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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
I wanted a quick read that somewhat holds my interest and this filled the bill this week. Light, with a few twists especially at the end. I'm not looking for deep when I read Mr. Smith's books, just some humor and easy prose.
I've read many of his books and the first in this series, but for some reason none connected with me like this one. Perhaps is was her philosophical way of going over everything in her head (overthinking some would say), or perhaps I secretly long to return to Edinbugh. I simply, thoroughly enjoyed this bool!
See, now this is the problem with pigeon-holing an author. The author of this book, [author: Alexander McCall Smith] is known for writing mysteries. So, some lazy categorizer slapped a "mystery" sticker on the binding and I picked it up, expecting a certain kind of book. But this book isn't a mystery. Nothing really mysterious happens until page 265 of a 276-page novel. And even then, the characters all assume they know who did it, and don't really plan to do anything.
That's not to say that I didn't like the book; I did. It's just that it's more of a love story than anything else. Not a lot of drama, or action, just quiet, normal people living and interacting. Which is high praise coming from me: It was a comfortable, thoughtful book, perfect for the rainy day that yesterday was.
That's not to say that I didn't like the book; I did. It's just that it's more of a love story than anything else. Not a lot of drama, or action, just quiet, normal people living and interacting. Which is high praise coming from me: It was a comfortable, thoughtful book, perfect for the rainy day that yesterday was.
McCall Smith muses and meanders through another Isabel Dalhousie novel. Not much happens until the end: Isabel is curious and exhibits a bit of stalking behaviour at the beginning. A bit of hard work needed to get through this book but will continue with the series as it provides a nice break from my preferred Nordic cold climate murder mysteries.
Starting out I didn't really like the book, the characters seemed pretty shallow and half of it was just constant engagement in pointless philosophical questions that seemed pretty childish and not at all as complex as the author/main character tried to make them seem. However half way through I almost started to semi - enjoy reading it, the story is still definitely lacking depth in my opinion, but overall I guess it's just a positive easy read.
Like taking a gentle punt down the river in a boat. Sometimes a bit slow but generally very enjoyable.
A lot of readers might be put off by the lacking of mystery in this book (there's a bit of one in there, but it's very very insignificant to the plot, sadly), but I actually loved that Smith put so much effort into character and relationship developments. Really, this volume was more of a romance than a mystery, which I enjoyed because of how much I've grown to love the characters. I was pretty excited for Isabel to finally be getting some of the much-needed love she's been craving, and am greatly looking forward to reading the 4th in the series. I didn't expect to fall in love with this series, but with a protagonist like Isabel it was hard for me not to.
