Rating: Summary: Just Fantastic Review: This book was one of the best, if not the best, psychological thrillers I've ever read. This author just keeps getting better and better. The plot and the characterizations are unforgettable. I sincerely regretted it when I reached the end. If you are a mystery lover like I am, read this book; you'll love it.
Rating: Summary: 3 Things I Like About Walters & Why You Should Read This Boo Review: 1. She writes clear, lucid prose. She can describe and evoke people, places, and all manner of sensual and perceptual experiences without resort to the hermetic metaphors that pollute so much "serious" literature. In other words, you can read her books and know exactly what she is talking about. She writes to be read, not taught, decoded, or deconstructed.2. She creates characters that are fully-fleshed and she does not rely on stereotypes. She's smart to do this, because it allows her to surprise us and to torture us with suspense. You think a character is a good guy and he or she turns out to have the blackest of hearts. 3. She respects her readers. Characters may act stupidly, but their stupidity, as well as their intelligence, is always plausible. No one has a sudden brain infarct just to advance the plot. Her puzzles are intricate and their solution is intellectually ravishing, but all the i's are dotted and all the t's are crossed. "The Shape of Snakes" continues her unbroken hitting streak. A black woman is killed, but the police write it off as an accident. A young woman who insists it was murder is forced to flee abroad by a campaign of harrassment. Years later she returns to solve the crime. She does so not just by collecting and analyzing clues, but rather by investigating and seeking to understand the underlying assumptions about race, gender, and class that informed the characters' perceptions of the crime and the events that led up to it. I was hooked from the start and I was not disappointed when I finished. This is what mystery and suspense novels should be.
Rating: Summary: ALMOST HER BEST, BUT ... Review: ... not quite. Still not as good as THE SCULPTRESS. However, another intelligent and intriguing read from Walters. Maybe they breed them that way in the UK, because this is my fave read this summer apart from a book by another UK author: DEXTER DIAS'S amazing POWER OF ATTORNEY. Check them both out.
Rating: Summary: A bit of a disappointment, but still 4 stars Review: I usually give Walters' books 5 stars, but this one just isn't up to the level of the previous books. It's still a good read, just not what I've come to expect from her.
Rating: Summary: An outstanding reading experience Review: In 1978 England, schoolteacher, M Raneleigh finds her neighbor Ann Butts dying in the street. M believes someone murdered "Mad Annie", the only black person in the neighborhood. The police insist this was a hit and run in which the driver never knew they hit Mad Annie due to the nasty weather. Though Annie once called her a honky and was often seen talking to herself, M still feels something isn't Kosher about Annie's death. In her efforts to find out the truth, M becomes agoraphobic, anorexic, and a rift with her husband Sam occurs. Not long afterward, the Raneleighs reconcile and head overseas for the next two decades. When Sam suffers a heart attack, the Raneleighs, accompanied by their two teenage sons, return home. When M meets Annie's former doctor, Sheila Arnold, her interest resurfaces because she still believes that a homicide occurred. Sheila informs her that Ann was a nice person suffering from Tourette's Syndrome but kept a neat home with many valuable items inside. This goes against what the police report say about Annie living in squalor-like conditions. The doctor was in America when Ann died. M tries to rekindle interest in a closed case with no one else wanting it open. THE SHAPE OF SNAKES is a superb mystery that centers on the characters who feel very genuine in 1978 and two decades later. The ignorance towards Tourette's Syndrome and the bias towards blacks are cleverly included in M's "investigation." which is why Annie's disease and race make it easier to whitewash the case. Minette Walters keeps the audience guessing as to whether it was murder or an accident and that is the reason this literary mystery is a one sitting read. Harriet Klausner
Rating: Summary: "REVENGE IS A DISH BEST SAVORED COLD." Review: I don't remember at the moment who said that - some scholar can fill me in. I'm still reeling from the impact of this book. I would give it 10 stars if I could and I've never said that about another book I've reviewed. I think it is beside the point to expound on the book's plot - for one thing, other reviewers cover that topic; for another, to it would be useless, without giving away the plot, to try to put in a review how this book made me feel just about every human emotion there is with stunning clarity - emtions that slammed in so hard, I had to put the book down for a few moments quite a number of times. I am very surprised, as (somewhat embarrassedly admit) I ordered it on a whim for the simple reason that I had no other tempting thriller to read at the moment. In fact, heretofore I have felt lukewarm about Minette Walters' previous books, despite their critical acclaim. I did enjoy the made-for-television adaptions of "The Sculptress", "The Dark Room" and, to a lesser extent, "The Scold's Bridle", which made me think I liked the plots, but not the writing. Well, I retract all that now. The writing in this book was electrifying. Yes, it does deal with the darkest aspects human beings possess, as one reviewer mentioned, and if you don't have a strong stomach, be warned and stay away. In these days of work rage, road rage, racism, hate crimes, etc., it really does seem as if everyone thirsts mightily for revenge for wrongs done them. One would like to believe oneself could control this thirst for revenge - I did; but I don't anymore and there will be many more moments of reflection for me because of "The Shape of Snakes". "An eye for an eye" is an apt quotation, but here is a more intriguing one from the book: (an old Chinese proverb says) "If you wait long enough by the river, the bodies of your enemies will float by." If this book does not make you examine your own conscience, you don't have one.
Rating: Summary: More social drama than mystery Review: Fans of Minette Walters are used to her books being intense, dark and demanding. The Shape Of Snakes is no exception. The book is told in first person narrative by Mrs. Ranelagh in whose arms Annie Butts died 20 years ago. At the time of Annie's death Mrs. Ranelagh (whose first name is never mentioned) failed to convince the police to launch an investigation, but as we slowly learn she has never stopped in her efforts, collecting information all these years with the ultimate goal to get the case reopened. Why she is so intent on a proper investigation after all this time is not revealed until much later in the book. In true Walters' fashion the truth is discovered bit by tiny bit, lies and deception stripped away layer by layer. Letters, pictures and emails help to understand the motivation of people as Mrs. Ranelagh continues to work towards her goal taking the reader through an ever-growing nightmare of hate, envy and despair. I am tempted to call this Ms Walters' best work yet, but that's what I said after finishing almost all her books. Highly recommended for all those interested in the darker aspects of the human mind.
Rating: Summary: Shapeshifter Extraordinaire Review: The death of Ann Butts "Mad Annie", a black woman with Tourette's Syndrome in November of 1978 is the fulcrum of this tale told twenty years later by the narrator, Mrs. Ranelagh. Though death was ruled "death by misadventure," Mrs. Ranelagh is certain it was murder. Her obsession with the death of a woman she barely knew leaves the reader doubtful of her credibility and sets the tone of this ambitious novel. Ms. Walters is the past master of designing all of her well-drawn characters with shades of deniability. We are never allowed to assure ourselves that any one character is the hero and has right and might on his or her side. The neighborhood of Graham Road where Miss Butts lived and died was a mixed bag of up and coming young couples, retirees, and a few families that were on the dole. We come to know them well. Some are vicious, violent bigots or appear to be, some are secret and not-so-secret philanderers, and all have reasons to not be forthcoming about the events leading to Miss Butts' death. Mrs. Ranelagh seems the most straightforward, but we doubt her stability and motives. The cruelty and persecution that Miss Butts endured is hard to stomach; I was wrenched with pity. In this respect, the book is difficult to read. However, Ms. Walters wends her way in such an absorbing manner, giving us a new puzzle or twist every few pages that we constantly have to shift our preconceptions and let her lead us where she will. Once involved in her tale, she has you hooked. "The Shape of Snakes" meets and sometimes exceeds Ms. Walters' previous fine books. She takes on social issues and makes them an integral part of this story. For new readers, you are in for a fine read. For those familiar with Ms. Walters' excellent work, you will not be disappointed.
Rating: Summary: Clever and compelling Review: Without question, this is Walters' best book since The Sculptress. The Shape of Snakes has perfectly drawn (some vicious and unpleasant, some unexpectedly touching) characters; a plot that is the ultimate in sinuous complexityÑmade moreso by various pieces of correspondence (and even photographs) carefully intercut throughout the bookÑand not an ounce of excess fat anywhere. "Food for thought" doesn't begin to convey the depth of the messages contained in this book: about women, about racism, about ownershipÑbe it of people, property, or things. Intelligent, adult, truthful, and perceptive; I cannot praise this book enough. It is flawless. Most highly recommended.
Rating: Summary: A Sweet Turn Around Review: You cannot ever fault a Minette Walters book. This superb story will keep you reading to the last. What makes this book so special is that it is not your standard crime novel with the police seen as always the good guys. It is obsessive until the end and you will really wonder where it is leading you. Love crime read this one.
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