3.0 out of 5 stars
Failed to hold my attention too often, April 1 2004
I'm not a huge mystery reader but do enjoy listening to them on my long drive to and from work. This unabridged audiobook had my attention, lost it, gained it backed and would then lose it again. Could be my distracted mind or it could be that it was just wasn't an interesting mystery? That said, there were several things to like. The protagonist Jarrod, an accomplished glassblower, was enjoyable ~ he's this regular guy with a very interesting (to me) profession who finds himself accosted by dangerous types and suddenly smack dab in the middle of mystery concerning a missing video cassette tape. His character and that of his off beat co-workers and surrounding support system were interesting and the detailed look into the world of professional glassblowing was fascinating. Unfortunately, the facts surrounding the missing tape and the sleuthing that follows to discover what the tape contains just didn't hold my attention and I repeatedly found myself drifting off into my own little world and having to rewind the tape during these sections. Maybe a true mystery aficionado would appreciate this one more than I.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
kept me entertained, Aug 28 2003
I would give this three and a half stars for the story and one-half star for the bonus of learning a little about glass blowing. I enjoyed the book, but was a little confused about why he didn't have the police arrest the ones that he knew who assaulted him. It would have saved him a lot of trouble, but, I know it's just a book. Never the less, I did enjoy the book. It was just long enough that I could read it in one sitting and it moved right along. The main character's friend dies in a freak accident while riding in a horse race. The friend leaves a tape for Gerard and before he can watch it, it is stolen. Other tapes have been stolen from the home of the victim and more of Gerards. Solving the mystery of the tapes leads to many adventures that keep your interest until the end of the book.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
"Shattered", A Dick Francis Mystery Thriller, Sep 26 2002
Gerard Logan is a glass artisan, more generally called a glass-blower. He has what you might call a normal life. But things are just about to get hot when his jockey friend, Martin Stukely, dies in steeplechase accident. From then on, Gerard finds himself involved in a deadly search for a valuable videotape. Martin was the last person who had the tape, now the bad guys think that Gerard have it. And they would do anything to get it. The thing is, Gerard has no idea what the videotape contains, let alone understand the priceless information it contains. Gerard must try to solve the mystery of the videotape, while at the same time trying to survive...
I was very surprised to see the low ratings this book was getting from other reviewers. For my part, I enjoyed this book immensely! It might have something to do with this being only my third book to read of Dick Francis' while others have read many of his books. But still, I just thoroughly enjoy the flavor of Dick Francis' books. Especially when you read the first line of his book:
"Four of us drove together to Cheltenham races on the day that Martin Stukely died there from a fall in a steeplechase."
Francis just cuts right to the point and begins the story right off, which for me, immediately grabs my attention. From then on, he plunges you into a story worth the read with intrigue, mystery, romance, action, and wit.
Gerard Logan is the usual Francis character; young, bright, likable, and clearly a very nice chap. He also is as curious as anyone can be. There is also the usual love interest, in this book the detective constable Catherine Dodd. Beautiful and also very smart, she too is incredibly likable. In "Shattered", there is one magical moment where Gerard is captivated and inspired by Catherine's beauty to make a dynamic glass sculpture. I thought that Francis wrote that part very well.
And of course there are the bad guys, whom I won't reveal except that 'beware of Blackmask 4'! But the few of the most enjoyable characters whom I liked were Gerard's bodyguards. There's Worthington a chauffeur who watches over Gerard, the actual 'bodyguard' Tom Pigeon with his three Dobermans, and Gerard's taxi driver, Jim.
My only complaint of the book is the bit disappointing ending, I wish it was a bit different. But "Shattered" is still satisfying. As usual, Dick Francis cleverly weaves into the tale a bit of horse racing, steeple chasing. And adding glass blowing into the plot was pretty cool. I must admit that I now find glass making a bit more interesting and fascinating than, I was at first skeptical as to whether you can actual put glass blowing into a mystery thriller.
So if you've never read any of Dick Francis' books, I suggest you to pick up "Shattered" if you get a chance. But if you've read any of Francis' other books, I can't honestly tell you how good it is compared to them. You'll just have to see. "Shattered" is mostly for older teenagers and adults, due to some violence, some language, and some innuendo.
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