Wednesday 15 December 2010

URBAN FANTASY HUMOUR: Lost - Gregory Maguire

Release Date: 16/08/10

BOOK BLURB:

A compelling ghost story from the internationally bestselling author of WICKED Winifred Rudge, a writer struggling to get beyond the runaway success of her mass-market astrology book, travels to London to start her new novel about the ghost of Jack the Ripper. Upon her arrival, she finds that her step-cousin and old friend John Comestor has disappeared, and a ghostly presence seems to have taken over his home. Is the spirit Winnie's great-great-grandfather, who, family legend claims, was Charles Dickens's childhood inspiration for Ebenezer Scrooge? Could it be the ghostly remains of Jack the Ripper? Or a phantasm derived from a more arcane and insidious origin? Winnie begins to investigate and finds herself the unwilling audience for a drama of specters and shades - some from her family's peculiar history and some from her own unvanquished past.


REVIEW:

What Gregory has always done well in his writing is his character creation, it gives you someone that you can not only empathise with but want to spend time with which, as far as I’m concerned is the cornerstone for any novel.

However whilst the prose and humour was just as sharp as ever what this title lacked was any clear plot outline as it felt like the more idea’s the author had the more he added without any real thought as to cohesion for the project as a whole. This just led to confusion, a great deal of head scratching and to be honest will be something that will leave a lot of people wondering whether he’s all spent up with the previous two offerings.

2 comments:

Julie-Anne said...

This must be a re-release 'cos I read this a couple years back.

It's a good story.

Angela Addams said...

I didn't like this book at all - in fact, I don't like much of anything he writes anymore. Wicked was awesome, beyond that nothing has been as great.