CHAOS THEORY. [Paperback]

Gary. Krist (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: RANDOM HOUSE. NY 2000 (2000)
• ASIN: B00125S9N2
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A real page turner--and more, January 24, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Chaos Theory: A Novel (Hardcover)

If you read the first 5 pages of this book, you won't stop until the end. But Chaos Theory is more than a superb thriller. It is an engrossing look at Washington, DC (the town I live in) in the mid-1990s, amid rampant corruption and civic decay. And it is peopled by sharply drawn characters that drive home the real human stakes of good--and bad--government. Krist has an amazing ability to put himself inside the head of people of very different ages and social circumstances. I can't recommend this book highly enough.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Exciting and Illuminating Read, February 15, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Chaos Theory: A Novel (Hardcover)

I read Gary Krist's Chaos Theory in a single day. I picked it up after hearing a great review on NPR's Fresh Air, and it was even better than advertised. The suspense never lets up, and there are some really interesting, well drawn characters, but what really made it interesting for me was the picture it gave of Washington D.C, the city the locals know. I lived there in 1995-7 and the District really was on the verge of collapse. Nothing worked and who knows what was going on under all the confusion? Chaos Theory gives us an idea of what can happen in a city when chaos lets the strong take advantage of the weak. Highly recommended.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Totally absorbing, April 6, 2001

By 

"voldor" (Jackson MS) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Chaos Theory (Paperback)

I generally don't care much for or about thrillers, but I knew this author from his short story work, so I gave it a try. And I have to say, it hooked me from beginning to end, keeping me awake for most of two nights. The book follows the conventions of the thriller genre, but what makes it (for me) are the characterizations. This is the story of a dozen or so real and believable people, undergoing real and believable turmoil. I think what turns me off to most thrillers is the lack of this sense of real people. If they're just cardboard cutouts, who cares if they're in danger? But the characters in Chaos Theory aren't just complex, the'yre also full of the odd personality bits and pieces that you always have with flesh and blood people. You really feel you know these characters, so you're caught up when things go wrong for them. I really didn't want this book to end, and so my first reaction when I finished was to pick up Krist's other thriller, Bad Chemistry (me, somebody who doesn't read thrillers!) I guess there goes another night or two of sleep.