Book Review

Child 44 by Tom Rob Smith

Synopsis: In post-WWII Russia, Leo discovers a string of murders, which he is compelled to solve without detection from his military superiors...because "crime doesn't exist" in Communist Russia.

Readability: Aside from the Russian names, it's not as if this one was at all difficult to follow. Much of the book was VERY difficult to read because of some pretty brutal violence. Other than that..the plot twists, the character development, the writing was all along the lines of a Nancy Drew novel.

Predictability: Ugh. I mean, seriously.
Couldn't Put it Down Factor: Well, here's the rub. The story was compelling enough that I wanted to know if it was going to work out the way I expected it to work out. Guess what: I was right.
Recommend it?: Gee whiz, what do you think? Don't bother. Disappointing at best. The story line was interesting enough. Like, interesting enough to make up a Law & Order episode, but violence for the sake of violence is so. bor. ing. And offensive.

Overall Rating: One star. For the fact that this guy managed to get it published. One star for effort.