(Q).
Title: You won't find this on my "Regional Book" shelf Review: Here's what the jacket says: "Dan Fortune, the one-armed private detective of the Edgar Allan Poe Award-winning Michael Collins novels ... returns with his most provocative, brilliantly realized adventure to date." Well, I don't know about that. This was the first (and it will be the last) Dan Fortune novel I've read. I don't know how Dan lost his arm - unlike many series, remedial background information is not provided. The current adventure involves progeny of the VietNam Conflict.I ordered this book because I thought it might be about Minnesota. Who knew that the Minnesota Strip is in New York City?! And probably not a destination for most tourists. "Sudden death was as ordinary on the Minnesota Strip as whisky and heroin and pimps' Cadillacs." It's a grim place and a grim book.Does anyone out there know how this area of NYC got its name? Is the review positive or negative?
(A).
Negative


(Q).
Title: Brain-Bustingly Beautiful indie pop! Review: The sole savior of indie pop delivers a great set which is greatly enhanced by secret weapon Doug Gillard. The cohesion between lyrics and music is as tight as it gets. Instead of playing name check tag, all the influences blend into a frothy brew. Though if you find Pollard's lyrics to be difuse and obscure, this will not change your mind. Then again if you find Do The Collapse to be too much of a sell out, this album will assure you that Bob is following his paisley pop punk muse where ever it takes him. Get it and get immersed! My unit moves, indeed. Is the review positive or negative?
(A).
Positive


(Q).
Title: Well-written but peters out in the end Review: I've read all of Mr. Wilson's books and he is getting better all of the time. The problem he faces is that his books, always excellently conceived, usually peter out by the end. As in BIOS, the characters are basically victims of a (well-conceived) planetary environment, the "bios" of the title. The characters are mostly stock and are removed from the novel one by one in such a way as to give the impression that the book has no real plot. It just ends, leaving me with the impression, "Is that all there is?" To Mr. Wilson's credit, the book is excellently written and the sci-fi elements all credible and in place. It's not a bad read, but I wanted more "novelistic" elements threaded throughout the book. I wanted a plot. Is the review positive or negative?
(A).
