Customer Reviews

Slaves of Obsession: A William Monk Novel

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book was an intricate victorian mystery with historical overtones and I enjoyed it. But I was confused during the whole book, looking for Lyman Breeland to be revealed as some kind of dual personality or undercover spy, because the flyleaf write-up on the hardbound version refers to him as Lyman Breedlove. What gives? I spent the whole book looking to solve this puzzle and by the end it was obviously a (major) publishing faux pas. Anybody else find this?

This book brought the Civil War to life for me and showed the darker side of fighting for a nobel cause. This was the first book I have read by Anne Perry and I really enjoyed the simple, yet elegant way that she writes her mystery novels. She does not need to use overly elaborate symbolism or words to make a great novel. Instead it is a beautifully written "who-done-it" that keeps you guessing all the time. This is a good book for anyone who likes mystery novels from Nancy Drew to Agatha Christy.

I read a lot of historical fiction. This is perhaps the third novel in the last 10 years that I could not finish because it was so slow. I forced myself to 250 or 270 pages but the story drags on.Its simply boring.

If I'd had known how good this book was, I'd have gotten it from the library when it first came out in hardcover! I can't remember when I last enjoyed one of Anne Perry's books so much.

Starts off well, interesting characters, but I lost interest about halfway through. Monk and Hester get to experience the Civil War, which gives him some deeper insight into her life experiences. Later Monk is able to pick up another fragment of his past life. There are many good details, but the author's passion and plots seem to be wearing thin by this time. It's about time to bring Monk's story to a close.

In Slaves of Obsession, Anne Perry has expanded Hester and Monk's world to include a trip to America at the start of the Civil War. Monk finds war horrific. Having always considered himself a brave man able to face death he is frightened by his reaction to the destruction. On the other hand Hester rises to the occasion. Her battle experience puts her in the position of strength. This glimpse into his wife's past fills Monk with admiration and a greater understanding of Hester's past.

All the characters have a noble obsession, which contributes to their downfall. Whether is it love or glory or freedom it infects their reason bringing death in its wake. The plot is clever and holds the reader's interest.

An excellent novel, I highly recommend it

Anne Perry is an exqusite writer. Her prose is beautiful and she evokes the era of Victorian England in a wonderful and believable way. In the latest book of this series William Monk and his bride Hester are invited to dinner at the home of Donald Alberton, an arms dealer. An unpleasant scene occurs when Lyman Breeland, a passionate supporter of the Union discovers that Alberton has already promised a shipment of guns to Philo Trace, a southerner. Alberton's daughter, Merrit, is in love with Breeland and she argues with him for her father to support the anti-slavery stand. Alberton claims that he has promised the guns to Trace and cannot back out of the deal, despite his personal feelings about the war in America. Breeland and Merrit flee and one of the main characters is brutally murdered. Breeland's watch is found near the murder scene, which puts the suspicion squarely on him. The rest of the book shifts to American Civil War battlefields and then to a courtroom in England. The identity of the murderer is elusive and is twisted with personal and political motives. As always, Perry provides a very good read.

I'm used to Anne Perry coming up with a twist in the motive that catches me by surprise even when the killer was spotted much earlier in the book. I wasted my time trying to think of the most lurid possible motive. On the other hand, the Secret of the Incredible Disappearing Barge was one I hadn't seen coming.

I give nothing away by stating that Lyman Breeland is a jerk cut from the same cloth as Peter Kreisler from TRAITOR'S GATE. In fact, I could hear Lady Vespasia commenting on their type in my head during one of his early appearances. But does that mean he's guilty?

Philo Trace seems to be a really great guy even if he is from the slave-owning South. Is it all just a mask?

I'm not going to automatically condemn one side or the other in my country's Civil War. My father's family fought for the South. My mother's family is from the North. I thought Anne Perry did a pretty even-handed job of presenting Breeland and Trace's viewpoints. However, I don't recall any of the English characters comparing or contrasting the American Civil War with England's Civil War. I found that odd.

At least having Hester and William at the scene of a bloody battle, besides being the best part of the book, enabled William to understand Hester better. I wonder if Hester is going to exhibit symptoms of post-traumatic stress syndrome in a later book.

Speaking of later books, I hope Anne Perry follows up on the tantalizing clue to Monk's past discovered in this one. Could he really have done anything as disgusting as he fears he might have?

Have fun speculating on whether Ms.Perry meant anything by giving her characters names such as "Lyman", which sounds like "lie, man"; "Meritt", and "Philo Trace". Don't expect much from the courtroom scenes, although I did like the way Rathbone's opponent gave Breeland a well-deserved setdown.

Anne Perry's "Slaves of Obsession" starts out with a great premise: A British businessman is faced with the choice of selling arms to two men, one a member of the Union forces during the American Civil War, and the other a man with loyalties to the Confederacy. When the businessman is murdered, the Northerner flees to America with the guns...and the businessman's daughter. But did he kill the businessman? Monk and Hester are up to the task of sorting the whole thing out...or are they?

I found the first third of the book to be very exciting, especially the scenes that occur in America. Monk, for the first time, now becomes graphically aware of what Hester has seen and experienced as he watches the brutal battles of the Civil War. (Monk also learns more about his forgotten past in this volume.) As Monk and Hester search for answers in America, they learn a lot about themselves.

Sadly, after Monk and Hester arrive back to England, the book really drags down. Perry just keeps hammering the same clues over and over again until the reader finally doesn't care who is exposed as the murderer (although it's fairly easy to figure out). Monk's wit and intellect are usually sharp as a tack, but he really seems slow-witted in figuring out what's going on in this story. After her return from America, Hester might as well change the sheets on beds in hospital rooms...she has very little to do with the remainder of the story. The courtroom scenes in this story are the least inspired of all the Monk stories thus far. "Slaves of Obsession" feels like a book that was well thought out for about the first half of the story. After that, it feels like the ending was thrown together in time to meet a deadline. Considering how very good the three previous Monk books were, "Slaves of Obsession" comes as a major disappointment.

I didn't expect much from this book, the reviews weren't great. I liked it a lot. I bought the book some time ago and hadn't gotten around to it because of the reviews. When I sat down and started reading I finished it which frankly is unusual for an Anne Perry book. I like her writing but sometimes it doesn't grab me right away. This book did grab me and I remain a devoted fan of Ms. Perry. I have ordered her next book and will not let it sit on the shelf before reading it.