in situations that make you examine your own life, even though we may not share the life experiences about which he writes. His focus is on what makes people tick, our motivations as humans. Every page contains a nugget of truth and wisdom that will make you say, "Yeah! I understand exactly! I felt that way when...." Returning to the fishing boat setting of his earlier novel CALM AT SUNSET, CALM AT DAWN, Paul Watkins has, with THE STORY OF MY DISAPPEARANCE, achieved an even fuller flowering. This one's a winner!
Rating:
Summary: A Haunting Quilt of One Man's Life
Review: First, I do not believe there is anyone around right now who can write as well as Mr. Watkins. "Calm at Sunset, Calm at Dawn" I feel was his best, but this is darn close. "My Disappearance" is written in the first person. The narrator (later named Paul Watkins) weaves the stories of his three lives - East German soldier/spy in Afghanistan, spy in America and lover in America - into a quilt made up of wonerfully woven words and twisting plotlines. From the first page, Watkins interjects a mysterious tensionthat trails through the book as is a constant undercurrent adding significantly to this yarn of a spy left in the cold when the Berlin Wall falls. I strongly recommend all of Watkins. This one should be one of the first and not to missed.
Rating:
Summary: A Haunting Quilt of One Man's Life
Review: First, I do not believe there is anyone around right now who can write as well as Mr. Watkins. "Calm at Sunset, Calm at Dawn" I feel was his best, but this is darn close. "My Disappearance" is written in the first person. The narrator (later named Paul Watkins) weaves the stories of his three lives - East German soldier/spy in Afghanistan, spy in America and lover in America - into a quilt made up of wonerfully woven words and twisting plotlines. From the first page, Watkins interjects a mysterious tensionthat trails through the book as is a constant undercurrent adding significantly to this yarn of a spy left in the cold when the Berlin Wall falls. I strongly recommend all of Watkins. This one should be one of the first and not to missed.
Rating:
Summary: Former German spy comes to grips with his past in Newport.
Review: Having taken place in my home town of Newport, RI, Watkins brings the color and excitement of espionage and post cold-war events to a new level of compelling reading. A must have for anyone remotely interested in Newport, fishing, or cold war mysteries. This cries out for a Hollywood adaptation. Local RI actor James Woods is my choice for the lead.
Rating:
Summary: JUST A WONDERFUL BOOK
Review: I have read this book and other books by Paul Watkins and I find them to be quite remarkable. He really puts his heart and soul into his writings.
Rating: 
Summary: A Lesser Watkins
Review: I have to say that I do enjoy Watkins work in general. Yet I felt this piece was a bit forced and unconvincing. The book has a nice start, raises ones curiosity quick then drifts a bit. I think that the story was damaged by the use of a love story with Suleika. Her character was uninteresting, obstuctive, and could have been replaced with a good dog. It almost seemed as though Watkins felt forced to insert love scenes that went nowhere. Each mention of her seemed to bring about a roadbump in the story. I wonder if there was a rewrite that caused this. The death of her husband, with no explainations as to who he was, seemed unpolished. Was Watkins (character in the book) first supposed to be more of an outsider? That would make more sense then coming to town and having the other spy fall in love with you, being that her husband is dead and all. I must also say that naming the main character the same as yourself is a bit much. It made me take pause and wonder if I should continue to the end. In fairness I did enjoy the story itself. The interactions with the old friend and the days in camp were very interesting and well done. I would hope that this kind of detailing continues in his future work and that the heavy romance takes a back seat.
Rating:
Summary: A Lesser Watkins
Review: I have to say that I do enjoy Watkins work in general. Yet I felt this piece was a bit forced and unconvincing. The book has a nice start, raises ones curiosity quick then drifts a bit. I think that the story was damaged by the use of a love story with Suleika. Her character was uninteresting, obstuctive, and could have been replaced with a good dog. It almost seemed as though Watkins felt forced to insert love scenes that went nowhere. Each mention of her seemed to bring about a roadbump in the story. I wonder if there was a rewrite that caused this. The death of her husband, with no explainations as to who he was, seemed unpolished. Was Watkins (character in the book) first supposed to be more of an outsider? That would make more sense then coming to town and having the other spy fall in love with you, being that her husband is dead and all. I must also say that naming the main character the same as yourself is a bit much. It made me take pause and wonder if I should continue to the end. In fairness I did enjoy the story itself. The interactions with the old friend and the days in camp were very interesting and well done. I would hope that this kind of detailing continues in his future work and that the heavy romance takes a back seat.
Rating:
Summary: The Story of My Disappearance
Review: I picked up this book in London. I decided to look under the last shelf of the "Fiction A-Z by Author" section of my local bookshop, and chanced upon Paul Watkins' most recent novel. This is a good yarn. The narrator, Paul Weidekind, and his girlfriend Suleika are fishermen in North Eastern USA. Their apparently honest, hardworking life on the sea is turned upside down by the appearance on shore of someone for Weidekind's past who he thought he had left behind long ago. I don't want to detail the plot here as that would spoil it. Suffice to say this is a great thriller. Watkins' own experience on a deep sea trawler in North Eastern USA have clearly lent to his detailed descriptions of a fishermans' life. Watkins' also chooses historical contexts in many of his novels, as this one does. In short, I read this book in about two days. I recommend it wholeheartedly. You won't be disappointed.
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