Rating: 
Summary: Great Film Script
Review: After reading "Raveling" I think it would make a brilliant psychological thriller film.I began to read the book feeling confused, but as it "unraveled" it became more and more engrossing.. Brilliant stuff!
Rating:
Summary: Great Film Script
Review: After reading "Raveling" I think it would make a brilliant psychological thriller film. I began to read the book feeling confused, but as it "unraveled" it became more and more engrossing.. Brilliant stuff!
Rating: 
Summary: Raveling keeps you raveling.
Review: For a first time novel, Smith's plot is very engrossing. You can't help but get caught up in your feelings about the characters even when the narrative is clumsy. If you don't mind reading between the lines, and filling in for yourself what is missing, then this is a great read. Although it like an extended high school creative writing essay - it still is a book you can't put down.
Rating:
Summary: THE UNRAVELING
Review: Have to give Mr. Smith an A+ for coming up with a very unique way to deal with a narrative; the POV from a psychotic-schizophrenic's mind is quite unusual, to say the least. Only when this POV shifts to other people near the end of the book does this device seem so contrived. All of a sudden, we're shifting between Pilot and Eric's point of view, and if that weren't confusing enough, we even get little Fiona's point of view. If Smith is trying to suggest that Pilot has all of these thoughts in his head, it's a weak way out, and it almost negates the complexity of his work.
From the onset, I pretty much knew what to expect by the end. Pilot was such a "put upon" youth, even by his older brother, Eric, that to think he was truly insane wouldn't have worked iin Smith's plot. With that aside, it's just a matter of finding out exactly what happened to little Fiona.
We never really get to understand what's behind Katherine's seemingly compulsive behavior of biting her fingernails until they bleed; the section with Pilot, his father and father's mistress, Patricia, seems forced, and what happens when they are on the deserted island, also seems way out of nowhere.
Given all these flaws,though, the book does have some genuinely good thrills and Pilot's mental illness is handled well.
RECOMMENDED, BUT DON'T PUT YOUR EXPECTATIONS TOO HIGH.
Rating:
Summary: a risky narritive that works
Review: I read this book when it first was published in 2000, and was so riveted from the first page I missed my subway stop and came to somewhere in Queens. Rereading it, the same thing happened (only I wasn't on the subway) - it felt like getting drunk, or falling in love. Just - wow! The narration is amazing, but unusual. The first person narrator actually says he's omniscient, and he often describes events he can't possibly have witnessed, sometimes even assuming his brother's voice. It's hard to tell how much to believe, given the narrator is hospitalized early on in the story, diagnosed as schizophrenic. It doesn't add to his credibility that, when he was a child and his younger sister disappeared without a trace, he spent a certain amount of time not speaking, but crawling around on his hands and knees, a growling "wolfboy." This distubred kid, now an adult, insists his brother killed his sister, even after the meds start to calm his delusional state and he stops hearing the light fixtures talking to him. His psychologist (who needs therapy badly herself) wonders about his claims and begins to piece together what really happened to the little girl whose disappearance years ago caused this family to unravel. Some of it's pretty brutal, much of it is wrenchingly sad, a lot of it is surprisingly funny, and all of it is brilliantly, beautifully written. One of the most original, most involving stories I've ever read.
Rating: 
Summary: Raveling
Review: If you like unusual and tense mysteries, you may want to try Raveling by Peter Moore Smith. The main character, Pilot James Aire, has recently been diagnosed with schizophrenia. As the schizophrenia takes hold Pilot becomes obsessed with the 20-year-old disappearance of his sister. He becomes determined to find the truth but is hampered by his brother, Eric, who considers him mentally ill. Helped by his therapist, Katherine DeQuincy-Joy, they search for the truth.
The reader is never sure what is part of Pilot's psychosis and what are genuine memories and the suspense continues until the very end. This is not a book to recommend to you "cozy" readers but is extremely engrossing and I highly recommend it. The audio version won an Audie award this year.
Rating: 
Summary: How well do you know your family?
Review: In this jarring mystery, a psychologist by the name of Katherine DeQuincey-Joy (with a hyphen) finds herself embroiled in the tragedies and mysteries of a broken family. She quickly finds herself stuck between the proverbial rock and a hard place. Pilot Airie, her patient, obviously needs her. Having suffered a psychotic episode and being diagnosed with schizophrenia, Pilot's not an incredibly reliable source. Or so Katherine continues to tell herself, because if he was, then Katherine certainly shouldn't be getting involved with Pilot's older brother Eric, whom Pilot accuses of murdering their younger sister years ago. ... And that's that. I don't know what to really say about this book. The writing style and perspective shifts were rather disjointed, confusing, but then, I think that was intentional. I had a gut feeling about all but the most minute details of the ending about halfway through the book, and I don't think that that came from any special talent of mine. I found myself constantly distracted by little details which were ceaselessly referred to but never explained, even as the book ended. I honestly hoped for a sloppy epilogue where the half dozen details that had been pestering me would be ironed out. I can't honestly say that I would recommend this book to anyone, even readers of grocery store rack mysteries. I don't know that I would go so far as to say that my time was wasted with this book, since the style was actually unique and interesting for a while, but it's certainly not going to be reread.
Rating:
Summary: Non-stop. Hard to put down.
Review: Raveling reads like any Chuck Palahniuk novel. Fast paced, character driven, well plotted and intense from beginning to end. Peter Moore Smith, who is an award winning short story writer, clearly has an extreme talent at writing a suspense filled novel.
Pilot James Airie is a diagnosed schizophrenic. The story of Raveling is told first person. However, Pilot, aside from being the main character, is himself, omniscient. This means when his brother, the successful neurosurgeon, Eric Airie, is on a secret date with Pilot's psychologist, Katherine Jane DeQuincey-Joy, Pilot knows what they are saying and thinking.
Everyone is worried about Pilot. When he was nine, his sister was abducted and was assumed to be dead, though no body had been found. This tragic event may have triggered a schizophrenic episode in Pilot, when he began acting like a wolf boy. Pilot's life, though he went to college, and to LA to become a screenwriter, has been a blur. When he is back home, his mother calls. She is seeing ghosts -double vision-and has pulled her car off to the side of the road. Pilot cuts through the woods in the backyard to get to his mother quickly. Only it is three days before someone finds him. A second episode has struck. But why? That is what Katherine is trying to find out. But Pilot thinks he knows why. He knows who murdered his sister. He claims he has always known. But who is going to believe a heavily medicated, mentally ill person?
Raveling is non-stop, hard to put down, nearly impossible not to think about if you have set it down. The characters are so well developed I felt as if I knew them all. I eagerly look forward to another novel by Peter Moore Smith.
--Phillip Tomasso III, author of Third Ring, Tenth House & Mind Play
Rating:
Summary: Raveling
Review: Raveling, Peter Moore Smith's debut novel, is told from the view of a diagnosed schizophrenic, Pilot Airie. This novel consists of unraveling suspense and compelling aspects that began by the tragedy of Pilot's abducted sister, his journey to enlightenment, and his struggle to distinguish the sane from the insane. The surreal notion Smith creates leads to many unexpected twists and turns as well as a clever and original mystery. Pilot returns to his home in California and moves back into his mother's house. His mother, Hannah, is gradually losing her sight and claiming to see ghosts and double vision. His older brother, Eric Airie is a well-respected neurosurgeon who wants to help Pilot overcome his disorder. To top that off, his father ran off with another woman. When Pilot begins to experience episodes due to his schizophrenia, he goes to psychotherapist Katherine DeQuincey-Joy who attempts to relieve Pilot from his disorder by revoking his past. In addition, she tries to help Pilot overcome his obsession of finding the murderer of his sister who has been missing for 20 years. Throughout the novel, Pilot searches for the truth and put his sister's case of abduction to rest as well as to reacquaint himself with his own past. Smith's well-developed characters made the novel easy to read as well as to understand each of the member's situations. Although there are a few inconsistencies that tend to be slightly redundant or are at times left unexplained, this novel is an excellent psychological thriller and is greatly recommended to those who enjoy the classic, yet genuine type of mystery and suspense.
Rating:
Summary: An Intense Thriller
Review: This is the story of the Airie family and their attempt to delve into long buried secrets and uncover a truth...what happened to their sister/daughter Fiona so many years ago? After her disappearance the entire family fell apart, unraveled. Now they are trying to piece together the puzzle and return the family to some semblance of normality. Pilot is the most interesting character. The story is told through his eyes and the fact that he is omniscient is chilling. We see things from his perspective, even when he isn't really there. He is also schizophrenic. We are inside his mind throughout this story so we're constantly wondering if we're seeing and hearing the truth or just his version of it. Pilot is adamant that his brother Eric, the neurosurgeon, is the killer...or is he? Psychologist Katherine DeQuincey-Joy steps into the picture to uncover the dark family secrets and pull Pilot from his psychosis. She is a fascinating character with her own problems to solve. This is a wonderful, fast paced, intensely written novel. I look forward to reading more books by this author.
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