Most helpful customer reviews
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Solid and Good, Jun 18 2004
This books fills ya up. It is one of the more straightforward and easy-to-follow Straub books, too, so it's a good choice for Peter Straub beginners.However -- and you knew there was going to be a however, didn't you? This book highlights my ongoing problem, not with Peter Straub's writing, which is technically superb, but is off thematically when it comes to his female characters. Mr. Straub has a bad case of what we called in college the Madonna - (word I can't type here) complex, otherwise known as the good-girl/bad-girl dichotomy. His female characters are all either powerless "good" little virgin-types or powerful "bad", sex-crazed types. Sometimes he'll take a "good" girl and make her "bad" (and therefore powerful) by making her unrealistically promiscuous. Just look at Maggie. I mean, come ON. Would she really just hop in bed with two of the main characters whenever they snap their little fingers? But as soon as she does it, she becomes one tough manga chick. Look at the doctor's wife -- she is "frigid" and therefore it's OK for him to leave her and go to bed with Maggie. Huh? You see this issue happening over and over in his work, including in the books "Mystery", "If You Could See Me Now", and especially "The Hellfire Club". I also have an issue with the way he implies that the women being killed in sex shows in a certain third world county sort of enjoy being killed (???!!!???). I mean, I know he is trying to be poetic, but it just doesn't pay off, not with the subject matter in mind. For such an epic, important subject, you should be able to make it pay off in a big way for the reader, and if it doesn't, you should just nix it out of your story, don't you think? Anyway -- this is all not to say that this is not a brilliant book. It is. You will find yourself racing through the pages, and he has a lot of important things to say. I just wish he would go ahead and resolve his issues with women. I think that would make his books even better -- and that's saying something.
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4.0 out of 5 stars
Im conflicted, May 29 2004
After countless psychotherapy sessions, an endless prescription of Prozac, and some Disney movies, I'm conflicted - wanting to either kiss Mr. Straub or sue him for emotional distress. Here was a book that danced on the line between reality and fiction so discreetly, I found myself looking over my shoulder in fear.
Now, on to the dissection of it, shall we? The plot was inceptive, shocking, and comprehensive. With a thick history, the story unravels into a terrifying journey, keeping the reader awake wanting to know what happens next. The pace in the book is slow at first but picks up speed. With each word, sentence, and chapter, it propels you on with anticipation.
The atmosphere in KoKo was rich with anguish, pain, and a suffering so powerful it manages to underline your every thought through out. The author's style of writing is precise, simplistic, and thorough. Reading his work, you not only get a familiarity of the writer, but also begin to note a sense of humility.
The characters were individualistic, comprehensive, and real. What many authors miss, and Straub masterfully carried out, was to convey through these characters a sense of pity and purity at an even blend. The world may have forgotten about Vietnam, but in Straub's realm of hell memory is eternal.
My rate? I give it a 4 . Here is a must have for your collection! Buy it, read it and get the professional help required to recover. -Bloodymary
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4.0 out of 5 stars
The journey is more than half the fun, Mar 27 2004
A group of Vietnam veterans search for a former member of their old unit, who they believe has become a serial killer called Koko. The identity and nature of Koko is inextricably bound up a horrible experience that they all share-the massacre of children in a Vietnamese village.This is a long novel. Straub paints fully realized characters with complicated and believable motivations. At times, the horror aspects of the novel take a back seat to the more straightforward human drama in his characters' lives, but I, for one, did not mind this because the drama was so compelling. In fact, I was a bit let down by the novel's resolution, having enjoyed the details of the search and the interplay between characters so much. I had come to care more about what was going to happen to Michael Poole, Connor Linklater, Tim Underhill, Maggie Lah, and even the pathetic Harry Beavers than about the identity and fate of Koko. Nevertheless, this well-written thriller remains a rewarding and enjoyable read.
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