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There are currently 37 member reviews
for The Quick
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Elizabeth M. (Syracuse, NY)
Wait.....what?
The first 100 pages of this book was a quite interesting love story between two young men living in early 1900s London. The protagonist grew up in a decrepit country estate with only his older sister for company. He goes to London with the intention of becoming a writer. He meets his lover as a roommate and soon they are inspiring each other and fumbling towards a relationship that is not acceptable in their time and place. Towards the ends of the first 100 pages the two men are planning to leave London for a trip through Italy and I was looking forward to seeing where this story led and how the romance developed.
However, after those first 100 pages, the book abruptly takes a left turn and -SPOILER---all of a sudden the book is about vampires. There is a non-vampire doctor who seeks to explore the rules of vampiredom, the older sister's quest to find her disappeared brother and a caste of lower class vampires versus upper class ones. I think part of the problem is that I have vampire fatigue from the large profile they have had in popular culture lately. But I also think that this book doesn't really bring anything new to the vampire canon. I had hints of Bram Stoker's Dracula and hints of Interview with a Vampire and nothing that felt really original.
I would mildly recommend this book for the first hundred pages, but the rest was just not interesting to me.
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Christine B. (Lilydale, MN)
Quick with Detours
I actually enjoyed the last third of the book most of all. It takes that amount of time to incorporate all of the characters and how they interact with each other. Part of the problem is that sometimes 200 pages ensues in-between the names being mentioned. This book should really be read in one sitting- unfortunately it's too long for that. I like the author's writing style but I don't think she adequately ever explained who the "quick" actually were. Charlotte's relationships were the most endearing and believable. This book might be ok for book clubs if they can suspend their disbelief with the unknown.
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Jill S. (Eagle, ID)
The Quick
This is not a 'quick novel'. In the beginning, the book did grab me, but I quickly lost interest in the middle, and it never recaptured my interest. This is a Victorian gothic novel, and it has many twists and turns. Although the number of characters were distracting, Ms. Owen does surprise readers. These unexpected events kept me engaged, and I felt a sense of accomplishment when I finished. Overall, this book is well written, and for those who love historic London will enjoy this book.
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Kate E. (Schaghticoke, NY)
The Quick
I found Lauren Owen's book, "The Quick" to be, from technical standpoint, well done. I enjoyed her writing style and admired her ambitious story line. I have a reading preference to be engaged with the characters - where I like them or despise them, they must engender emotion in me. Sadly, I found no connection with any of the characters.. I do need to add, I do not enjoy vampire genre. please note, I only read half of the book as it just didn't hold me.
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Marybeth T. (Bellingham, WA)
I wanted to like it!
I really wanted to like it. It started out really grabbing my attention. Half way through I became bored and I never recovered. It really could have been 10 chapters less. It has a few good twists but not enough to keep me interested.
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Michele W. (Kiawah Island, SC)
Not So Quick
This story of late Victorian London had little new or thrilling to offer- no romance, no suspense, no clever twists and turns. The ending was totally predictable. It was not badly written, but not well-written, either. All in all, very average.
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Madeline (Florida)
The Quick
I really enjoyed the beginning of the book - the Gothic mysterious quality to the story, and the relationship between James and Charlotte. As the story went on, however, it became unwieldy with too many characters, and the length of the book slowed the pace way down. The suspense and horror I wanted to find, to feel, were missing, lost in the sheer number of pages.
