As a huge Dan Simmons fan I wanted to love this book as much as his other works. HOWEVER...This book was released right between The Crook Factory and The Abominable. Both of those books are Mona Lisa's in the author's list of works. How does Simmons do it? Coming off his Sci Fi binge into his historical fiction era Darwin's Blade slices right through the action and inserts itself into its own little niche. This book is fast, to the point and will give you whiplash if you are not ready for it.
I am sure I am not the only person who noticed this...Taking into account the timeline when it was written which at the time the internet was still a fledgling tool. This book is string of Darwin awards stories chained together in a pretty good action story. At that time on the internet these stories were in heavy circulation and the Darwin Awards website was one of the most heavily visited online. Literally every death in this book is on that website. Yet somehow, Simmons being the genius he is manages to take us on an edge of our seats ride. The action in this book is second to none and scathing. The research Simmons did in order to tell this story is amazing. I will say that I did not like the Character of Darwin very much. His macho over the top actionesque machismo is nearly 007ish. But the story is good, the last few pages are kind of pointless but the contrast is there. Simmons just could not resist another Darwin award without closing the story. Considering he did this and did not give more background on the motivations of the criminals left me wanting a little more. This is Dan Simmons though... He has shown his readers that he is capable of writing in any genre and doing it better than the contemporaries of said genre... he gets a pass. ( )

Very good mystery about accident investigator who knows too much. Written by SF writer in different style.

Darwin Minor recibe llamadas a todas horas que solicitan su presencia en escenas de accidentes difícilmente creíbles. Como experto en reconstrucción de accidentes, Darwin utiliza la ciencia y el instinto para descubrir las causas reales de los desastres automovilísticos. A pesar de que su vida está organizada para no involucrarse emocionalmente en su trabajo, todo está a punto de cambiar. Una serie de siniestros aparentemente aleatorios le conducen por un arriesgado y peligroso camino.

It was a pretty entertaining read. TMI on all the gun stuff that doesn't fascinate me. ( )

Some good bits, but bloated and over-written ( )