Robert Goddard (1) (1954–)
Autore di In Pale Battalions
Per altri autori con il nome Robert Goddard, vedi la pagina di disambiguazione.
Sull'Autore
Robert Goddard was a reader of history at Cambridge.
Fonte dell'immagine: (c) Jane Brown
Serie
Opere di Robert Goddard
Opere correlate
Reader's Digest Select Editions: Brandenburg • Kill the Messenger • Night Train to Lisbon • Sight Unseen (2006) — Autore — 9 copie
Reader's Digest Condensed Books: Last Light • The Stone Monkey • Dying To Tell • Fallen Angel (2002) 8 copie
Etichette
Informazioni generali
- Nome legale
- Goddard, Robert Francis
- Data di nascita
- 1954-11-13
- Sesso
- male
- Nazionalità
- UK
- Luogo di nascita
- Fareham, Hampshire, England, UK
- Luogo di residenza
- Truro, Cornwall, England, UK
- Istruzione
- University of Cambridge (Peterhouse)
- Attività lavorative
- novelist
local government official
historical mystery novelist
crime novelist
mystery writer - Breve biografia
- Robert Goddard was born in Fareham, Hampshire, England. He was educated at Price’s School, Fareham, and Peterhouse College, University of Cambridge, where he read History. After qualifying as a teacher, he worked as a local government officer for 10 years before becoming a full-time novelist.
He says, "I was frustrated and disappointed by a lot of contemporary fiction I read in the 1970s and 1980s, so I set out to write a novel that did what I wanted more novels to do: tell a tightly constructed and densely plotted story engrossingly and satisfyingly."
Utenti
Discussioni
Chat in Book Discussion : Fault Line by Robert Goddard (Agosto 2018)
Chat in Book Discussion : Closed Circle by Robert Goddard (Dicembre 2017)
Chat in Book Discussion : Take No Farewell by Robert Goddard (Agosto 2017)
Chat in Book Discussion : Long Time Coming by Robert Goddard (Febbraio 2017)
Chat in Book Discussion : Beyond Recall by Robert Goddard (Novembre 2016)
BRITISH AUTHOR CHALLENGE MAY - GARDAM & GODDARD in 75 Books Challenge for 2016 (Settembre 2016)
How the discussion works. in Book Discussion : Caught in the Light by Robert Goddard (Agosto 2016)
Recensioni
Wada, the main hero of this story, is a pretty sketchy character. On the other hand she is interesting enough at first flush that I'd like to know more, which is a bit better than a lot of recent Goddard characters. Reason for hope in that Goddard bring some fresh elements to the formula. Disappointing in that he doesn't really deliver on the promise of those fresh elements.
Part 1 of a trilogy plus prequel, set around the 1919 Paris peace conference. First book I finished of Goddard. I'm sorry to say, but I won't be interested in parts 2 and 3. It is a typical Flashman type thriller – boyish, adventurous, goodies against baddies, stumbling from one coincidental meeting to the next chance encounter that are prosaically worked through to unravel an elaborate plot that would quite befit a ‘great game’ type nineteenth century adventure story.
What is about? Two young men, the Lordish Maxted, former RFC fighter pilot, and his mechanic Sam, get embroiled in Paris with all kinds of diplomatic actors and secret service operators. The reason for this descend on Paris? Maxted’s presumed father, a diplomat operating in the margins of the British delegation with former postings in Rio, Tokyo and Petersburg, has been found dead in front of his mistress’ apartment. Accidental fall or murder? All signs point at murder and Maxted refuses to give in to the flimsy accident story. That’s the start of a goose chase involving Chinese boxes with secret letters, bank deposits, hidden American instructions on ignoring Wilson’s 14 point plan, a commitment of Japan to switch allegiance during the war from the Allies to the axis (never actually received by the Kaiser), and a scheming German master spy and Japan-hired assassin. A lot remains unclear, but part 1 unveils an extensive network of spies in the pay of the German master spy. Maxted our hero gets shot once (without fatal consequences), fucks one Russian beauty (later turns out to be a spy as well), escapes death with help of a mysterious arab, kills the assassin hired by the Japanese legation, has some doubts regarding his parentage, etc etc. Boring.… (altro)
What is about? Two young men, the Lordish Maxted, former RFC fighter pilot, and his mechanic Sam, get embroiled in Paris with all kinds of diplomatic actors and secret service operators. The reason for this descend on Paris? Maxted’s presumed father, a diplomat operating in the margins of the British delegation with former postings in Rio, Tokyo and Petersburg, has been found dead in front of his mistress’ apartment. Accidental fall or murder? All signs point at murder and Maxted refuses to give in to the flimsy accident story. That’s the start of a goose chase involving Chinese boxes with secret letters, bank deposits, hidden American instructions on ignoring Wilson’s 14 point plan, a commitment of Japan to switch allegiance during the war from the Allies to the axis (never actually received by the Kaiser), and a scheming German master spy and Japan-hired assassin. A lot remains unclear, but part 1 unveils an extensive network of spies in the pay of the German master spy. Maxted our hero gets shot once (without fatal consequences), fucks one Russian beauty (later turns out to be a spy as well), escapes death with help of a mysterious arab, kills the assassin hired by the Japanese legation, has some doubts regarding his parentage, etc etc. Boring.… (altro)
Ok...the second she hit him should be his clue to get the fuck away. But it's a Goddard novel so he won't and things will go from bad to worse. Oy. Too many dream sequences...oh how I loathe dream sequences.
Liste
Premi e riconoscimenti
Potrebbero anche piacerti
Autori correlati
Statistiche
- Opere
- 33
- Opere correlate
- 6
- Utenti
- 9,898
- Popolarità
- #2,404
- Voto
- 3.7
- Recensioni
- 304
- ISBN
- 652
- Lingue
- 11
- Preferito da
- 4
Wada’s husband, Hiko, had been killed in the Sarin gas attack on the Tokyo Subway in 1995, which is something that actually happened,
A woman called Mimori Takenaga consults Kodaka. Her father, Shitaro Masafumi, died when she was five; she believes he was murdered, perhaps by his translator, Peter Evans. Either that or Evans knows who killed him.
She had recently received a letter from an Englishman called Caldwell, who wanted her to come to London to discuss the matter of Peter Evans.
Takenaga cannot go to London so Kodaka asks Wada if she would go instead, pretending to be her.
A man named Nick Miller is also approached by Caldwell. He was a friend of Nick’s late mother, and Nick hardly knew him.
Caldwell asks if they could meet to discuss Nick’s father. As far as he knew, his father was Geoff Nolan, a man who had died early of a drugs overdose.
They made an appointment to meet.
Wada agrees to go to London.
Nick gets a card from Caldwell postponng their meeting.
When Wada gets to London, she receives a call from Kodaka’s lawyer telling her that Kodaka is dead, run over, apparently deliberately.
Wada may also be in danger but she decides to continue with the project now she is in London.
She was to meet Caldwell in the British Museum but he fails to turn up. Perhaps he is dead too.
There are lots of other details and other characters in the story, including Baroness Cushing who meets with Nick and provides him with information about his presumed father, Geoff,
Caldwell did not turn up to meet Nick either.
There are indications that Nick’s father may perhaps have been Peter Evans and part of the story is his search to find out the truth of the matter.
So the story is partly about Wada’s investigation to find the murderer of Takenaga’s father and partly Nick’s quest to find his father. It’s all about fathers.
One problem I had with the book was I had difficulty with the many unfamiliar Japanese names so it was hard for me to distinguish the various characters.
I wouldn’t call the book exciting but I found it extremely readable, like all of Goddard’s books, and I highly recommend it if you’re looking for a good thriller.… (altro)