New
AcquisitionsBlood Orange; Sam Llewellyn; House of Stratus; paperback edition, 2000; 0-7551-0003-4 ;£6.99; CA 15844
His publisher's blurb tells us that Sam Llewellyn is a well-known writer of maritime thrillers, and is one of the world's master story-tellers. He has also sailed yachts all over the world. Just the man, one might think, to tell a story that will hold the mind during a tedious flight or rail journey.
And certainly, when the story is telling of cliff-hanging moments in a yacht race, he holds our attention in a truly masterly fashion. Short sentences, active-case verbs of action and vivid demotic language are cunningly combined to keep us on the edge of our seats. He contrives to include many such accounts in the course of the novel, and some Members who are keen on racing might buy it for these moments alone.
The difficulty arises when his hero is ashore, solving the interlocking crimes that he is reluctant to trust to the police, or getting himself beaten up by the baddies. It is difficult to sustain any interest in the rather obvious detective work - and very difficult to develop any sympathy for the generally unpleasant people who inhabit the book's pages - and that includes the hero. - GYE
Page prepared 14 May 2001
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