Christine Falls: A Novel Audiobook

" Well written story that didn't entirely succeed as a mystery as I felt there were a few too many coincidences. 3 1/2 stars "

" Luridly descriptive but at the cost of the plot. The conclusion was a bit too transparent for a mystery. "

" Beautifully written mystery with a hint of thriller. Perfect for anyone who loves mystery but wishes the genre leaned a little more toward literary excellence. "

" Didn't know what I was getting into, and if I knew I would not have listened to it. However, the language is great, the story pleasingly tangled. But oh please, enough of the Powerful Catholic Men who make up so many rules and then beat up and even kill the not powerful Catholioc women when the Powerful Catholic Men break the rules. When do the Powerful Catholic Men take a beating?? "

" This will be my last book finished of 2012. "

" John Banville can introduce a zillion characters and somehow manage to get me to keep them all straight. I wasn't that impressed with the revelation of the mystery, and I kept wondering why all the sex? But I was captive to Banville's great writing, and the end made me hopeful in a way I was not expecting would emerge from all the tragedy and seediness. I will definitely read Silver Swan. "

" By no means a favorite mostly because I don't usually like crime novels. But I did appreciate the writing from a prose perspective and liked the way the characters developed. Also just liked the Dublin backdrop. I think thats why I initially picked it up. That and it was recommended by the people at Books Inc.; and I often take book advice from people who never seem to leave their homes, except to go to work at the bookstore. "

" Dark, but realistic, examination of the underbelly of the Dublin hierarchy and its links with the Boston Irish. Looking forward to reading the next in the Quirke series. "

" a dark mystery, it had a lot of potential it didn't really live up to. "

" Great book filled with intrigue ...and even better, filled with the lyrical prose of John Banville who wrote this under a pen name. "

" I didn't hate this book, but it was unsatisfying, predictable, and not very mysterious. "

" good mystery - nice references to Ireland in the 50s "

" The writing is excellent, but I had a hard time with it -- not my cup of tea, really. And, I couldn't connect with the reason that all the mayhem was taking place. I think the author kept it a little too hidden and didn't express it in ways the modern reader could understand. "

" I would probably have liked it much more if I'd read it instead of listening to it. The reader gave everything -- even everyday life things -- a sinister cast. "

" A very interesting book, it's pretty dark but I still liked and I thought the writing was very good, it's set during the 1950's in Ireland so it makes for a good setting. "

" Starts out intriguing--a pathologist investigating the mysterious death of a pregnant woman. Throws in some potentially interesting characters and situations. However, you never care about anyone and the mystery is anticlimactic. "

" Very boring, definitely no suspense or mystery to this. "

" Enough twists and turns to the plot to keep it interesting. About young women in Dublin who get into trouble with pregnancy and a pathologist who solves some problems regarding suspicious deaths. "

" One of the worst, overwritten, self-indulgent, overly melodramatic books I've ever read. In a word, "blowzy." "

" it was ok...first part good, last part...not so much "

" This wasn't fine literature but it was an interesting yarn, somewhat dark and I liked the characters well enough to find myself absorbed. "

" This has a John McDonald or Raymond Chandler sort of atmosphere to it but with John Banville's literary style. "

" Very well written with a great main character. It seems to fail a bit in the probabiilty of hte plot. It seemed that critical information was needlessy and artifically withheld from the reader so as to create a mystery. "

" The story kept me turning pages, the introduction of each character brought the reader into the relationships, brilliant writing. I will definately find the rest of "Blacks" work and read this series. "

" I found this book underwhelming--I liked parts, but it didn't come together for me for a number of reasons. "

" Less dark than The Gathering, but still a bit grim. "

" Good. A little slow at times. Well written. "

" nice book..storyline gets a little slow in the middle but overall quite readable. "

" Listened to the audiobook version while running. Timothy Dalton is really strong as the narrator but the story is just okay. Come to think of it the slow pace of the book is probably responsible for some of my slower times lately. "

" Depressing as hell and certainly not a "mystery," but beautifully written, like all the rest of John Banville's novels. I'm not sure why he uses a pseudonym for this series of "crime fiction" since I think it stands comparison to the books he publishes under his own name. "

" SO GOOD! I've never read a mystery/thriller that was so well written. I only wish the main character's actions weren't so mind-boggling at times. Hopefully in the sequel we'll learn more about why he acts so strangely. "

" Babies born to poor Irish women, brought to an orphanage in Boston funded by a rich man who thinks it will get him into heaven if they all grow up to serve the church.This is a stupid book. I felt a little let down, a lot confused and a lot I didn't care. "

" This book was very dark. The main character, Quirke, tries to be a good man, but is an alcoholic and is cold and distant. The characters are either despicable or pitiable. I found the book depressing, albeit well written. I don't think I'll read any more of them. "

" Couldn't finish. The writing was smart and all, but the story was too grim without any reward. I didn't like the main character enough to commit. And overall it wasn't entertaining (or enlightening) enough to subject myself to such negativity and violence. "

" I wanted to like it more than I did. It may be that I am not suited for the mystery genre. "

" Dark, storied and beautifully scripted. 'Christine Falls' is the story of a lonely pathologist who is entangled in a web of deceit and inebriation. I was kept guessing throughout and surprised in the end. I plan to follow up this great book with the sequel, 'The Silver Swan' "

" Loved it and didn't want it to end! "