| Title | : | Black Rabbit Summer |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0545057523 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780545057523 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Hardcover |
| Number of Pages | : | 488 |
| Publication | : | First published February 2, 2008 |
| Awards | : | Carnegie Medal (2009) |
Black Rabbit Summer Reviews
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I recently remembered I read this book, but forgot what it was about and such. So, I decided to venture into the reviews, which were all following some sort of status quo: vote two stars, rave about Raymond, call the rest of the book total shit, etc. However, I will have to go against this, because as soon as I remembered the plot, I was hit with a wave of nostalgia and instantly said, "I really liked this book." I loved Pete as a character, maybe even more than I liked Raymond. The book was realistic; as shown by the comments before mine, a lot of people complained that SPOILER Raymond was never found. Unfortunately, when teens are reported as missing, they don't just come back. The author obviously describes that Raymond's a bit of a nut, so that should be a pretty good reason as to why he's gone. Brooks gave his characters an eerie sort of freedom -- Raymond is a mystery and the essence of him lingers on after you turn the final page. For those who loved Raymond and hoped to see him return (or something), you were filled with anticipation and anxiety, much like a worried parent. You hoped to find some sort of news, but it never really came. Everything felt like a hint, but the hints never went anywhere. In my eyes, Raymond is represented as the kid who's always there for you, but is also neglected and therefore never appreciated until he is gone.
For anyone looking to read this book, you really should. Ignore the 2-star ratings! Kevin Brooks is brilliant, and the novel is both haunting and sexy, wrapped in an enigma. It really wouldn't hurt to give it a read (: -
Wow. Just when I thought something good would come out from this book, it went straight from being average to zero. Here's the thing, when you write about a certain character (a large portion of it), you expect the reader to care about the particular character. Well, for me at least. I did. I cared for Raymond. The rest of the character? Brooks could have written about them getting into a car accident and died. And I still wouldn't give a crap about them. Because I like the way Brooks describe Raymond as a friend, the only friend to Pete. That was the main factor that kept me glued to the book. The whole point of reading further was to find out WHAT REALLY HAPPEN TO RAYMOND?! But no, it went circling around between the cops and pete, back to the fortune teller, talking to a black rabbit, hearing whispering raymond, back to the fair, Pete's annoying desire of wanting to do nothing but stare at his bedroom ceiling (i think i've never been annoyed by a character as worst as pete). The next thing I know the whole mystery was dedicated to his old friends foolishness. Which I didn't even find it interesting whatever the hell the Kidnap-Ransom planning that they were involved in. Secret, Blackmail, Kidnap, Booze, Lust, Stupid, Accident. All that combined = Death. And yet, still nothing about Raymond. That is when the whole book starts losing its charm. Oh the 'best' part was, they dismissed Raymond!! - the only character i cared for. How could they just dismissed him like that from the book when clearly most of the time missing Raymond is always top on Pete's agenda? "Maybe Raymond was abducted. Maybe he just ran away. Maybe he's still out there somewhere. Maybe he's still alive. I don't know" Of course you don't know Pete, that's the whole point of a mystery book. You're suppose to unfold the mystery that's been lingering around this missing person. Black Rabbit Summer got me started but it definitely got me disappointed too.
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This book is a coming-of-age crime-thriller for teenagers. I'm not a teenager, and I'm not really a fan of thrillers. This book isn't for me. And yet, I thought it was awesome.
The plot centres around of group of friends in their mid-teens. As with any decent thriller, there's sex, booze, drugs and missing people. I've often said that moral ambiguity is the key to any good story, and you'll find that in abundance here.
This book might be marketed to teenagers, but the quality of the writing is very high, better than most thrillers I've read that are aimed at adults. It cleverly interweaves a genuinely thrilling mystery with neat social commentary and acutely observed humour centred around the teenager-parent relationship. The plot is of it's time - it's only four years old, and many of the references are already dated - but the themes are timeless: rich versus poor, stereotypes versus reality, childhood versus adulthood.
There's a brilliant thread of hallucinations and psychiatric disturbance that runs through this novel - and there are key plot points to explain it. I mention this only because it demonstrates that this book deals with complex concepts, and uses really quite advanced literary techniques to make its points. It might be for teenagers, but there's no sense here of writing down to them. And it doesn't pull punches.
One of the most remarkable aspects of Black Rabbit Summer is the extraordinary and memorable ending. Of all the novels I've read lately, this has the strongest ending. And, again, it's not an ending you might expect from a book aimed at teens.
I didn't particularly relish reading this, but it completely surpassed my expectations. It is a teen novel, but that just means it's easy to read. It's a narratively tight well-written gripping novel. I'd recommend it to anyone. -
What did I read?
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Ever since I was a fifth grader, I read a book that changed my life. That book was Cryptid Hunters, by Roland Smith. A sci-fi twist of emotion, adventure and surprise - I laughed, I cried, I changed for the better as a person. I must have read and reread it a million times. Whatever. Amazingly, all my life until now (my junior year) this was the response to the oh-so-rarely-asked question, "What is your favorite book?"
Then I discovered Black Rabbit Summer. Now, sitting in the library on my own I tended to be rather curious about anything with a cover and a spine and words printed into yellowing pages. I surf endlessly through the YA Section, looking for something to get my hands on. At first, a book that caught my eye was Kissing the Rain, by the author Kevin Brooks. I didn't hesitate to pick it up because a) the title sounded awesome b) the summary sounded awesomer and c) the cover art was twice as awesome and told me this was to be a memorable kind of novel. And a few shelves down I found another book by the same author, much thicker and with a rather somber and straightforward cover of four teenagers. Summary looked okay. The title sounded freaking epic. So I shoved it under my arm - because why not.
Okay, so I never ever will ever regret that I read this book because DAMN, did I ever enjoy it!
Since The Fault in Our Stars, Cryptid Hunters, and David Copperfield, this is honestly the best book I have ever read. Number #2 on the chart, tops. It was fantastic - mystifying, spooky, thrilling, enticing. Oh wow.
I was up all night, reading under my covers with that clumsy iPod flashlight, and by the time I finished it it was 3 AM and I was a cross between shocked, amazed and blown away. Wow. Just. Wow."The star's going out tonight," Raymond said quietly.
I stared at him. "What?"
He looked at me, his eyes pale and glassy. "Black Rabbit," he whispered, "That's what he said this afternoon - the star's going out tonight."
Unlike any thriller I have read by far, the plot weaves in and out of mystery, suspense and absolute horror. It's unusual and a new brand of spooky - a psychological kind of fear. Basically, it's about a worn out group of teenagers who have been friends for what seems like ages, and as the years pass by it seems that they have grown distant. Pete is our protagonist, and for once, I absolutely love the protagonist. Pete is so damn honest - he is beyond honest. About everything. His feelings. His fury. His suspicions. He observes everything with wariness but not with the naivety other characters do. Brooks brought in not only an intelligent perspective host, but intriguing suspense and mystery through the eyes of such a character. I was in awe of the way the story unraveled.
Now, Raymond is another character I will shed some light upon. He has this one rabbit, with black fur, whom he loves immensely. This is our little king of the mysteries - Black Rabbit. Black Rabbit is something of a phenomenal creation, and can communicate with Raymond according to his claims. But to the ordinary onlooker, Black Rabbit is just Black Rabbit. Raymond though, is strange, quiet and a mystery too. And of course, he was a reject.
There was a party. Okay. No. A reunion gathering of the five friends. Pete and Ray. Nicole and Eric. And Pauly. Goddamn, Pauly... and oh boy, there was Wes Campell, who is like a cross between Jason and Slim Shady. The lethal antagonist of the book - or, so it seemed at first. But Raymond - it was because of him I felt an aching, gaping spot in my chest by the end of the book.
There really is no antagonist - not really.
There is no central enemy, nothing to fight but themselves and their guilt-ridden souls. The party was over as fast as it started. They went off into the carnival, separated. It was dark and the lights of the tilt-a-whirl and the roar of the roller coaster raised their senses up a notch. It was an accident. It wasn't meant to happen. Nobody saw it coming. It was a mean joke. It was an emotional overload. And it ended with murder, drenched in cold blood. And now it's either one of them - the five of them, that are suspected of the death.
So the book deals with media. It deals with violence. With drugs. With pain. With anger. With sexual dilemmas. With the whole coming-of-age, breaking-out-of-the-walnut-shell, raw kind of agony that breaks your soul. And, oh. My. God. Was it a thrill of a horror book. Some would call it mystery. Judging from the shivers it gives you past midnight under the covers, it's definitely something in the fear-sparking genre.
God. The feels of this novel were awesome. Not very fair, fulfilling or satisfactory, but right in that weird little trigger in your nerve cells that leave you with a book hangover for the rest of the day.
From the first page I was pulled in. And yeah. The rest of the day was spent forcing myself to tear away from the book to care to my bodily needs. I was befuddled in the end, around 4 in the morning. So many questions left unanswered. The case was amazing - a total shock to the conscience of the bookworm. I'm probably going to reread it. I needed a few days to recover after this baby, so if you have overdue library books waiting for you after this, I suggest you save it for a time you're ready to experience the full on power of Brook's unbelievable crime fiction.
5 full stars. No questions asked. -
Picked up on a whim from a charity shop in the smallest historic county in England, I think I assumed this would be more Chris Brookmyre / Colin Bateman in nature than it was. When it came to add the book to my TBR list a couple of days later, I realised I'd read a Kevin Brooks previously ('Kiss The Rain') and I'd not really enjoyed it. I was consequently pessimistic.
It wasn't as bad as anticipated. The novel follows a sixteen year-old lad and the fall out from a drink/drug addled night at the fair with friends, after which a local celebrity is found dead and the narrator's odd mate goes missing. The plot kept me interested and keen to read on, and there were many moments where I found the young man's POV convincing, as well as some of the complexities of teenage relationships.
But perhaps it would have been more enjoyable had the story been written by a different author. I found some of the reminders of how mixed up it feels to be sixteen made for uncomfortable reading, I wasn't wholly on board with some of the twists and unconvincing behaviour of the characters at times. It also stylistically felt a bit too YA for my tastes. -
Title: Black Rabbit Summer
Author: Keven Brooks
Publisher: Chicken House (Scholastic)
Date Published: 2008
Genre: Young Adult
Main Themes: Missing persons, Friendship, Growing up, Drugs and Alcohol
Pages: 488
Plot (from book jacket):
"As kids they were tight. Now they've grown up - and apart. Before going their separate ways for good, they decide to get together one last time.
Just like old times.
Just the five of them.
Saturday night.
Nicole asked. How could Pete say no?
But the past hurts, personal histories, soon surface, and the party's over. The group splinters off into the darkness. Into the noise and heat and chaos of the summer carnival.
Days later, a girl goes missing. And each of them is a suspect in her disappearance. Pete doesn't know what to believe. Could one of their own, one of the old gang, be a killer?"
I want to start out by mentioning that I usually don't read books narrated by guys. I don't really know why, but usually I just don't feel as connected to the novel. That said, Black Rabbit Summer might be one of my favorite books. It was absolutely stunning! There was just something so ridiculously deep about it. It might have been the narrator or Brooks himself, but this book simply shines.
It wasn't what I expected really, it was much more than the jacket description lets on. I related to the characters in this book so well. I could see each and every character as someone from my life - someone I went to school with.
The plot involves a bit of a mystery and I honestly had no clue how it would be resovled. There were clues at first, but I had no clue how it would all end up fitting together.
Here is a quote that I read, then went back and reread because I loved it so much (Page 404):
"As I stepped over to the den and crept through the door, I wondered if that's what it was all about. Friends. People you know. People you used to know. People you think you once knew, but you probably never did. You probably knew just part of them, the part of them that was your friend. And the rest, the parts of them that you didn't know - the twisted parts, the untrue parts, the parts you are seeing now - well, back then you just ignored them. But now you can't. Because now you can see it all, and now you know that "back then" wasn't all wonderful and innocent. It was just a time and a place, just like every other time and place. The only difference now is that the things - the people - that belonged to the old time and place aren't here anymore, and things that aren't here anymore don't hurt anymore. The only things that hurt are the things that hurt right now."
Ratings (out of 10):
Plot: 10
Characters: 10
Writing style: 10
Romance: 10
Originality: 10
Total: 50/50 (A)
I loved this book - READ IT! I will definitely be looking into Kevin Brooks' previous books (Lucas, Candy, Being, The Road of the Dead, and more)! I've heard that Lucas is really amazing as well... -
I thought I was going to like this book the first three hundred pages or so. Sure, the narrator isn't exactly likeable, but he makes you want to keep reading in the hope of finding out what happens to his best friend Raymond. The book makes you think this is what it's actually about. However, it becomes much more centered around all its little rabbit trails (pun intended)-Stella, Eric and Campbell, Nic, etc. Not only does the entire direction of the book shift, none of my questions are remotely answered.
What happens to Raymond? Who kills his rabbit? Is the man with the mustache real, and, if so, what does he have to do with anything? Why does Stella threaten Pete? Why is Pete depressed and does it actually matter?
Early on, I had this idea that Pete and Raymond might be the same person, and the whole purpose of this book is Pete's discovery of that, but, if this is the case, it is muddled entirely. The final pages cannot really be called an ending. All of it seems pointless. -
SERIOUSLY?! Perché questo romanzo non ha un seguito? Dov'è il mio finale Kevin Brooks, ah?!
Il libro mi è veramente piaciuto ma più le pagine e si assottigliavano più mi rendevo conto che scoprire la fine di Raymond era impossibile e di fatti scopriamo che fine fanno TUTTI tranne Raymond, Raymond che è il protagonista indiscusso di questa storia. Il narratore è Pete ma il protagonista è Raymond, l'unico personaggio di cui alla fine mi fregasse davvero qualcosa. Mi bastava anche una sola riga a fine libro che mi dicesse "è vivo" o altre menate simili ed invece no. Il silenzio. E così da quattro stelline precipita a tre. DAMN.
Tanta la frustrazione che ho letteralmente buttato il libro sul letto, JSYK. -
I feel like I’m never going to get over this book. It was so cruel and haunting and I loved it but it also broke my heart. Kevin Brooks is a true genius when it comes to creating an atmosphere that completely sucks you in and I’m still thinking about the ending, probably always will.
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4 stars
RTC I need to process my feelings -
surprised.
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See the full review on my blog: bloggerbooks.net
This book was intense. The cover certainly did mind pointing that out, but nevertheless, this book was gripping.
The title alone leaves you wondering what will happen in this book and let me assure you, it will makes sense. Yes, there is a black rabbit.
The Plot
The book started off kind of slow, but I didn’t mind because the story itself and the characters were fascinating. It never got really fast, it basically follows Pete around that night and deals with his struggles of his missing friend, his search and then his part in the investigation: the police questioning him, but also his own assumptions and actions to find out the truth.
The great thing was that you didn’t know the characters well and neither did Pete. He soon realizes that he actually didn’t really know his former friends and can therefore not judge or calculate their behavior.
I also really enjoyed the complexity of this story starting off with Pete’s slow summer, then the crew getting back together, everyone alone at the carnival all playing their parts in the story and then later on Pete trying to solve his friend’s disappearance and connect it to the missing girl whom they all know as well.
The great part was the step by step story of Pete solving the case. I never new very much and neither did Pete, he simply followed bread crumbs and pieced the story together until the moment where everything was suddenly clear and made sense.
The ending was a little disappointing, but I never been not just a tiny bit disappointed whenever I read a mystery. Another thing driving me crazy is that the book ends as a cliffhanger. I have no enormous problems with open ends but I really would love to know what happened…
Summary
All in all, I can recommend this book to everyone who loves complex and mysterious characters and who values a great, wise and realistic story, The end leaves you mind-blown and you want to read more. Pete is an incredibly smart character and Kevin Brooks is an incredibly talented writer. -
Given that this was a bit of a slow starter with a bit of an 'meh' ending you may be surprised to learn that I actually really enjoyed it.
A part coming of age, part crime, novel with twists and turns galore. A tale about the chaos of adolescence, marketed at the teen/young adult market; (without giving too much away) its main characters are teenagers (the main protagonist a 'typical apathetic' teenager), there's a secret den, there's a fair ground, there's illicit drug taking, there's violence, there's the drinking of alcohol until you vomit. Things many young adults will have an understanding of and yet, hard hitting (the sense of menace is palpable, the kids from the 'estate' as frightening as any hitman), it may well surprise more mature readers just how much they will enjoy it ... after all a cracking murder mystery is a cracking murder mystery (and make no mistake Black Rabbit Summer is just that, a cracking murder mystery) no matter what the age of the characters/those the book is marketed at.
At the heart of the novel are five young people at that stage of life when, no longer children, and yet not quite adults, they would rather die than let their parents know what is going on in their lives. As mentioned, there's the apathetic Pete (the narrator of the story), then there's the 'joker', the tragic anti-hero; the good looking but 'moody' one with a secret; the 'object of every boy's desire' (or at least Pete's) and then there's ... well, there's Raymond.
Obsessed with his pet rabbit (the black rabbit of the title), - BE WARNED: along with the violence and other fairly 'grown-up' themes, there is animal cruelty - Raymond, considered odd/'not all there', is a fascinating character. The very fact that there is no real conclusion to his fate my only real gripe with the book.
Copyright ... Tracy Terry @ Pen and Paper -
I love the way Brooks writes. I had to make myself go to bed at 3:00am but couldn't wait to wake and finish this book. He has a way of making you turn the page and forget time...that's bad for me...I should be doing other things but I love getting lost in his works.
I have to admit...I usually hate mysteries, I'm a thriller reader, so when I saw this was down as a mystery, I was hesitate. I really didn't want to give Brooks a bad review. This book was the first mystery that kept me guessing until the end, and mixed with the thrill involved, I was hooked and satisfied. He gets 5 stars because of that.
Would I let a young teen read this book...NO...way to much language and the violence involved was a bit much for young minds. I actually complained to our local library that the book was rated, 12 and up. This was more of an adult book than YA book in my mind. -
It started out interesting but it felt like the author was trying to be too obvious with the clues as to who was guilty and who wasn't. Like he treated us like we were too dumb to figure it out. I will admit I didn't quite figure out the murder, but all the other things they were wondering were so blatantly obvious. And the ending felt like a rip off. Like Brooks was trying to be original but he just left it unfinished.
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I didn’t really know what to expect when I started reading this book but I liked it even though it isn’t my usual type of book. The story was interesting although I found all the lying tedious and a bit pointlessly tacked on to add drama. I wasn’t keen on the ending but I’m hard to please when it comes to endings. It was a pretty good read all in all
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I fear nothing else Brooks has written will ever match the brilliance of Martyn Pig.
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It was a good book. Lots of intrigue and plot.
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I read this book back in the good ole days of seventh grade, I believe. It was at least around seventh grade, because as I read it, I noticed a TON of similarities between Brooks’ writing and my own ancient scripts. I guess I thought he was a master or something? Reading it now, I can’t help but skim some pages because it’s repetitive, nothing really happens, etc. I remember at the time I couldn’t stop reading it, and this proved true ten years later.
So the basic story line: a group of teenagers decide to meet up one summer, I’m guessing the summer after their last year of high school. They used to be BFFs. There is Pauly, the goof ball who can make everyone laugh and who’s pretty dumb but in a fun way; Eric, the one who’s pretty serious about things but is generally a nice guy; Nicole, Eric’s twin, who has an intimate history with Pete; Pete, the narrator, the main guy, Nicole’s love interest, really annoying; and finally Raymond, Pete’s BFF despite the group dynamic falling apart. Raymond is different, a little off. It never says specifically what’s wrong with Raymond – Pete denies anything is actually wrong with him, he’s just a kid who’s been through a lot of bullying and his parents are neglectful and he says he hears voices in his head, particularly the voice of a black rabbit he keeps as a pet. Pauly, Eric, and Nicole have never cared too much for Raymond, but have tolerated him for Pete. They meet up at an old hang out spot, and things suck. They’re all so different. They drink and smoke and Nicole unsuccessfully seduces Pete once the others have left. When this fails, Pete walks to the fairgrounds, where a carnival is being held, and where the others are waiting for them.
It takes Pete a while to find Raymond, and when he does, Raymond is walking around with Stella Ross, a recent movie-star, and her cameramen. Stella is obviously using him to a) make herself look good by hanging out with what people consider a charity case and b) just to be a bitch and mess around with him. Pete tells her to fuck off and takes Raymond away. They visit a fortune teller (always a bad sign) who says Raymond is in trouble and tells Pete to watch out for him. Coincidentally, Raymond has been babbling about “Star’s going out tonight,” something the black rabbit has been saying to him, along with other weird delusional-type ramblings that Pete doesn’t really take into consideration. Well, Pete has to take a piss and leaves Raymond to stand outside the “Portaloo” for half a second. When he comes out, Raymond is gone.
The next morning, Stella Ross has disappeared as well. Pete goes over to Raymond’s house and finds the black rabbit has been decapitated, the head impaled on a gate.
What a hot mess. -
3.5 stars.
(
Here are some trigger warnings - spoilers included. None will be mentioned in this review).
It was all going so well and then it just...fell.
Pete Boland has spent most of his summer before Sixth Form sweating away in his bedroom and seeing nobody except his parents. That is until the last day of the town's fair, when he receives a call from an old friend, suggesting that their old group of friends get together one last time before her and her brother move away to France. Pete isn't sure how he feels meeting up with people he barely knows anymore, but figures no harm can come from it; he says yes. But by the early hours of the next morning, Pete begins having some serious regrets. For starters, that tequila and weed didn't go down so well, and then there's the whole disappearance of Stella Ross, local teen celebrity. And of course, Pete hasn't seen his friend Raymond since they visited the fortune teller at the fair...
I started this book very optimistically. I really loved Pete's narration - he was relatable, frank and believable. What's more, Kevin Brooks introduces a great cast of characters, each with interesting traits and personalities that make them equally suspicious as the mystery begins to unfold. I thought Brooks had built solid foundations for what could have been a great young adult mystery, and I genuinely couldn't wait to find out where both Stella and Raymond had got to.
But Black Rabbit Summer slowly, and then quickly, fell apart.
I continued to enjoy Pete's narration, but all the great characters and leads Brooks had created just faded from the story, until we were left with only the most relevant of them. Typically I wouldn't have a problem with this if the protagonist dropped some of their previous ideas because of new evidence or findings, but Pete had no reason to stop considering many of the people he had encountered whilst trying to find Raymond and Stella. And so, I was seemingly left all by myself with comments and findings from previous chapters that nobody in the story cared about anymore. Brooks continued to do this right until the end of the novel, which was incredibly frustrating as it left me with a lot of loose ends and unexplained details.
Many of Pete's advances also relied on persistent use of one of my fiction pet peeves: something I can only describe as 'inexplicable sensing'. This is when a character frequently makes choices based on nothing more than a mysterious 'feeling' or 'sense' that it is what they should do. Common markers of this painfully disappointing technique are phrases like 'something told me that...' or 'I got the feeling that...' or, of course, the dreaded unknown voice in the back of a character's head, urging them to say or do things. This appeared in Black Rabbit Summer all too often for my liking. Granted, on some occasions it could be forgiven because fortune telling and the concept of fate and prediction are themes in the novel, but this did not justify the extent to which Pete relies on these random intuitions. The whole story centres around a police investigation of two missing teenagers, so I just wanted some real answers and facts.
Perhaps my standards for YA mysteries are just unfairly high because my experience with the genre is dominated by a love for Holly Jackson's series (which, by the way, is incredible). But ultimately, I wanted to like this book more than I did, and I can't get over how agonisingly disappointing this ending was. For an investigative mystery, I simply have too many unanswered questions. Having said this, I quite liked Kevin Brooks' writing style, and the strength of many of his characters was a big positive. A lot of his other novels sound super interesting, too, so who knows? Maybe I'll pick up another. -
In un periodo costellato da letture molto impegnative che a rilento arrivano alla conclusione, si presenta l’estate del coniglio nero, scelto nel club di lettura come prossimo appuntamento. Un libro fresco sul quale la lettura scivola veloce portandomi velocemente in quello stato di necessità/bisogno tipico dei libri che mi catturano fin dall’inizio.
Con una buona dose di suspance, mistero e noir Brooks porta il lettore a conoscere i bassifondi di una cittadina inglese che altro non rappresenta lo spaccato moderno del paesotto. Di facciata tutto più o meno perfetto, il dietro le quinte invece lascia un po’ a desiderare.
Il libro è farcito con tutti gli ingredienti necessari e vorrei dire scontati, di un noir. Il teppistello, la bella, la star, il problematico e lo strano. A contorno una cittadina che come tante altre vive e respira ignorando la vera natura dei propri abitanti.
Fortunatamente Brooks riesce nel difficile compito di dosare gli aspetti scontati di questo genere di storia con una giusta sequenza temporale degli eventi. Il risultato come dicevo prima è un libro fresco e di suspance che porta il lettore ad una conclusione ahimè alquanto deludente.
Non solo alcuni personaggi degni di nota non vengono approfonditi, ma altri principali vengono liquidati a fine libro senza troppi fronzoli lasciando un gusto di incompiuto al lettore. -
I enjoyed this book. Great style of writing, the characters were very relatable and you cared about what's going on. At first I thought it was a boy-meets-girl kind of thing, but it's more like a missing-person's murder mystery. Very intriguing and had me hooked very early on.
It's interesting because one of the characters is a thug-type who goes around with a knife threatening people, and turns out he didn't have anything to do with it, lol. What I don't understand is Raymond?
Basically, Raymond (possibly my favourite character in this book, he's very different) goes missing. He's not the main person to go missing. Stella's the one who goes missing that everyone's looking for. But the protagonist really cares more about Raymond and apparently his disappearance is completely unrelated...to anything at all.
And we get to the end, having solved the mystery of the murder of one missing person. Nothing is said about what happened to Raymond. He just disappeared for no reason.
So it's a pretty unsatisfying end because throughout the book the main character is all like "Where's Raymond?? I HAVE to find Raymond!" and he never turns up, there's no explanation.
Apart from that it was very well written so I can give it a marginally good rating. -
L’estate del coniglio nero è il secondo libro che leggo di Kevin Brooks, dato l’amore provato per il primo libro ero curiosa di scoprire se questo amore fosse dovuto alla bravura dello scrittore o alla potenza dell’argomento.
Non mi sono ancora data una risposta però.
Questo libro mi ha tenuto molta compagnia i personaggi sono ben fatti, l’autore ti fa odiare chi decide lui e ti fa apprezzare chi vuole lui.
La scrittura è scorrevolissima e piacevole , le pagine scorrono senza rendersene conto, se non avessi avuto impegni l’avrei finito molto prima del previsto questo libro.
La trama mi aveva intrigato molto ma ad oggi ,dopo averlo letto , molte cose non mi sono chiare della storia ho ancora dei punti interrogativi che per un lettore sono una cosa terribile.
Non ci vuole molto a capire chi è stato ad uccidere Stella quindi il finale mi ha lasciata un po’ con l’amaro in bocca. Stanotte andrò a dormire con un quesito : Ma Raymond? Bah.
Consiglio questo libro per chi vuole leggere una cosa leggera senza pretese e veloce.
Malgrado le mie perplessità dico che non è un capolavoro, ma è un buon libro e merita di essere letto. -
Pete has been friends with Pauly, Nic, Eric and Raymond forever but, as they get older, they are growing apart. All except for Pete and Raymond who will be friends forever. One night, the old friends meet up at the summer fair and suddenly Pete isn't sure who to trust. Apart from Raymond and he has suddenly gone missing.
I enjoyed this story of teenagers coming of age, it resonated with me as my children are of a similar age to Pete and his friends (although I am hopeful that they would never find themselves caught up in a situation like this). I liked Pete's character and the way that the story is seen through his eyes and I thought it was very well constructed and made me want to keep reading without giving too much away.
All this sounds like a 5 star review. It isn't because I just didn't like the end. I'm not one for tidy resolutions but this is something completely different. If the ending had been more satisfactory, this would have been a brilliant read. Nevertheless, I think you should read it! -
Pradėjus skaityti pamaniau , kad ši knyga ne tokia gera kaip kiti autoriaus kūriniai . Atrodė kone pernelyg vaikiška , beveik sapalionės . Bet paskui viskas įsibėgėja ir kuo toliau tuo darosi įdomiau . K.Brooks išlaiko savo talentą , moka perteikti paauglių mąstyseną , jų pokalbius , bet taip pat supina tikrai įdomų trilerį su puikia pabaiga . Ko gero būtent už pabaigas , kurios niekad neatsako į svarbiausią klausimą , keltą visą knygą , aš labiausiai ir pamėgau šį autorių . Jis taip atkakliai bando įpiršti vieną mintį , įvykį ar idėją , o tada tarsi palieka skaitytoją 'ant ledo' . Paprasta , bet labai veiksminga . Svarbiausia juokiuosi pati iš savęs , kad eilinį kartą pasimoviau ant šio triuko , nors tai ne pirma Brooks knyga , kurią skaitau .
Knyga patiks jei ieškote labai lengvo detektyvo , kuriame pagrindinis veikėjas nėra gerietis herojus , stipri ar išskirtinė asmenybė , taip pat jei neerzina vaikiška kalbėjimo maniera kai į klausimus atsakinėjama vienu žodžiu . -
4.5
Brilliant, creepy, and beyond suspenseful. After a few dozen simply ‘alright’ pages the story burst to life in typical Kevin Brooks fashion, and I couldn’t even think of putting it down. It was so suspenseful in some parts I felt like I was holding my breath. I couldn’t rest or do anything else until I knew exactly what happened and how it ended. The ending was ambiguous and though I do have a few theories about it, I think I will still be wondering about what happened and the meaning of it all for a long time to come and never know if my theories are correct. This is the darkest Kevin Brooks book that I have read so far. But I also think it is one of the best. It has everything you could want in a story and is the sort of book you want to read all over again as soon as you finish it. Best YA mystery I have read for sure. Probably the best mystery I have ever read as well. Totally brilliant. -
I picked this up because the blurb made it out to be a fast paced coming of age story with a few thriller twists and turns. It wasn't that. It took an interesting theme - i.e the funfair, with its accompanying darkness and air of intrigue - and just did nothing much with it. A lot of it felt Donnie darko esque, with Pete having these random visions and thoughts that were only vaguely explained. But the funfair part was exciting, and had so much potential, but the author sidestepped throwing us into the heart of the action, which would have been so much better! The book got really boring especially around the middle, with overly dense police scenes. And it isn't the sort of book you can enjoy in small doses. The twist didn't hit, and the end conclusion was both depressing and underwhelming, not really leaving you feeling satisfied. The dialogue was good, the characters were believable and I liked some of the imagery. But it just wasn't for me, so unfortunately I can't recommend.
-
Okay, this was such a suspenseful book.
I had no idea what was going to happen, like AT ALL. I had no idea that Stella was murdered and I was so convinced the Raymond was involved like, one way or another. Also, there was no way that I thought Pauly would be the one to kill Stella, or kill himself. Or that Stella blackmailed Eric and Wes. Ugh, I'm still trying to fathom everything that I'm reading here! Like, what did happen to Raymond? Will he ever be found? Is there a sequel? I'm so sad. I wanna know that Raymond's gonna be alright. Plus, I wanna know what happened to Eric, Wes and Nicole, like how they changed after being charged, Or how Noyce and his mother reacted, or what happened after that. And that creepy guy with the moustache. Did Pete actually see him or was he just part of the imagination?
