Paul Watkins (1)

The theme of personal redemption through a dangerous and possibly foolhardy physical task was what drew me in in the firs book I read by Paul Watkins, In the Blue Light of African Dreams. It is back here, with mountain climbing replacing flying but both in the very early versions and both very hazardous indeed, I did find the lead up to the ascent of Carton's Rock a bit long and possibly full of extra details but once the mountain climbing started, it really got into full swing. Watkins is a fantastic writer, there are moments of prose that are just luminous but the narrative structure creaked and showed the strain at times. Still, well worth the read. And now I have read al of his published work. I might have to read them all again.… (plus d'informations)

I really enjoy Paul Watkins but I think he was a bit out of his wheelhouse on this one. It was wonderfully written and very evocative but the main characters were not really fleshed out as much as I hoped. I would have preferred to keep it focused on MacKenzie, Dodge, Coltrane, Gabriel, and Madeline. The Shelby plot line felt too over the top for me and Mary the Clock and Wilbur didn't need as much of a major role. I generally like his theme of confronting personal demons and finding who you are, etc but I didn't find that as much as I expected to. It was worth reading for sure, but perhaps not as strong as some other novels.… (plus d'informations)