Wednesday, January 24, 2007

Sunstroke by Jesse Kellerman

I picked up Sunstroke from the library after reading a review on Jesse Kellerman's next book which is released next month, I believe. The review was great, and I figured I would try out his first book. I was also interested in seeing what, if any, talent of his parents he had. The book was somewhat of a problem for me to get through, and I grade it a 2.5 out of 5.

Gloria Mendex is thirty-six, single, and hopelessly in love with her oblivious boss, a soft-spoken loner twenty years her senior. Her friends might urge her to look for someone more her age, but Gloria knows the real thing when she sees it.

So when he disappears while on vacation in Mexico, it's Gloria who goes in search of him. As she follows his trail deep into the desert, she runs face first into a staggering history of betrayal and death: the wreckage of a hidden past. Carl Perreira was not the man she thought she knew- nor was he anything she could have imagined.

Her journey will teach her as much about herself as it does about Carl. And as she plunges closer to his fleeing shadow, she will find herself fighting not only for the truth, but for her life.

Well, where to start. First off this book is listed as a thriller and also has some humor in it. I would not consider this book to be a thriller and can not recall a moment where I laughed or smiled even... so I would have to say that that description is not very true. I would even have a hard time calling it very suspensful. I really did not like Gloria, and found her to be whiney and not very realistic. She totally idolized Carl, and there did not seem to be a very good reason why.

I think my biggest problem with the book was the character and story development. You don't see Gloria change or grow very much, and I felt that the story was kind of choppy. The "mystery" did pick up a bit towards the end, and once I had a little time to sit and read it, I finished it pretty quickly. I already have Mr. Kellerman's newest novel on hold at the library, and will probably read it, but if it does not grab my attention after the first 25% of the book, I will not continue to read it. I probably should have given up on this one, but did become involved in what happened to Carl. Up next, Linwood Barclay's next novel. He is a new to me author who I really enjoyed and had me laughing throughout the book. And oh yeah, more school reading!

3 comments:

Jana said...

Well, at least now you know. ;-)

Doncha just hate it though when you get ahold of a really sucky book? Makes ya feel like you've wasted all that time when you could've been reading something really great.

Hope the next "new to you" author is more agreeable. :-)

Literary Feline said...

I've read a few mixed reviews about Sunstroke. I will be reading Trouble in the next couple of weeks (haven't yet read Sunstroke but figured since there weren't any continuing characters or storylines that would be okay). Do you think you will be trying Trouble? I have a copy of Sunstroke to read and will eventually get to it, I'm sure. A lot will depend on what I think of Trouble. Thanks for the review, Kristie!

Kristie said...

I will read Trouble. I have it on hold at the library, and from what I have heard it sounds pretty good. The premise for Sunstroke was that grabbing, but I decided to read it to see if I would be shelling out the money for Trouble, which I believe if I am not mistaken, is a hardcover. If you get to Trouble first, I will be looking for a great review!