Great read for crime buffs
I really enjoyed this book, learned a lot about the Swedish police system, it is fast paced and suspenseful. My only criticism is that it really needs to be tightened up or maybe the translation is the issue. I was distracted by repetitive detail and thought that a good editing job would have helped. But I totally enjoyed it and would recommend it to other crime fiction readers.
Rated of 5
by Dorian B. (Bainbridge, NY)
Hoping for More
Having read the media review for this book, and the hype about the authors, I have to say that I was disappointed. I felt there was no depth to the characters, and by the time the plot gains any speed or real interest the actions of the main characters do not make sense. I was disconnected, just reading to get through. Definitely not at the level of current writers of this genre.
Rated of 5
by Jane R. (Plantation, FL)
Bad translation or lack of editting?
Overall, I enjoyed Three Seconds, but often found it confusing. I don't know whether that was the result of a bad translation or that the book had not been edited. The first part of the book where Piet is planning the takeover of the prison drug trade dragged on, but I think the book would make an exciting movie.
Rated of 5
by Georgette I. (Oxford, GA)
Three Seconds
The best description of my feelings about Three Seconds is ambivalence. On the one hand, it is loaded with details that enrich the story and enhance the suspense. While the reader can probably figure out the ending before finishing the book, the story holds interest to the last page. On the other hand, I found it difficult to relate to any of the characters. None are multidimensional and there doesn’t seem to be anything about them that evokes empathy. The book is stern and stiff and lacking in even a hint of humor. If you can make it through the first 100 pages which are agonizingly slow, the pace picks up rather quickly. I am disappointed in not discovering another Steig Larson but willing to give the authors the benefit of the doubt by hoping that something was lost in translation.
Rated of 5
by Debby H. (Grand Blanc, MI)
Why the hype?
I found this book to be fairly typical of Scandinavian crime fiction (Mankell, Wahloo, Sjowall). I did enjoy aspects of the book that addressed various issues of illegal drug usage in prisons. Character development wasn't enough to cause any real emotional attachment. Given a choice of only one word, I would choose "confusion". Sometimes I just felt like I "missed" something. The details needed to be tightened up or maybe it is an editing issue. All in all, I have to say I can't figure out the basis for the major award this won in Sweden.
Rated of 5
by Dee M. (Palm Desert, CA)
Three Seconds
I found the book to be too long and frequently boring. Ewert Grens became irritating,coupled with an unnecessary diversion. It did remind me of the corruption that happens within many Government Agencies. People are disposable. Hard to reconcile Piet Hoffman possibly giving up his life and disrupting, possibly losing, his beloved family for undisclosed compensation.
Rated of 5
by Amy O. (Scottsdale, AZ)
Confusing
Unlike the Stieg Larsson trilogy, I could not get into the story. It seemed very disjointed--took time to determine who was discussing whom. There was too much focus on the characters "weird" feelings. Did not hold my interest.
A bold, mesmerizing novel about the woman known as "Typhoid Mary," the first known healthy carrier of typhoid fever in the burgeoning metropolis of early twentieth century New York.
Z, the novel about the life of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald is at points charming and; like another reviewer, I kept thinking of the movie, "Midnight...
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Although heavy on the scientific details, which slowed down the story for me (OK, I admit, I was one of those liberal arts majors who skipped out on...
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Loved this book. Magical, quirky, enchanting I could go on. All books do not have to be literary fiction, sometimes it is just so comforting to read...
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British Parliament asks Amazon to clarify why it pays $9 million in income tax on $23 billion of UK sales.(May 20 2013) Amazon will be called back to give further evidence to members of the British Parliament "to clarify how its activities in the U.K. justify its low corporate...
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of 5
by Joanne V. (Towanda, PA)
of 5
by Dorian B. (Bainbridge, NY)
