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justabean_reads's review against another edition
4.0
This was the one Mandel published before Station Eleven when she was still with a small press. It's extremely her. Of her newer books, it probably has the most in common with The Glass Hotel, in her interest in exploring morality versus legality, in the jumbled timeline, and for the shipping company subplot. We follow a man who slid into being a corporate drone to get away from his family's criminal tendencies, but the escape ends up not being sustainable. This is not told in any kind of linear fashion, or with any clear cut answers about what the right choices might be (though clearly some are pretty dubious). I liked the humour, and the way that Mandel gently prods at her characters, and never lets them rest easily. Less gay than her more recent stuff.
Mandel has said that her next book will connect back to this one, and I'm really looking forward to finding out how. The surviving characters could go a lot of ways (and being Mandel, she doesn't need to use just the surviving characters).
Mandel has said that her next book will connect back to this one, and I'm really looking forward to finding out how. The surviving characters could go a lot of ways (and being Mandel, she doesn't need to use just the surviving characters).
steph3nie's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
lilbits's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
siobhano's review against another edition
3.0
I liked The Singer's Gun's Kafkaesque daytime job vibe. The story is, as typical for Emily St. John Mandel, fragmented, scenes are revisited and recontextualised -- the puzzle only makes sense when finishing the book. I like the references to other books by her but overall I found this one a bit underwhelming, especially the seriousness of organised crime and people trafficking was lost in the existential meta-level of the characters... Well written as always. 3.5 stars because I still enjoyed reading it, I wasn't bored and the confusion wasn't too bad.
ikwezi's review against another edition
1.0
I just could not care about any of these characters and the plot was very implausible, so despite my love of the author I could not finish this one and it suffered the same fate as another art-thievery novel I attempted around this time (The Goldfinch). She mentioned in an interview that the "villain" from this novel would appear in her next book, but having not finished this one, I am unsure which character she was referring to
anka_trini's review against another edition
3.0
I thought the title would be more relevant to the story. The blurb is also a little misleading. Not her best work, obviously. But Mandel's writing style is superb as usual.
roberwick's review against another edition
5.0
This is my fourth Emily St John Mandel novel. I think it’s a misnomer to call a great author “gifted” or “talented” because it connotes something that came naturally when in fact I suspect it’s a lot of hard work to hone such skill. The Singer’s Gun is what Goldfinch could have been minus 300 superfluous pages and with the addition of dialogue and plot that defines characters in rich dimension. Much of Singer’s Gun is very, very funny, but also heartbreaking and suspenseful in equal measure. Strongly recommend.
katieparkes's review against another edition
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The characters were a little cliche and didn’t really evolve over the course of the novel, but I loved the overall plot and nonlinear storytelling. I definitely couldn’t put this book down!