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And Then You Die: An Aurelio Zen Mystery

Average customer rating:

Read "Blood Rain" first
A Big Disappointment
Excellence truncated
A coda
bizarre

And Then You Die: An Aurelio Zen Mystery
Michael Dibdin
Manufacturer: Pantheon
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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Similar Items:

Blood Rain: An Aurelio Zen Mystery
A Long Finish
Cabal: An Aurelio Zen Mystery
Cosi Fan Tutti: An Aurelio Zen Mystery
Vendetta: An Aurelio Zen Mystery

ASIN: 0375421882
Release Date: 2002-05-21

Book Description

Aurelio Zen of Rome’s elite Criminalpol is back—but nobody’s supposed to know it. After months in the hospital healing from wounds sustained in a bomb attack on his car in Sicily, he is lying low under a false name at a beach resort on the Tuscan coast, waiting to testify in an imminent anti-Mafia trial. In the meantime, he has nothing to do but enjoy the orderly and undemanding world of a classic Italian beach holiday: spending his days in his assigned chair on a well-managed strip of pale sand, eating splendid seafood, and engaging in a mild flirtation with the attractive woman sitting under the next umbrella. Until he notices that an inordinate number of people—each of whom might have been mistaken for Zen himself—have been dropping dead around him. Now it seems to be just a matter of time before the Mafia manage to finish the job they bungled months before on a lonely Sicilian road.

But though Zen has been out of commission for months, he hasn’t lost any of his highly developed, legendary abilities to navigate treacherous waters. When he finds himself suddenly back in action, he begins to feel more alive than he has since the moments before he was almost dead, which might help keep him from being almost dead—or worse—yet again.

In And Then You Die, Michael Dibdin has given us a suspenseful, sharply funny new chapter in the always unexpected and uncommonly entertaining saga of Aurelio Zen.

Customer Reviews:

Read "Blood Rain" first.......2005-05-02

After we've been literally to hell and back with Aurelio Zen in "Blood Rain", this book is positively languid by comparison. But looks can be deceiving. Dibdin is supposed to be spending time healing anonymously after the last book, but someone is killing people all around him, possibly in tragic cases of mistaken identity. As with "Blood Rain", this book is a loving look at Italy with unsentimental descriptions of the corruption and political problems that baffle other Westerners while Italians take them for granted. It isn't as good as "Blood Rain" but deserves to be read with it as a set piece.

A Big Disappointment.......2005-03-07

i have read all the previous Aurelio Zen novels and found them well written with interesting plots that always contained at least a few clever twists. I was looking forward to this latest in the series, but I regret to say that I found it a great disappointment. There is a world of difference between a plot with twists and the wholesale substitution of improbable coincidences and bizarre characters for a plot. In the course of reading the book, I was tempted to put it down for good a half dozen times, but persevered because of my high opinion of the earlier books. I kept on hoping that somehow Dibdin would redeem himself, but the absurd coincidences and characters persisted until the end. It will be quite a while before I read another Dibdin novel.

Excellence truncated.......2004-06-25

The only criticism of this work is that it's too short. I think Dibdin is such a beutiful writer that the tale (ordinary enough) is almost secondary. Viva Aurelio..e Gemma !!

A coda.......2004-06-08

This is the eighth in the Aurelio Zen series.

It is really a coda - a "what happened afterwards" - to Blood Rain (my favourite in the series). I don't belive it stands alone at all, and would not suggest this as an entry point to the Zen series.

However, if you HAVE read Blood Rain, then I suggest you do read it. Despite the initially sunny and carefree setting, Zen's demons are REALLY dark, and his sanity in question, as a result of events in Blood Rain.

Fortunately, things are looking up for Zen by the end, but I have to say I was very disappointed in the plotting in the final section especially. Whereas Zen has previously used guile, subterfuge and some dubious, even 'shady' techniques for getting himself out of trouble, I felt the actions here were too crude and simplistic, and then more closely resembled farce than displaying any plot ingenuity.

This was by far the most disappointing in the series for me, but I am glad that Zen is back!

bizarre.......2003-10-09

It was the first (and only) book of this author I bought so I cannot judge other readers' claim that the earlier books were better. With this book at least I could not relate at all. A modern days european, middle aged policeman who has never heard of Los Angeles? Who, reading that the city's name derives from an old Spanish mission expects L.A. to be a cosy european-style city inhabited by catholics? Has this man really never heard about riots, the movie "colors", OJ Simpson or Hollywood and should still be considered a credible character? A man who really thinks that, having started from Italy and landing after only three hours flight, he is in L.A. now (instead of Iceland)? This guy could have fallen from another planet, irreal as he comes over. Having read half the book, I just did not care anymore about his further destiny.

Average customer rating:

LOVE IT
Entertaining read
Unbelievable plot, unlikable characters
Awful
Preposterous and Awful

And Then You Die
Iris Johansen
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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Similar Items:

Long After Midnight
The Ugly Duckling
Final Target
The Face of Deception
The Killing Game

ASIN: 0553579983
Release Date: 1998-09-01

Amazon.com

As a photojournalist, Bess Grady is far more comfortable viewing life through her camera lens than firsthand; the extra distance makes it easier to accept life's atrocities. Still recovering from an assignment on which she witnessed the massacre of an entire Croatian orphanage, Bess accepts an easy assignment from a travel magazine to photograph a small village in Mexico and brings her sister along for fun. What awaits her is worse than she ever could have imagined: everyone in the village has been killed by a deadly poison. After rescuing the only survivor, Bess and her sister split up. Bess finds herself captured by the villain who seems to have plotted the horrible destruction. Her sister has disappeared, and the only hope Bess has to save her is to trust a man she believes to be a murderer.

Book Description

She expected sunshine and balmy breezes. What she saw was everyone's worst nightmare.

Bess Grady has heard the unmistakable sound before. She knows what it means. But not even the eerie lament of the howling dogs can prepare her for what has taken place in the small village. The seasoned photojournalist had been sent there on an easy assignment, and now she has stumbled upon something she was never meant to see. Amid chaos and fear, she joins forces with an intimidating stranger, a man whose alliances are unclear but whose methods have a way of leaving bodies in his wake. For what she has witnessed is only the first stage in a plan of terror that may kill us all. And she has no choice but to stop it—or die trying....

Download Description

She expected sunshine and balmy breezes. What she saw was everyone's worst nightmare.

Bess Grady has heard the unmistakable sound before. She knows what it means. But not even the eerie lament of the howling dogs can prepare her for what has taken place in the small village. The seasoned photojournalist had been sent there on an easy assignment, and now she has stumbled upon something she was never meant to see. Amid chaos and fear, she joins forces with an intimidating stranger, a man whose alliances are unclear but whose methods have a way of leaving bodies in his wake. For what she has witnessed is only the first stage in a plan of terror that may kill us all. And she has no choice but to stop it -- or die trying....

Customer Reviews:

LOVE IT.......2007-03-09

I LOVE IRIS JOHANSEN!!!! ALL OF THE BOOKS I HAVE READ OF HERS ARE GREAT!!!!! READ THEM, YOU WON'T BE DISAPOINTED!

Entertaining read.......2006-07-20

I was in the mood for an fast entertaining read, and this book filled the bill. Actually, I read it years ago, and recently re-read it. It's suspenseful with a nice touch of romance. I am not going to argue with other posters who say the characters were not fleshed out or the plot was unbelievable. I enjoyed the story and the resourcefulness of the characters, and the constant sense of impending danger. I wasn't looking for a literary exploration of the human condition, just a fun read with likable characters and a fast-paced plot, and this is it.

Unbelievable plot, unlikable characters.......2006-05-22

I just want to say, do not judge the author by this book. I loved Ugly Duckling and many of her romance novels, but this one was terrible. The hero of the novel starts out being strong and interesting, but for no aparent reason turns into a spineless idiot. Bess, the heroine, acted like a selfish, hypocritical child and was never once brought to task for her stupidity. She spends half of the novel blaming Kaldack for risking her life for the good of many, but spends the entire novel risking not only herself but everyone else for more selfish motives. As the bodies pile up as a result of her actions, she never acknowledges any culpability. I completely agree with every bad review that has been written.

Awful.......2005-12-10

I am usually a very patient reader, but this book was simply unnerving. The plot is disorganized, the caracters nothing more than stereotypes, the writing erratic, to put it mildly. The main character's (Bess) behavior is so irritating that it makes one wonder why would anyone ever want to be around her, yet she is not only being assisted and protected but manages to order around what are supposed to be seasoned CIA professionals - one of whom is a "man with the past", a killer, rugged on the outside and soft-hearted inside...blah. The author mixed a whole lot - war/slaughter in Croatia, bioterrorist attack in Mexico and the US, middle east fanatics. Knowing that the book was published in 1998, the plot may have even sounded prophetic at times, if the writing was better and the story compact. Moreover, the author seems to have real problems with facts - in example, there is no Danzar village in Croatia, nor Tenajo in Mexico (I don't know if this was intentional, although I do not see a reason for imaginary place while the other places in the book are factual - Atlanta, New Orleans etc). Is this book readable....yes, barely...in my opinion this is a bunch of badly written mumbo-jumbo hastily put together. I am giving this book a star only because it still took some work to put together 300+ pages of this nightmare.

Preposterous and Awful.......2005-11-28

I made the mistake of picking up this book to read over a long weekend. The title caught my eye and the concept seemed promising, but once I actually got into the story I was very disappointed.

Too many of the major plot points are entirely unbelievable. For instance, a child who the protagonist encounters abandoned in a village becomes a singular focus and driving element--even though the protagonist barely spends any time with her and hithertofore has not been the motherly type. Over and over again the CIA frontman gives into her unreasonable and irrational demands, to the point that one starts to root for the bad guys. To anyone with a high school biology class under the belt, the science is preposterous and completely unbelievable. Much effort is put forth to develop an "antidote" (actually an antibody) to anthrax. Cipro, anyone?

The writing is also very stilted, often awful, and at times laughable. Too many times to count a character "smiles sardonically" or "speaks jerkily". At times the plot turns are so poorly described it is difficult to judge just what the heck is going on. And, ultimately, the characters behave so irrationally one does not really care.

I would only recommend reading this if you need perspective on how bad books can really be. Otherwise, look elsewhere.

Average customer rating:

And Then You Die . . .
Iris Johansen
Manufacturer: Bantam Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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ASIN: 0340695226

Cornell Woolrich: First You Dream, Then You Die

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Cornell Woolrich - Man of Mystery.

Cornell Woolrich: First You Dream, Then You Die
Francis M. Nevins
Manufacturer: Mysterious Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Authors | Arts & Literature | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

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Similar Items:

Blues of a Lifetime: The Autobiography of Cornell Woolrich
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Manhattan Love Song

ASIN: 0892962976

Customer Reviews:

Cornell Woolrich - Man of Mystery........1999-10-03

Well researched glimpse into Woolrich's complete works. A fascinating look at the mystery and pulp publishing field from the late 20's to the 70's. Woolrich tended to be reclusive and not always factual in recounting his life, so Nevins Jr. can only speculate on Woolrich's approach in writing, his personal life and family history. It is a very enjoyable read becuase of the way Nevens ties in Woolrich's main obsessions - the fear of annihilation, fear of losing loved ones, the feeling of the utter lonliness of the universe, and the certainty of randomness of fate - with all of his works - and finds worthy moments even in the tawdriest of Woolrich's pulp shorts (e.g. Vampire's Honeymoon).

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And Then You Die
Michael Dibdin
Manufacturer: QPD
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0571210376

You Live and Learn. Then You Die and Forget It All: Ray Lum's Tales of Horses, Mules and Men

Average customer rating:

A story for the genuine, native Mississippian

You Live and Learn. Then You Die and Forget It All: Ray Lum's Tales of Horses, Mules and Men
William Ferris
Manufacturer: Anchor
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Social History | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

Customer Reviews:

A story for the genuine, native Mississippian.......1997-12-12

One of the ways we Mississippians shrug off how well we have done is to make the statement, "Well, I'm just an old mule trader". Bill Ferris seems to have captured just that statement. Here is the tale of a simple man, Ray Lum, born 1 of 9 children who by sheer will became a celebrated livestock trader, a big fish in a small pond so to speak. His charm and wit made him successful in a business full of bootleggers, con men and rattlesnakes. I particularily liked the part when Ray visits the graveyard where his ancestors are "planted". I think it should be required reading in Mississippi Civics classes in high school.

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Life's a Bitch, and Then You Die
Steven E. Holt
Manufacturer: Steven E. Holt
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000KH492S

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And Then You Die
Irving A. Greenfield
Manufacturer: Superiorbooks.Com Inc
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books

General | Short Stories | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1931055351

4 Titles By Iris Johansen : The Ugly Duckling Long After Midnight And Then You Die The Search

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4 Titles By Iris Johansen : The Ugly Duckling Long After Midnight And Then You Die The Search
Iris Johansen
Manufacturer: Bantam
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000MU2LFK

Product Description

4 Titles By Iris Johansen : The Ugly Duckling Long After Midnight And Then You Die The Search. Four mmpb books.

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And Then You Die
John R. Jorissen
Manufacturer: Writers Club Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Contemporary | General | Literature & Fiction | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0595170307

Book Description

This poignant story is a carefully crafted combination of devotion and conviction and tragic conflict.

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