Helpful Score: 1
I came late to the Linwood Barclay party, but I'm enjoying catching up. I enjoyed the "voice," the story, and the pacing of No Time for Goodbye, although I did have a problem or two with the book over all.
This plot is very carefully constructed. Seemingly unimportant objects mentioned casually are mentioned for a reason, and the same holds true for characters. Speaking of characters, my favorite was young Jane Scavullo, a troubled teen with so much potential. I don't know if she shows up in another Barclay novel, but I certainly wouldn't mind seeing her again.
Now for the two things that rubbed me the wrong way. Quite frankly, I found main character Cynthia Bigge to be a royal pain in the neck. Everything is about her. No one can voice an opinion if it might be "against" her, and she's in real danger of smothering her young daughter. Yes, it's realistic behavior for someone whose family vanished without explanation, but that doesn't mean I have to like her.
The other thing that bothered me was the explanation for what actually happened to Cynthia's parents and brother, so I can't say much about it without giving it away. I'll just say that Barclay's solution was a bit over-the-top for me, and I had trouble suspending my disbelief enough to accept it all.
But Linwood Barclay can write like a house afire. I love his plots, I love his voice, and just because I didn't like one of his characters doesn't mean I'm going to stop reading his books!
This plot is very carefully constructed. Seemingly unimportant objects mentioned casually are mentioned for a reason, and the same holds true for characters. Speaking of characters, my favorite was young Jane Scavullo, a troubled teen with so much potential. I don't know if she shows up in another Barclay novel, but I certainly wouldn't mind seeing her again.
Now for the two things that rubbed me the wrong way. Quite frankly, I found main character Cynthia Bigge to be a royal pain in the neck. Everything is about her. No one can voice an opinion if it might be "against" her, and she's in real danger of smothering her young daughter. Yes, it's realistic behavior for someone whose family vanished without explanation, but that doesn't mean I have to like her.
The other thing that bothered me was the explanation for what actually happened to Cynthia's parents and brother, so I can't say much about it without giving it away. I'll just say that Barclay's solution was a bit over-the-top for me, and I had trouble suspending my disbelief enough to accept it all.
But Linwood Barclay can write like a house afire. I love his plots, I love his voice, and just because I didn't like one of his characters doesn't mean I'm going to stop reading his books!
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