Jason StarrBesprekingen
Auteur van Bust
Besprekingen
~ DYING WAS ONLY THE BEGINNING.
Steven Blitz didn't think about his own safety when he saw the man trying to force a woman into his car. He stepped in to defend her, and got a knife to the gut for his troubles ~
THE ONLY DOWNSIDE
The editing/proofreading is absolutely pathetic! If in fact anyone did proofread this book they should be fired immediately.
And like it says on the back cover:
"When you hire a hit man to kill your wife, don't pick a psychopath." Words to live by!
I am a huge fan of the series so was delighted when I found this book in my local library, but the delight was short lived.
The good:
This reminds you of past events of you haven't watched the show in a long time. It has some brief mentions of some characters (e.g. Jerome, Cobblepot, etc.) that you wouldn't expect to encounter.
The bad:
The story was boring and predictable. If you have watched Gotham then you already know almost everything that's going to happen, anything you don't know is just filler and is not important.
Every female character was written in the same way - great body, really sexy, delicious hips, etc. and with a completely crazy personality, so there was no variation between the "slutty" news reporter, Harvey Bullock's partner, Fish Mooney, or Martha Wayne.
The editing was terrible. Some sentences made no sense whatsoever, the grammar was sloppy at parts (confusing who and whom, ending sentences in a preposition, etc.).
Some of the characters don't keep to their characters, and there are other inconsistencies. For example, Bruce Wayne was very well written throughout the book only to then comment on how he thought the movie was "kinda lame" at the very end. This is not the way he speaks. He is very well spoken and eloquent for the first 99% of the book, there is no other occurrence of him speaking like this and no reason for him to do so. Leslie Thomkins is mentioned in the book briefly and is called a psychiatrist, in the series she works in Arkham Asylum but she is a medical doctor in the female ward, not any sort of therapist. In the series all of the mobile phones are old chunky phones as it is set in the mid-90's or so (a year is never specified), in the novel people use smart phones despite it being set before the series.
I give this book 2/5 stars as I didn't give up on it, but I would not recommend it to anyone. If you're a fan of the show you are not missing anything by not reading this.
Read this as follow up to the excellent Hard Feelings. This one... not so much. Good premise. Man shoots burgler unnecessarily during a home break in and must slowly pay retribution (to the burgler's partner). Good: wife/husband dynamic- the inner life that Starr writes about very well... in that we see how self deluded the characters are (heros in their own story) .. I love that part. Also the wife has some appealing faults. The adult live at home daughter is not much of anything, yet she is the survivor, not esp. satisfying. The avenger - the would be Casanova - is not too interesting, though an nice attempt at a psychopath. Conclusion is far fetched and ... easy.
Steven Blitz is not really a hero when he defends the girl at the gas station. He is on his way to his brother’s house, because his wife has just kicked him out, but he observes a situation and tries to do the right thing. He’s a hard worker, wants to be successful, but he’s sacrificed relationships and his marriage for work, and his wife’s choices reflect that. His rescue effort gets him a knife in the gut, and he fades away, sure he’s dying.
Until . . . he wakes up in the hospital. That can’t be right; that stab wound was fatal. He was sure of it. But maybe miracles do happen. He’s still Steven Blitz, his wife is still his wife, his brother is still his brother, but things are just a tad off. They’ve shifted a bit to the left – or is it to the right? He still feels like that essentially good guy whose wife just threw him out, who tried to save a woman in danger, because he’s got the memories of the Steven Blitz he was when he (thought he) died. But even though he feels like Good Steve, facts he discovers seem to say otherwise. He's surprised – and pleased – to see his wife now seems to love him. And he has a daughter! But now that’s he got the loving family he wanted and thinks whatever this new reality is it might be pretty good, his mistress contacts him and he finds evidence of his dishonesty in all areas of his life. He’s confused and frightened: his wife is now good but he’s bad? Is he dead after all, is this heaven, a trick, what’s up?
He notices more and more subtle changes beyond himself and the people he knows. There are changes in technology, entertainment, history, and he begins to believe he really has stepped into the Twilight Zone, into an alternate reality. His research (through something not Google) tells him things changed about 22 years ago, and that’s when this life began to be different from his “other life.” He tries to change things, correct the mistakes, get the best of both worlds. He thinks he has the power to do just that. But does he? Is this new reality a second chance, the opportunity to make things right, to learn from his mistakes? Or is there an infinite set of realities where everything is off just a smidge from the previous one, and nothing is quite perfect? And does he have to die each time to move to the next reality? I hate spoilers, so you’ll have to read The Next Time I Die to find out. Finding out is the best part of the book!
The Next Time I Die is well-written, cleverly plotted, and engaging, exciting and suspenseful. The characters, whether in their good or their bad personas, draw you in and make you wish for a magic switch to merge all the good and dispose of all the bad. Jason Starr has written a novel that you won’t be able to put down. Don’t twist yourself up trying to get logically from Point A to Point B to Point C . . . just enjoy the dilemmas and danger and the endless possibilities this book will force you to confront. Thanks to Hard Case Crime for providing an advance copy of The Next Time I Die for my reading pleasure and honest review. They have a knack for discovering the best books and authors and The Next Time I Die takes its rightful place on that list. I thoroughly enjoyed it, even the headache-inducing what-if’s, and recommend it without hesitation. All opinions are my own.
Starr's writing, as always, is engaging and propulsive. While not in the exact same vein as a typical Hard Case Crime book, I still recommend it.
Steven sees a man attempting to shove a woman into his car, he intervenes and ends up stabbed. When he wakes up in the Hospital, there is no signs of a stab wound, and a (He has) new diagnosis. Also current events have changed in the world and his personal life.
His wife is loving, caring and kind, which is perplexing since they were heading towards divorce. He also learns he has a daughter and they have the perfect family. Soon he finds he may not be the nice guy he thinks he is. Life is about to take a confusing and dangerous course, unless he can figure out how to make things right.
The story moves at a fast pace, with twist, turns, chills an thrills. Watching the events constantly change, seeing how Steven thinks and feels had me on the edge of my seat. His life begins to unravel, in this butter fly effect of events, if he could just get someone to listen....
Overall I found The Next Time I Die very enjoyable. I highly recommend to those who enjoy, bizarre, fascinating, thought-provoking crime thrillers. A must read.
It's like Mr. Starr couldn't think of a better plot line than using a 14 year old's infatuation with an older boy as a source of conflict between father and daughter. It's a boring source Mr. Starr. Why couldn't the conflict be about Cassie's desire to be more involved with Scott's Ant-Man heroics and wanting to help? Instead, we get a bout of petty jealousy between Cassie and a friend over a boy which results in an ill advised usage of the Ant-Man suit for an act of an even more petty bit of revenge on said friend who, after Cassie sort of apologizes to her, disappears completely from the story. Zzzzz.
The more interesting story centers around the kidnapping plot with its sharp twist, the scientist who wants to steal Pym's tech for her own use, and the FBI agent Carlos, who could actually become a friend in time.
Also, we get to visit Tony Stark and his girlfriend, Pepper Potts for a bit.
This wasn’t for me. The premise was good. Two guys break into a family’s home thinking the family is away. Turns out family is home. One burglar gets killed by the homeowner. The other gets away. Then the burglar who got away stalks the family and starts a relationship with the daughter. It all sounds like it will be a good thriller. Except it’s not.
I didn’t care for any of the characters. I was bored reading it. It took me two tries to get through the book. I’m trying to think of constructive criticisms. I would tell the author to give me something about the characters that I can get to know, and care about, them. I disliked everyone. It’s hard to care when you don’t get to know anyone. Also stop telling me the criminal, Johnny Long, looks just like Johnny Depp. I’m a huge Johnny Depp fan and this part just bothered me. I mean I love seeing him mentioned in a book. This was just overkill, though.
The author had an interesting story to work with. Actually there were parts of the break in that were intense but the author lost the intensity rapidly. I should have been worried about Marissa when she met Johnny, (AKA Xan). I should have been wondering how badly thing were going to spiral. I should have been thinking about her father and mother meeting Xan. I should have wanted to hit someone or been scared for someone. Instead, I was yawning and telling myself I can power through reading it.
There really wasn’t any mystery to solve. There wasn’t enough tension or fear. It was just another day in New York City. I just couldn’t get into it. I would tell you, the potential reader, to check out a sample and see if it is for you. Everyone has different taste. Just because it didn’t work for me doesn’t mean it won’t work for you.
I do have to say, though, that this story works so much better in the trade collection. I read the very first issue back when it came out and, while it was interesting, it didn't give me a sense of where the story was actually headed. Turns out, if I can stayed on for issue two, I might have continued on.
But as a trade, the story's all here, ready to be consumed in one big gulp. And it's so much better than I thought it would be.
Everything clicks here. The writing is very good, with characters that are aggravating and real. No one likes an asshole who's usually right, and from start to finish, I really didn't like Eduardo, but he was a well-written asshole. And all the other characters were equally well written.
Now, was the Texan family a little too much Texas Chainsaw Massacre, "don't mess with Texas"? I'm guessing an argument could be made that way, but for the short run of this story, they provided a nice counterpoint to the Mexican cartel.
The other stuff that clicks is the art. Oh, the art. Will Conrad's art is simply gorgeous. Detailed, hyper-realistic, and it just flows beautifully. Not sure I've read anything else that he's done, or maybe this is just his time to shine, but I'll definitely watch for him going forward.
And Ivan Nunes has to be mentioned with equal measure, because, as good as Conrad's line work is, Nunes completely elevates it with a simply stunning colour palette. It's not often that I point to colouring in a comic, but this one absolutely deserves all the nods.
Overall, just a fun little story. It ain't gonna change the world, but it'll definitely take you away from this one for an hour or so.
1 Sentence Summary: Stay-at-home dad falls into a werewolf pack and tries to save his failing marriage.
What I Liked: Watching the Simon slowly discover his physical changes.
What I Didn't Like: Minimal character development. Mostly one-dimensional.
Overall Recommendation: 3/5 stars. OK, quick read.
Vertigo was already the mature imprint of DC Comics when they started Vertigo Crime back in 2009. The whole line used a smaller format than the usual comics and GNs published by DC, they were all in black and white and published as hardcovers. Most of the writers for the new line were not ones you would usually associate with comics - which made most of the stories stronger and different.
"The Chill" starts in Ireland where an old curse is awaken when a young woman has sex for the first time. A few decades later, people start dying in New York - and it looks ritualistic and weird. If one pays attention, they will realize that either the illustrator has messed up much earlier in New York or something else is indeed weird (nope, it is not the illustrator). The old curse had crossed the ocean and the woman and her father are now killing in the big city. And the only man who knows what is going on is the one who survived back in Ireland - and who seems to have enough problems to become a suspect when he finally shows up.
The whole novel is steeped into Irish/Celtic legends, pulling pieces of them and rewriting them to fit the story and the narrative. Magic and immortality clash together into a time when noone believes in either; there is even an Irish priest who everyone respects (and who turns out to be anything but respectable). And somewhere under the gore and death, there is a love story. Because while the curse and the story demand sacrifices, love seems to be the only thing that can beat it all. Or at least to change it enough so the victims of it can live with it.
The twist at the end completes a circle - even if it seems like a tale of redemption for most of the novel for some of the characters, it is anything but. And the reversal of roles adds to that.
The novel is explicit - both in language and in its images and sex and gore are shown as matter of fact. Which is why Vertigo needed the new imprint after all. And the art by Bertilorenzi fits the story perfectly, almost too perfectly in places - as with all good GNs, the art carries the stories even further.
If you are looking for a deep tale about Celtic cults and what's not, look elsewhere - this is not it. The sex and the curse it unleashes (or the special power if you wish) are the point of the novel. And it executes them very well.
"The Chill" ended up winning Starr a second Anthony awards - after he won one in 2005 for Best paperback original, this one gave him the one for Best GN - in the first and only year in which the Anthony awards acknowledged the existence of the medium and used one of its wildcard spots to give it an award.
Onze site gebruikt cookies om diensten te leveren, prestaties te verbeteren, voor analyse en (indien je niet ingelogd bent) voor advertenties. Door LibraryThing te gebruiken erken je dat je onze Servicevoorwaarden en Privacybeleid gelezen en begrepen hebt. Je gebruik van de site en diensten is onderhevig aan dit beleid en deze voorwaarden.
I do, Mr. Starr. I do. This was a weird book. The main character, Steven Blitz, gets stabbed and dies. But not really. He wakes up in the hospital, in a different version, or 'strand', of his life. Then after a long exploration of this version of his life, he dies again. Then he wakes up in yet another 'strand'...
So it's one of those alt-timeline of one man's life stories, and this guy is pretty much unlikable in all of them! It reads really fast, which is good because I don't know how many more of Mr. Blitz's life strand's I could have taken.
My favorite part of this book was the following: “Donald Trump? In 2014 he was convicted on three counts of sexual assault and is serving a twenty-year sentence at Sing Sing Correctional Facility.” Now that is an alt-reality I can totally get behind!