REVIEW OF THE FROZEN DEAD- BERNARD MINIER

ERIC'S REVIEW

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A FROZEN DEAD HAIKU

Frozen Dead killer.

Psychos. Secrets. Not much fun.

Vapid. Rapid. Done.

This book is a page turner. And I have. Turned the page on it. It was very good at making you turn the page, a two-station job in fact. By that I mean I missed both Kew Gardens, my end stop, and Victoria, a key waypoint, on separate occasions, so busy was I in turning pages. The only thing is, I turned the last page, and there was nothing there. Literally nothing. Oh yeah, and that was after reading an epilogue that tried (in vain) to tie up the loose ends. As if anyone cared.

There were plot twists, so many of them in fact, you began to see them coming a long way away. Characters (because all novels must have characters, surely) came and went like cardboard placards representing types, not people. You had your obligatory middle-aged divorced cop. You had your lesbian. Your secret societies. Your rich crook. Your evil twisted genius. Your tatted daughter. Your officious bureaucrat. Your pedophiles and maniacs. Your gay guy hiding behind his beautiful wife. Your assiduous young psychologist. And death. Always death. Death. Fire. Ice. You know, that sort of thing.

And laughably impossible situations waved away with a casual sleight of hand. Apparently it costs $135k to hire a private jet. Really? Exactly $135k?  Should have looked online. You can do it for $42k.

I got the book in French, but I gave up after a while, and not because of the french. Only because the pages weren't turning fast enough. 

2 stars (and a gold razz-star for the shortest JFDI discussion on record)

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TOM'S REVIEW

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THE FROZEN DEAD

There’s bad, there’s really bad and then there’s so bad it’s good.  THE FROZEN DEAD falls somewhere in between the last two. The writing is poor, the plots are ludicrous, the characters are cartoons and every element stretches the bounds of credulity to the snapping point.  But I made it to the end without breaking a sweat and I got some good laughs along the way, even if the author didn’t intend them.  I don’t remember reading many books that are worse, but I have had a fair number of reading experiences that were a lot worse.  

1 star

Average score: 2.25