My New Year's resolution...
... is to stop ignoring my blog for a change. I've let a lot of stuff slip since I got married and I'm trying to reform. We'll see how long that lasts.
Anyway, I'm starting fresh with a journal of all the books I read for fun in 2005. I doubt anyone wants to know what I thought of such scintillating tomes as Level Three Leadership: Getting Below the Surface and The Leader's Companion, both of which are required texts for my Information Leadership course. These definitely don't fall into the category of "fun books."
First up for the new year is Arturo Perez-Reverte's The Seville Communion. Perez-Reverte is a Spanish author that's finally starting to gain a following in the States, despite the fact that he's been one of Spain's most popular authors for about 10 years now. His debut novel, The Flanders Panel, remains my gold standard for literary mysteries, mostly because I can understand it without aid of a Latin dictionary (yes, Umberto Eco, I'm looking at you). The Seville Communion won't change my top pick for the genre, but it's still an enjoyable novel for fans of highbrow mystery.
The novel follows Father Lorenzo Quart, a Vatican insider whose main role for Mother Church has been to investigate all manner of mysterious happenings while keeping it completely quiet to prevent a scandal. Quart's latest assignment begins when a hacker breaks into the Pope's personal computer to leave him a message regarding a crumbling, almost forgotten church in Seville known as Our Lady of Tears. Two men involved with the church have died in what appear to be accidents, but the anonymous hacker indicates there might be more to the story. Intrigued by the hacker's ingenuity, the Pope sends Quart to Seville to investigate and make a full report. What Quart finds is a church in ruins, with a group of devotees eager to restore the building to its former glory. Viewed with skepticism as an outsider, Quart struggles to learn the truth behind this unusual church without breaking his vows or getting himself killed in the process.
The Seville Communion is much less of a mystery than Perez-Reverte's other novels, but his ruminations on the Catholic Church and its relationship to religious faith make the book a worthwhile read. Perez-Reverte is a wonderfully lyrical storyteller, and while I'm sure his works are more powerful in the original much of that feeling comes across even through the somewhat grimy lens of translation. His characters are complicated, imperfect people, and Perez-Reverte is definitely skilled at making you feel a connection to them in spite (or perhaps because of) their flaws. Unfortunately, said characters are also a little stock - guy with gambling problem looking to make one big score, disaffected housewife, bumbling criminals, etc. While the book is very good, it's not up to Perez-Reverte's standards. You can safely skip this one, but don't miss The Flanders Panel and The Nautical Chart - both of these will give you a much better sense of just how good he is.
I've also got some reviews coming up over at The Mystery Reader - look for my comments on Priscilla Royal's Tyrant of the Mind (the sophomore outing from a Poisoned Pen Press author) and Ashley Gardner's The Glass House soon.
Anyway, I'm starting fresh with a journal of all the books I read for fun in 2005. I doubt anyone wants to know what I thought of such scintillating tomes as Level Three Leadership: Getting Below the Surface and The Leader's Companion, both of which are required texts for my Information Leadership course. These definitely don't fall into the category of "fun books."
First up for the new year is Arturo Perez-Reverte's The Seville Communion. Perez-Reverte is a Spanish author that's finally starting to gain a following in the States, despite the fact that he's been one of Spain's most popular authors for about 10 years now. His debut novel, The Flanders Panel, remains my gold standard for literary mysteries, mostly because I can understand it without aid of a Latin dictionary (yes, Umberto Eco, I'm looking at you). The Seville Communion won't change my top pick for the genre, but it's still an enjoyable novel for fans of highbrow mystery.
The novel follows Father Lorenzo Quart, a Vatican insider whose main role for Mother Church has been to investigate all manner of mysterious happenings while keeping it completely quiet to prevent a scandal. Quart's latest assignment begins when a hacker breaks into the Pope's personal computer to leave him a message regarding a crumbling, almost forgotten church in Seville known as Our Lady of Tears. Two men involved with the church have died in what appear to be accidents, but the anonymous hacker indicates there might be more to the story. Intrigued by the hacker's ingenuity, the Pope sends Quart to Seville to investigate and make a full report. What Quart finds is a church in ruins, with a group of devotees eager to restore the building to its former glory. Viewed with skepticism as an outsider, Quart struggles to learn the truth behind this unusual church without breaking his vows or getting himself killed in the process.
The Seville Communion is much less of a mystery than Perez-Reverte's other novels, but his ruminations on the Catholic Church and its relationship to religious faith make the book a worthwhile read. Perez-Reverte is a wonderfully lyrical storyteller, and while I'm sure his works are more powerful in the original much of that feeling comes across even through the somewhat grimy lens of translation. His characters are complicated, imperfect people, and Perez-Reverte is definitely skilled at making you feel a connection to them in spite (or perhaps because of) their flaws. Unfortunately, said characters are also a little stock - guy with gambling problem looking to make one big score, disaffected housewife, bumbling criminals, etc. While the book is very good, it's not up to Perez-Reverte's standards. You can safely skip this one, but don't miss The Flanders Panel and The Nautical Chart - both of these will give you a much better sense of just how good he is.
I've also got some reviews coming up over at The Mystery Reader - look for my comments on Priscilla Royal's Tyrant of the Mind (the sophomore outing from a Poisoned Pen Press author) and Ashley Gardner's The Glass House soon.
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home