The Echo

Rating:
Summary: A Murder Mystery With No Victim.
Review: I've read a lot of Minette Walter's books now, and I've enjoyed them all. The Echo was the first one I ever read, so I have a soft spot in my heart for it. I was intrigued by an extract of the first chapter, which prompted me to buy the book - something I've never regretted.

The Echo starts with the death of a homeless man - a death by natural cases. I found it odd to read a murder mystery which, for most of the book, has no murder. Minette Walters weaves a large cast of interesting characters, locations and events into a harmonious and satisfying conclusion. A worthy investment, I read this book regularly.

Do I recommend it? Indeed. Not only to anyone who may stumble across this review, but to all my friends and aquaintances. I have lent the book out to so many people, and all have said they enjoyed it. I wish she could write more quickly - there's too long to wait between her books, I find!

Rating:
Summary: Well-written, convoluted plot: Was this really a mystery?
Review: Ms. Walters is a wonderful writer and I've enjoyed all of her books. This one is quite different than her previous novels. In fact, I'm not sure it was a "classical" mystery or a social commentary on a variety of subjects (class, family, mental illness, the homeless, homosexuality, male-bonding, etc.). It's a well-written book, but the mystery was somewhat convoluted. About a third of the way into the book, I no longer cared about the mystery. I had a difficult time with Terry: He was far too precocious for 14 years old. I had a bigger problem believing that Terry could recite, verbatim, the conversations he had with Billy Blake; especially those reminisces that dealt with poetry and the "meaning of life" passages. My favorite character: Lawrence. He appears briefly, but it's a wonderful characterization. I loved the British slang, as well. One reason I like Ms. Walters: all of her characters, even her protagonists, are flawed individuals with their own set of phobias, problems, and issues. Will I read her, again? Absolutely.

Rating:
Summary: Artificial and unpleasant
Review: Walters' books are typically creepy and sordid. But the sentimentalism between an unlikely 14-years-old sqatter-genius, a twice-divorced decayed journalist, and a repressed gay voyeur is really too much. And all these details on homeless people. Actually, homeless men. Is this a book directed to cheer-up an audience of man-hating women?

Rating:
Summary: What is irresistible about these books
Review: Walters' books remind me a bit of Shakespeare's tragedies if we had come in on the story near the end. We work backwards to find out how they have gotten to this wretched point -- and we usually do meet them at rock bottom -- and then we watch them rise up just a little to grab one more time at their humanity before succombing to their ultimate fate.

Walters fascinates me because she starts with a cast of characters who appear to be generally awful people, or jerks. They aren't people we like, nor do we want to like them. And then she unfolds their stories for us, and forces us -- and her other characters -- to look behind the veneer at the more complete individual. Especially when we don't want to.

Barry is a good example in this book. While we are sympathetic with his emotional crippling due to life circumstances, we still dislike him. At the same time, Barry is human, and believable, and so we find ourselves drawn, if a bit squeamishly, into his misshapen life.

I place Walters with Elizabeth George, J. Wallis Martin, and Ruth Rendell as writers who write dark, psychological mysteries (and to some degree Laurie King's Kate Martinelli stuff fits here too.) They are neither light, nor comfortable, but they do satisfy on a deeper level.