Good, But Disappointing
593389
I chose this book after it was suggested to me by a friend, as a good read. In some ways, the storyline is intriguing. The MC was entertaining in his own way, and the side characters Yimt and his dwarf friend were extremely fun to read along with. And who can forget a drunk pelican? :)

However, near the middle, the circumstances became slightly confusing, and the hinted-at romance never came to fruition, or at least some sort of recognition. It mostly faded away. My biggest irritation was two-fold; the end with the Star and the choice the MC makes. And, I was annoyed that the last few chapters--to me--read as if the author was setting up for the second book. Do that in the epilogue, and give me all the action and climax in the chapters themselves.
1728232
As other reviewers mentioned, Josefowicz is a good violinist, though I wouldn't put her in the top ranks as Shaham and Chang.  Personally, I think she lacks the real passion required to be truly great.

However, the music chosen to show her talent was disappointing.  I expected an album entitled "Bohemian Rhapsodies" to be *much* more lively.  Instead, we're left with "Poeme" by Chausson and other equally somnolent pieces.  The "Carmen Fantasy" is a good introduction, and the "Rondo Capriccioso" of Saint-Saens is one of my favorite violin pieces, up there with Bruch's famous "Violin Concerto in G minor".  However, these two pieces are not enough to make the entire CD a good buy.
79308
I had high hopes for this book based on reviews I read and the plot description.  Unfortunately, it wasn't as great as I expected.  The first half of the book was very enticing.  Everything from when Alec & Isabella met through when they were co-existing in his hideout was top-notch.  Alec's character was very appealing, although his kind, gentle and sensitive nature didn't seem like the traits of an underworld leader. I was a little disappointed that it took so long for Isabella to recognize her feelings for Alec, but when she finally did things got exciting again.

Robards seemed to rush the ending of the book by skipping months at a time.  It would have been much more appealing to have had everything happen at once.  I also would have enjoyed more interactions between Alec and the people who were involved in Isabella's life before her abduction.

Overall the book was a good read, but I was expecting more.  If you're already a Robards fan, you will enjoy it.  If not, start with DARK OF THE MOON, so far that's her best, in my opinion.
1814381
Dawn is a good book.  Not great, but good.  It picks up right where Dusk left off with Kosar and the gang trying to find a way to stop Noreela from being destroyed.  The problem the book seems to have to me is that the other characters other than Kosar just aren't interesting.  Trey I could care less about, Alishia is unconcious the entire novel basically, and Hope is just annoying and stupid.  I hated her in Dusk and still hate her now.

The Mages continue their invasion of Noreela, but I just don't feel that Lebbon made them as terrifying as they were implied to be in Dusk.  They seemed rather pedestrian for some people that were supposed to bring about the end of the world.  I was expecting some cold-blooded killers, when in reality they were just dull to me.

The Shanti were interesting enough I guess, although they really don't get used properly until the last half of the book.

The most interesting part other than Kosar is the Red Monk Lucien that accompanies him to New Shanti.  I love the fact that Lebbon doesn't really say what they are, but drops hints as to what they COULD be without ever really confirming it.  It makes Lucien a much deeper character and his "change of heart" all the more interesting to read.

I know there were a lot of complaints here but the book itself is not that bad.  Its just that Dusk is so much more amazing to me, probably because of the opening scene to it alone.
3532363
Salvation is the weakest of the nine collections, but that isn't to say it is bad in any way, it's still a darn good book (and really, it is only weak compared to its own work, and not that much weaker). The real problem is that for a while we are taken completely out of Jesse's quest to find God. And Tulip and Cassady are both missing. Maybe for a one shot it would have worked, but we were too far from where we need to be, especially at this point.
1284644
When the book came (finally) out, I couldn't wait to start. The beginning was good, but middle and end of the book really disappointed me.
The characters changed to much from the earlier books (not developed, but really changed). Furthermore, there are too much characters, it is hardly duable to keep track of everybody.  In the first two books I really liked the heroin of the book, Diana, but in this book I thought she started to be obnoxious and arrogant. The end is acceptable but not really satisfying, I expected more of it. Nevertheless I enjoyed the "All souls trilogy", especially the first two books. I am curious to see the next books of Deborah Harkness.
4594695
I would rate this 3-1/2 stars, but it had the potential to be a 4 star book. What I liked about the book, which revolved around Holt, the half-brother and (fourth of McKettrick's brothers stories in this series), was that it was well-written, had descriptive and detailed prose and vivid, interesting and diverse characters.  I was disappointed for much of the same reasons -- the story, while well-written, had too many sub-plots.  It was difficult to know what was the "main" story being told.  Nor, was any chemistry whatsoever between Holt and Lorelei, though I kept reading in the hopes that there was a romance to be found.  There was no true dialogue between this hero and heroine, which would have allowed for such a relationship.  In fact, Lorelei had more conversations with Rafe (the brother)than with Holt.

The ending, while "satisfying" was also too good to be true, and felt a bit rushed. After reading pages that takes readers on a long journey, which included broken relationships, cattle drives, reunions and a bit of mystery, I expected more depth to the ending.
4374879
I've been a sugababes fan for years and have enjoyed all of their albums, from the more a cappalla one touch to the more dance Three. I looked forward to this album, but was a little dissapointed when I got it. The songs are still quite good (I still can't see why they haven't caught on in the US - I think that they are superior to many things on the radio now), I'm just don't think that the album has that same unique songs that you jump out at you like earlier albums do. Overall, it's great driving music, very repetitive in general is my one real criticism, several of the songs don't have many verses but just a repetitive chorus.
2662984
I have loved reading Cook's work ever since I read Chatham School Affair. I love his descriptions and how he brings his characters to life. This book, however, was a bit of a let down. The writing is there, but the motivation behind the actions of his characters is either lacking or too far out there to be believable. I would have loved to recommend it, but I have read better lately.
3958583
Having read most of Beth Gutcheon's books, I sat down with this one with high expectations.  The book failed to live up to them, but I will say this--it's a page-turner, because you do want to find out what happened to these women.
The book opens with four of the five girls back at their boarding school for a reunion.  IN the opening chapter, it is revealed that one of the five has committed suicide.  For the rest of the novel, you search for clues on why it happened--what drove her to it?  YOu also search for clues on what will become of these young women.  Unfortunately, the drama doesn't really pay off--you see the girls as adults again the in the final chapter, but it doesn't tell you much about either of these questions.
Having followed these girls throughout the book, it would be more interesting to see what became of them than to detail each and every last exploit of their boarding school years.  Perhaps the book should have been longer and done that.
This is a good book, but unlike "Saying Grace," "Five Fortunes," and "Still Missing," it isn't a great one.
2509584
I waited anxiously for this book but I am somewhat disappointed.  I did not like the 30 years jump ahead without a decent transition from the previous book.  A by-product of this lack of transition is that Chrisjen Avasarala, one of the primary characters of all the previous books did not appear until approximately the 7:30 mark of chapter 14 and then had a minor role in the rest of the book.  A good transition would have put her late appearance in perspective and made her minor role more palatable.  The same can also be said of all the main characters and the new main protagonist.

As usual when the action heats up the writing and storytelling is as good as the previous books

I do hope that the transition to the next book is much better.
2914330
I read the book over a year ago and it is certainly memorable.  The character of Lila and the pastor will stay with me forever.  That being said, the story was ultimately disappointing.  Lila's marriage to the pastor was the high point and I expected her character to evolve.  Instead, she remained the same closed off person and the conclusion, which SPOILER signalled that he would die and, since he was her only connection to society, she would be back on the road with their son was simply bleak.  I was left with a dark heavy feeling and not uplifted.  This is a very subjective but honest review.
491071
OK, I enjoyed reading this novel. The plot is well constructed at first, and there is a lot of action and suspense. But I was also disappointed. Unlike in the other novels the main characters - above all Joanna Blalock -  are not really consistent or believable in their presentation, with the  exception of Sinclair. The ending is a real surprise - but too many  questions remain open. Some lines of the plot just stop or fade away  without a logical explanation. I prefer the other Blalock novels.
1421169
Slight Spoilers

The first Others novel is wonderful, really a treasure.  The second was good, the third was fine, and this one...  I truly hate to say it, since I looked forward to it so much, but it was disappointing.  The trouble is that the scope of the story has grown to cover a large expanse of Namid.  In order to describe the situations in various parts of the world, Bishop introduces new characters and relies more on side characters from previous books.  These characters are  underdeveloped to the point where I couldn't keep their names straight because I lacked personal information to attach to the names.  Functionally, those characters were there to serve as eyes for the readers, revealing the crumbling human/Others relationship in various areas of Namid, but they offered little else.

It's frustrating, because those characters could have been developed more if Bishop cut out some of the novel's internal repetition.  The various Courtyards/Intuit/terra indigene settlements communicated frequently throughout the novel, forcing the reader to re-read the same information as it passed from place to place.  There was one point in the story where Simon made a plan, shared it with two different groups, then had it parroted back to him, forcing the reader to receive the same information four times.  I'm trying to appreciate the realism of that, but it's simply not fun to read.

This is the fourth book in the series, and at this point, we know what happens when humans attack the Others: the Others retaliate brutally.  This book showed that pattern again, but simply on a larger scale, and without the delightful character develop and interactions from the first book.

At this point, I'm invested in the world of Namid and in the characters in and related to the Lakeside Courtyard.  I still liked the book, because they were around and had nice interactions during the last fourth of the story.  But the repetition is becoming tedious, and I'm hoping that the events of this installment force a different plot for the next book.
1027275
A wonderful read but, ultimately, incredibly disappointing.  Wonderful for a number of reasons--both settings, particularly "San Salvatore," an area somewhere north of Lucca, still wild with vegetation and near-unnavigable roads; sympathetic (if rather stereotypical) characters, excellent plot-development.  Disappointing for almost as many reasons--gratuitous macguffins (but perhaps all macguffins are) and either insufficient or questionable character-motivators.  More than that enters spoiler-territory.
1097055
Inhale Exhale's first album was pretty awesome; it contained a handful of songs that helped it stand out among the homogeneity of sound in the current hardcore scene.  I find this album disappointing to say the least.  While I do appreciate the singer's solid attempt at using a wider range of vocal sounds, I feel the vocals took a hit in terms of the stylistic manner in which they are woven into the music. The screaming isn't very funky, mostly just blanketing over the guitar work in a semi-rythmic fashion. And the music . . . while some songs do have some pretty clever riffs, I don't really see a step forward with the guitar work or song writing.  Instead there has been an incorporation of the type of spacy echoed clean notations that are characteristic of bands like Cave-In, etc.  I can appreciate when bands expand horizontally, by incorporating new stylistic components, but I don't really see any vertical expansion in quality here--that is, expansion in the crafting of song structures, innovation of guitar, drum, and bass work, etc.  Taken by itself, the album is great compared to commercial sounds or most other immitative stupid-core bands out there.  All in all, I am disappointed, but only because my expectations were paved by prior work. For those of you who loved the songs "dance all night" and "Call to the faithful" and "Redemption," this album may be a bit of a disappointment for you as well.  I'm still glad I bought the album though, because it does my part in affording the band the opportunity to make it up to me with their third album.  The highlights of the album are pretty much the songs they currently have posted on their myspace page.
810243
A bit of a letdown, mainly due to the excellence of its predecessors. The writing is still nice and efficient with little dead weight.

My main complaint is that some of the characters that intrigued me so much in the first two volumes felt more flat and descriptions and passages more repetitive.

Still an enjoyable enough read, though ultimately disappointing.