[ConnieK]

Has anyone here read this? I enjoyed his book, The Terror, but reviews I've read so far for this book have been either very good or very bad.

 

[pidgeon92]

Haven't read it.... The single review on the Amazon page is rather... eccentric.... 

I haven't read The Terror yet, but I enjoyed a lot of his earlier books, several of which are not yet available for the Kindle.... 

 

[ConnieK]

I only became familiar with him with The Terror and did not think to check his earlier books.  Are there any in particular that you recommend?  Also, I just checked the hardback copy of the Drood on Amazon and there are several more reviews there.

BTW - I see you are from Waukegan.  I grew up nearby in Liberyville.  Did you get hit with much snow today.  I'm on the north side of Chicago now and it has been snowing non-stop all day.  Light, fluffy stuff but there must be 2-3 inches.  Dogs are loving it! (at least when I get off this board.  )

 

[pidgeon92]

Connie, we know each other from the Oberon discussions... I thought you were in Gurnee. Only about an inch of snow tonight.

I really enjoyed this non-Kindle book:



This one is available:

 

[Geemont]

I finished Drood a few days ago. While Simmons is an excellent writer overall, and there is much to admire about this novel, I think it fell short of better books.

You have to remember that narrator, Wilkie Collins, is envious, drug addicted, and completely unreliable. Normally, these are elements I'd really enjoy, but for me parts were a little flat. I'd give it three out of five stars.

I also read the DTV and was pinning for my Kindle the whole time.

 

[ConnieK]

Pidgeon92 - nope, married in Gurnee, but that's about it!  Thank you for the other Simmons' recommendations.

Geemont - Thanks for the review.  Think I might wait on this one, at least until the price goes down a bit.

 

[Yaykindle]

I know Dan Simmons from his Science Fiction Hyperion books
The first 2 of which are particularly good.
I haven't read any of his other works although
plan to read either Song of Kali or Carrion Comfort when I can.

 

[BlakeMP]

Before I got my Kindle (last week), I had a sort of mental checklist of books that I thought I'd want to read once I got it. Many of them, not surprisingly, were big brick-sized novels that would be way more convenient in e-reader form. This was one of the first books I downloaded after I got the device.

I'm enjoying it quite a bit, although I do have a few problems with it. The narrator is composing a book with the intention of it not being read until well after his death, which allows him certain freedoms to be frank about the people around him, but Simmons constantly makes references to the future of the reader, comparing things in Dickensian England to the 21st century in a way that makes Wilkie Collins seem unusually prescient, to the point where the writing gets awkward.

 

[telracs]

I downloaded the sample and tried to read it, but couldn't get into it and didn't buy the book. 

 

[DYB]

I tried reading "The Terror," but it didn't grab me.  I'm not sure I got passed page 80.  Should I have stuck with it?

 

[redshift1]

Essentially a mystery, intertwined with a perspective of Charles Dickens adult life, narrated by a close associate. Reads somewhat like a period piece using Victorian language and style but not offensively so. Most of the book is about the mercurial and supernatural character Drood and his strange influence on Dickens, but along the way Simmons introduces some interesting supporting characters like the Detective . Simmons books are well researched and he is particularly good at creating a realistic picture of whatever time period he is covering.

Drood is very long but rich in both atmosphere and prose but could probably lose 200 or so pages and remain creatively intact. This is not a quick paced book, rather more of a winter book for long evenings spent reading. I rate most of Simmons works 5 stars and he makes James Rollins book's look like finger painting.