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Title: She's Not There: A Poppy Rice Novel by Mary-Ann Tirone Smith ISBN: 0-8050-7223-3 Publisher: Henry Holt & Company, Inc. Pub. Date: 03 February, 2003 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.2 (5 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: wonderful novel
Comment: Apparently for a "reviewer" here, there is some confusion about what a novel is and what fiction is. Speaking as a novelist whose novels are all set in real places (where else should they be set? Anytown, USA? An imaginary generic Eastern European village? The planet Zurgle?), I can say that SHE'S NOT THERE is a wonderful work of fiction for many reasons, and one of them is, in fact, the way the setting embraces the plot. Lively, imagnative, witty, suspenseful -- this is one of Smith's best. I can't wait for her forthcoming Poppy Rice novel next month!
Rating: 4
Summary: Good ingredients but needs work
Comment: I got this book because I had just been down in the RI/CT area and the premise sounded interesting. In fact, the plot was interesting, the concepts were good and the method of murder something I have never heard of in real life or in books so that was intriguing. The writing style is not that great, conversations are sometimes hard to follow and some scenes seem repetitive and the pace could have been picked up. Also the heroine is imbued with too much goodness : the "native Block Islanders" are described as keeping to themselves yet they take to her immediately? And can she really cure an alcoholic by meeting him??
All in all the author has great ideas and shows great promise but needs a better editor.
Rating: 2
Summary: Local Perspective
Comment: Let me mention upfront that I live on Block Island. Not a native, but I moved here and live on the Island year round. I got the book because of the nature of it's setting, not the storyline or the author.
I found the book slow without a "hook" to keep my interest. The storyline is unimaginative. The "real" story, it seems, is the Island and island live and characters. To that end the author goes to great pains to write as if she actually knew anything about the island. However, beyond some topographical knowledge, she has none. Indeed, she completely distorts the live and people here. To be sure, we actually have a complete police department, Police Chief and all. Moreover they do live in nice homes, not broken down lean-tos. As for the "rich" natives riding in customized, fancy cars, I have never seen a single one. These are just a few examples of many.
Now don't get me wrong, I believe very much in "poetic license" but not under the cloak of personal, intimate knowledge of a place and people. Clearly, as the previous reviews show, the author dupes readers with her alleged knowledge when in reality there is none. In an interview to our local paper she explained this complete lack of local knowledge and distortion by calling her work "fiction". I would accept her rational, had she desribed a "fictional" place. Instead the author has gone through all her pains of picking a real place, seemingly describing this real place and people who live here.
So - if you like slow, unimaginative stories about a real location distorted by ignorance, this one's for you.
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Title: Love Her Madly: A Novel by Mary-Ann Tirone Smith ISBN: 0805066489 Publisher: Henry Holt & Company, Inc. Pub. Date: 11 January, 2002 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: An American Killing by Mary-Ann Tirone Smith ISBN: 0449005798 Publisher: Fawcett Books Pub. Date: 02 November, 1999 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
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Title: She Smiled Sweetly : A Poppy Rice Mystery by Mary-Anne Tirone Smith ISBN: 0805072241 Publisher: Henry Holt & Company, Inc. Pub. Date: 03 June, 2004 List Price(USD): $25.00 |
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Title: Last Lessons of Summer by Margaret Maron ISBN: 0892967803 Publisher: Mysterious Press Pub. Date: September, 2003 List Price(USD): $23.95 |
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Title: Therapy by Jonathan Kellerman ISBN: 0345452593 Publisher: Ballantine Books Pub. Date: 20 April, 2004 List Price(USD): $26.95 |
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