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Rating: 
Summary: An Intelligent Entertainment
Review: Hilda Dunn's The Hanged Man is a clever and entertaining mystery that should be read by everyone who admires the novels of Jane Austen and Barbara Pym. With great skill, Dunn presents an exciting story (one that makes unobtrusive references to works by such writers as T.S. Eliot and Graham Greene among others)while presenting a view of post-World War 2 England that is as good as anything in the novels of Pym. The reader needn't have read these earlier writers to enjoy Dunn's novel, but if one has some familiarity with with them, the enjoyment is increased, and the reader sees that Dunn is an extrordinarily clever writer.But,more important, The Hanged Man is an entertainment. It is fun to read, and the final pages are as exciting as any other mystery story I know. Don't miss out on this treat.
Rating:
Summary: An Intelligent Entertainment
Review: Hilda Dunn's The Hanged Man is a clever and entertaining mystery that should be read by everyone who admires the novels of Jane Austen and Barbara Pym. With great skill, Dunn presents an exciting story (one that makes unobtrusive references to works by such writers as T.S. Eliot and Graham Greene among others)while presenting a view of post-World War 2 England that is as good as anything in the novels of Pym. The reader needn't have read these earlier writers to enjoy Dunn's novel, but if one has some familiarity with with them, the enjoyment is increased, and the reader sees that Dunn is an extrordinarily clever writer. But,more important, The Hanged Man is an entertainment. It is fun to read, and the final pages are as exciting as any other mystery story I know. Don't miss out on this treat.
Rating:
Summary: A fun and intelligent book
Review: Reading "The Hanged Man" was a thoroughly enjoyable experience for me. The plot has more twists than a Celtic knot, something I usually don't go for since in most twist-and-turn detective novels the cast are not much more than pawns in the author's effort to concoct a surprise-filled puzzle. In this book, however, the players were all alive and interesting, each with its own funny and loveable idiosyncrasies. Every character in this book was vivid and fascinating to me, even the secondary ones. In fact it seemed each one had enough "juice" in it to merit being a protagonist in a book of its own. The language in the book is rich, sometimes almost too rich for someone like me for whom English is not a native tongue. I'm sure I missed most of the interesting (and funny) homages to (and parodies of) classic works of literature. It comes across very vividly that Ms. Dunn was in love with the English language and literature, and the book is virtually fizzling with this love affair. With suspense hitting you right on page 1 without relenting till the last chapter, "The Hanged Man" manages a truly unique tight-wire act in my eyes: It somehow manages to be fun and yet deep at the same time. A spoiled reader like me is thus provided with everything he could possibly wish for: Instant gratification AND an intellectually worthwhile adventure... Isaac Orr, Israel.
Rating:
Summary: A fun and intelligent book
Review: Reading "The Hanged Man" was a thoroughly enjoyable experience for me. The plot has more twists than a Celtic knot, something I usually don't go for since in most twist-and-turn detective novels the cast are not much more than pawns in the author's effort to concoct a surprise-filled puzzle. In this book, however, the players were all alive and interesting, each with its own funny and loveable idiosyncrasies. Every character in this book was vivid and fascinating to me, even the secondary ones. In fact it seemed each one had enough "juice" in it to merit being a protagonist in a book of its own. The language in the book is rich, sometimes almost too rich for someone like me for whom English is not a native tongue. I'm sure I missed most of the interesting (and funny) homages to (and parodies of) classic works of literature. It comes across very vividly that Ms. Dunn was in love with the English language and literature, and the book is virtually fizzling with this love affair. With suspense hitting you right on page 1 without relenting till the last chapter, "The Hanged Man" manages a truly unique tight-wire act in my eyes: It somehow manages to be fun and yet deep at the same time. A spoiled reader like me is thus provided with everything he could possibly wish for: Instant gratification AND an intellectually worthwhile adventure... Isaac Orr, Israel.
Rating:
Summary: DELIGHTFUL, INTELLIGENT PERIOD MYSTERY
Review: THE HANGED MAN offers the enjoyment of meeting a well-furnished mind through an enthralling story, with highly evocative period details that bring daily life in the 1940s to the page. The author's wit and intelligence shine through and ensure the reader's pleasure.
Rating:
Summary: DELIGHTFUL, INTELLIGENT PERIOD MYSTERY
Review: THE HANGED MAN offers the enjoyment of meeting a well-furnished mind through an enthralling story, with highly evocative period details that bring daily life in the 1940s to the page. The author's wit and intelligence shine through and ensure the reader's pleasure.
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