Negative Positive
Title: Beautiful Prose Can't Save a Poorly-Plotted Story
Review: Owen Parry is a great writer, let me say that out front. He created a truly memorable character and has a rare gift for language. Unfortunately, those qualities don't always make for a good novel; that's certainly the case here. It's frustrating that Parry places his hero in a bizarre, over-complicated plot when the Civil War provides such rich ground to draw from. The opening chapter is excellent; wryly grotesque and involving, but things collapse after that. Too many plot threads, too many contrived situations, too little connection to history. The low point for this series so far.
Is the review positive or negative? 