When the Ravens Die

Rating:
Summary: When the Ravens Die
Review: For all intrigue lovers and American Anglophiles, here is a book that will entertain you during both slow summer days and long winter evenings. Or rather who could resist the story of British Royal family political intrigue and romance of the lonely hearts all intertwined with the American professor's quest for his ancestral roots and much more?
As we accompany Malcolm Bride, gentlemanly, principled and "ruggedly handsome" professor of American history at Amherst, on his long-postponed trip to England, little do we know the twists and turns his search for ancestors will take. We move quickly from quaint London inn to Hall of Records and dark cemeteries, follow winding streets from English pubs and underground clubs to Windsor Castle, polo matches and dinner parties at Kensington. As the scenes change from chapter to chapter, the cast of noble and scumbag characters, both royal and ordinary, is introduced with nuanced descriptive details. The dialogs are spirited with particularly witty and sharp exchanges between Bride and Colin Crowe, the reporter for BBC Radio 4 on the scent of a "hot," Royal bloods' story.
A long-time journalist himself, Mr. Kent brings his characters to life with a keen sense of reality and drama as he masters "the random timing and juxtaposition of life's little events." The inner politics of the Royal family, however imaginary, play on modern readers' zest for gossip and offer a thrill of insider's view of celebrities. We feel privy to conversations, feelings and situations otherwise far removed from our daily lives. Bride's original quest for truth gets complicated when it turns into a story of deception and murder. As lies proliferate and stories are fabricated in order to discover an actual story, the very nature of truth today is questioned. A post-modern reader finds pleasure in the realization that we are reading a made-up story about truth that can be reached only through creating more untruths. The climax of coronation scene is slightly tinted by the cowboy bravado of western-like chases and escapes crowding the closing chapters of the book. Still the big questions about the nature of truth and how we get to it today powerfully resonate in the reader's mind till the very last page of When the Ravens Die. Enjoy reading it as much as I did.

Rating:
Summary: Highly Recommend!
Review: I found I really liked the cover alot, and was the reason I even looked at the book. The story itself was very good, enjoyed all the twist and turns as well as the characters. I am happy to have added to by book collection, and recommend. Cudo's to the illustrator of the cover!

Rating:
Summary: First Time reviewer
Review: This is a very intense book, hard to put down. You want to keep reading to see what on earth could happen next to the main character of the book. This person could be a continuing series for Mr. Kent!! It makes you wonder what he's going to do next with his life after finding out all he did about his past.. I hope Mr. Kent keeps writing, I will buy his next book!