 "Chilling" | 2008-05-09 |
| - Reviewed By User: A27SIYRLIHDW4Y |
| This book kept me on the edge of my seat the entire time. Lehane has a way of capturing his audience. The book is a perfect example of how abuse come full circle. Great read. |
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 "A Tale of Three Boys" | 2008-04-06 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3NDPSK6QZHSAV |
| An academy-award winning movie based upon a phenomenal book. Three 11-year old boys are confronted by two men in a car while playing ball in the street in 1975, Sean Devine, daredevil Jimmy Marcus, and quiet, tag-along, Dave Boyle. Thinking the men were the police, the one man instructed Dave to get into the car so he could take him home to the Flats (poor section of Boston). Dave did as he was told only to be locked in a cellar and become the victim of child molesters. Dave escapes, and the boys go their separate ways only to be brought together again, twenty five years later, as the result of the murder of Jimmy's 19 year old daughter, Katie. Dave's trauma, resonated upon Sean and Jimmy, changes the course of their lives. As they struggle to find the real killer, their boyhood issues surface to become consequences of their actions. Mystic River is a story not to be ignored. |
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 "Slow start, but picks up steam." | 2008-02-20 |
| - Reviewed By User: A3IYEFZES0QRFT |
| This was a good book, but I wish I would have skipped the first four chapters. Slow starter. Have to admit, I'm not a big fan of Lehane's writing style. Would have preferred reading the screenplay. Good story line and is worth the read. |
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| "Haunting Box of Treasures" | 2008-02-10 |
| - Reviewed By tamheath |
| Wow, The Man (that's Lehane's name in my mind now) can tell a story! I saw the movie when it came out, so I was hesitant to read the book - feared that knowing the story, the book would lose some of its power. Not the case. Mystic River had me hooked from page one and did not let up on the psychological road trip till the very end. One of those rare books that you'll think about while standing in line at the grocery store. ("Damn this line; wish I had my book!") I cannot imagine NOT having seen the movie and reading the book first. I would think the ending especially would take your breath away. I'm now in search of everything Lehane has written and only hope the rest can measure up! |
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| "Magnificent, haunting novel," | 2008-01-03 |
| - Reviewed By sandy1951 |
| so haunting, that after reading the book I have been unable to watch the movie, despite all the acclaim the movie has garnered. The book has been reviewed beautifully here, and I can't really add any new insight. Simply my heartfelt recommendation. A book you will not forget. |
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| "A Lifelong Tragedy" | 2007-10-14 |
| - Reviewed By gerryodorizzi_62 |
| This is a difficult book to read beccause of its content. A very good story with well-drawn characters. To sum it up, this is a modern day greek tragedy. The movie was great too. |
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| "Excellent Book" | 2007-09-06 |
| - Reviewed By curmudgeon99 |
| I read Dennis Lehane's "Shutter Island", which sucked. This, however, was a great and absorbing read. Lots of complexity and unexpected events. This is just a marvelous read and it draws you back into it. It's a book where you do not find yourself looking ahead to see what page you're on and how much farther you have to go. Recommended highly. |
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| "Shakespearean" | 2007-07-09 |
| - Reviewed By User: APD4IZY3IBY94 |
As someone who spent most of his life in Boston, I naturally gravitated to Lehane's earlier private eye novels. They wonderfully capture the flavor of Dorchester and the whole Boston townie phenomenon. They are also very intelligent, with nuances and layers and themes that most private eye books never come close to. On the strength of the PI books alone, Lehane would have a distinguished place in the pantheon of American fiction writers.
But none of his private eye stories can prepare you for Mystic River. It is a shattering, intense tragedy played on an Irish Catholic Boston stage. It is haunting. It truly is Shakespearean in its scope. Mystic River is not clever entertainment. It is an astounding, original, tragic masterpiece. |
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| "In real life, your death was a mundane and forgettable event to everyone but you." | 2007-04-04 |
| - Reviewed By opus-crokus |
| WOW! As a reader, and aspiring writer myself, I was thoroughly, completely impressed with this novel...! This was a good introduction to Mr. Lehane's work! |
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| "Brilliant Book (That Slightly Cheated)" | 2007-02-06 |
| - Reviewed By bladeslinger |
Lehane's lush characterizations at first were a bit overwhelming, but they won me over completely. Damn, but Lehane can write! The story drew me in and held me until the very last page. Totally compelling, I loved the setup of three boys who go different ways in life, their lives all changed forever by a car that takes one of them away. Everything from the crazy silent calls of the cop's wife to the bad boy redeemed (mostly) by the love of his daughter moved every inch of me. Lehane crept comfortably into everyone's head, which really opened up the tale and forged a special bond between the reader and each character.
However, Lehane slightly cheated. In that process of moving from character to character, he delved slightly less directly into the head of one important character to preserve the mystery of his actions. I felt a bit manipulated by that tactic and suspected something was amiss. In a way, I wish he'd not introduced me at all to that character's mind and stayed with the POV of everyone around him. The story would not have suffered and the mystery would have been more intense.
That said, I can't wait to read his other books. He's obviously a tremendously talented writer who can build character like no other. |
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