High Flyer: Amazon.ca: Books

Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.

First Sentence
He glanced up, decided I was just another dumb blonde hired to massage a keyboard and made the big mistake of adopting a patronising manner. Read the first page

Explore More
Concordance

Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt

Tag this product

(What's this?)

Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items.

Customer Reviews

25 Reviews

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

Average Customer Review

4.0 out of 5 stars (25 customer reviews)

Share your thoughts with other customers:

Create your own review

Most helpful customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars faith and mystery - perfect blend, Jun 18 2004

By	Saralee Terry Woods "bookmanbookwoman.com" (nashville, tn United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The High Flyer (Paperback)

Nashville City Paper BookClub Column - May 27, 2004

I also really liked The High Flyer by Susan Howatch (Ballantine Books). Londoner Carter Graham's life comes crashing down around her and Howatch continues her tradition of resolving her characters' problems with a dose of religion.

Nashville City Paper BookClub Column - May 27, 2004

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)

5.0 out of 5 stars A mesmerizing story!, Oct 17 2001

By	Judith Miller (Bluemont, VA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The High Flyer (Hardcover)

I think that Susan Howatch is one of the most gifted of the
contemporary novelists.

In this, her current work, we're given a main character by the
name of Carter Graham who's a skilled and successful lawyer.
She's learned to be tough and work in the masculine world of
high flyers. Carter shuns her real name, Catherine and all of
the nicknames that are used by her family like Katie and Kitty.
In the shedding of her old names, Carter feels stronger and in
control of her life.

In her mid-thirties, she meets the man who appears to fulfill
her qualifications for marriage. Kim Betz is attractive, sexy,
dynamic and very successful. Carter falls in love and marries
Kim only to find out that he is haunted by his past. Kim's
life seems to be riddled with secrets. His involvement with a
psychic healer adds another twist to the story.

This is a love story wrapped up in mystery and lies. The author has combined a walk into mysticism and the occult into a fascinating tale. The mixture of characters makes this
vintage Howatch.

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)

3.0 out of 5 stars Look out below!, Sep 22 2001

By	Diane Davis (San Ramon, CA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The High Flyer (Hardcover)

Susan Howatch has written one of my all-time favorite books, but this isn't it. While her exploration of the psychological and spiritual issues central to human behavior is skillful and thought provoking as usual, "The High Flyer" left me with a feeling of distaste. Maybe it was the lily-gilding of her central malevolent figure. I couldn't help thinking the insights into the nature of evil would have seemed more relevant had he not been portrayed in almost cartoonish proportions. Pick a sin, any sin, and he's committed it. Most ethical battles are fought in a gray area without the benefit of such a clearly delineated enemy.
Or maybe it was the grating repetition of cloying phrases like nutterguff, fruity-loops, tiger-thumper, fluffette, etc.
Most likely, it was the reduction of the strong female character to a quivering mass of uncertainty, an empty vessel needing to be filled with the beliefs of others - primarily men of varying degrees of sexual attractiveness - in order to find peace. Forcing her heroine to examine and reorder her priorities is one thing, but Howatch seems to condemn her basic strength and independence as well, and - for me - that just didn't fly.

Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review

› See all 25 customer reviews...

Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Starts off great, but becomes the book that never ends
I truly love Susan Howatch's writing style. She is delightfully articulate and her characters are all so well defined. Read more

Published on Aug 26 2001

5.0 out of 5 stars EVIL
Howatch tackles a very diffcult problem, an understanding of the depths and devestations wrought by evil people. Read more

Published on Jul 28 2001 by L. Evans Roth

5.0 out of 5 stars Howatch's subject matter never fails to capture my interest.
I've read this book 3 times since it was published, as I do all Howatch's books. This novel gives us yet another twist on Nicholas and his coterie that is compelling and... Read more

Published on Jul 16 2001

3.0 out of 5 stars Another page-turner, but the message is getting stale.
I am a long time reader of Susan Howatch since her Penmarric days. I was thrilled with her Starbridge series, which showed her maturation as an author with her subject matter but... Read more

Published on May 11 2001