Customer Reviews

Close

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Martina Cole's "Close" was a was a fast-paced and heart-wrenching story about Lily Diamond who finally escaped her miserable upbringing by catching the eye of hardened criminal; the handsome Patrick Brodie. The book spans over 40 years and had a great storyline. Ms. Cole does not disappoint; it was a gritty look of the underbelly of English society, and I cannot get enough of her wonderful stories, please keep them coming!

This is the worst book I have read in as long as I can remember, and I usually read 2 or 3 books a week. This is the first time I have ever been motivated to write a negative review of a book, but maybe I can save someone from spending $20 and 8 hours of their life struggling through this miserable story.

There is not a single character in the story that the average reader can relate to. In most novels the reader can figuratively stand in the shoes of a character and ride the emotional roller-coaster with them, hoping things turn out for the best. I know it is the criminal underworld, but the characters in this book are such thoroughly despicable human beings that I never felt like I could empathize with them, and not one of them inspires the hope that things might work out well for them.

The story itself is bland and predictable. There are no twists, no turns, no development in the plot that the reader won't see coming a mile away. In fact, there's not really a plot, exactly; it's more like you get a "day-in-the-life" kind of snapshot of the life of this crime family, only it spans 40 years or so, and gives the sense that the next 40 will continue in the same predictable manner.

The writing style is droll and actually interferes with the telling of the story. The writer is excruciatingly long-winded - the book could've been improved by editing it from 500 to 250 pages. The author will clearly descrbe something in a few sentences, then spend another page describing it some more, often repeating what was said before but in slightly different words, then she'll close the topic by saying, "in short," and instead of following with a brief recap, will go on for another couple of paragraphs saying the same things again. I found myself doing a lot of scanning to get past it.

In short, it was awful.

Martina Cole's books are all based in the London underworld, they are gritty, often violent and surprising. This isn't her best, the earlier books are excellent,but I certainly enjoyed it and it kept me up late finishing it. The women are strong,take no nonsense types and are very often the heroines supporting their bad men. If you enjoy English crime thrillers then I highly recommend any of Ms Cole's books.

This made me think of a 3-page creative writing assignment from a student who had no interest in the class and who would much rather be doing something else--and then expanded to 500 pages. Some of the reviews--the editorial review on Amazon, for example, liken this to the Sopranos in terms of family life, gangsters, etc. Well, you can also compare Erich Segal's abysmal Love Story to Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet if you want. The Sopranos had great depth of character, unpredictability, and creativity, none of which are present in Cole's work. The writing is flat, the characters lifeless, and the dialogue usually sounds as if a 15-year-old was writing it and trying to sound mature. The whole novel has a very forced, very labored feel to it.

I didn't find any of the characters appealing or likable, including the central figure Lily. The language and the violence seem artificial--almost like carefully planted pansies in a flower box. This is certainly in contrast to the Sopranos--the use of language and violence seemed natural and appropriate. I kept saying to myself "does anyone really speak this way?". There are also a lot of people to keep track of, and I got the impression that this was not a carefully planned-out work. The book finishes at page 500--not 499, not 501. Maybe a coincidence, maybe not--the publisher may have asked for a 500-page novel, so that's what they got.

Things get a bit more revealing, perhaps, if you visit the Amazon UK site (which I should have done before buying the book at B&N). The hardbound version in the UK was October, 2006, and the paperback May 2007. The Amazon UK reviewers tend to be more gracious, more polite, more generous than their US counterparts (such as myself): 42 reviews (as of July 6, 2008) average only 2 stars. Some of Cole's books have much higher reviewer ratings and may well be much better than this--but if I ever read another one of her books I'll get it from my public library.

In 1960s swinging mod London bodacious Patrick Brodie takes control of the East End in-clubs where he peddles high class hookers and sells illegal alcohol. He quickly becomes a man to respect or else regret. Patrick marries factory worker, Lily Diamond. They have several children together over four decades, but it is she who runs the home through tough love while he runs his criminal empire through violence. Their motto is only trust family warily.

The Sopranos and Godfather connections are obvious though Anglicized. This is a deep look into an English crime family over a span of decades and the area of their control. The story line engages the audience from the moment that Patrick establishes his BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) to take over the East End scene and never slows down over the next forty years as he and his family fight to maintain their lofty position. Filled with violence that add realism, fans of the Sopranos will appreciate the equivalent across the big pond.

Harriet Klausner

This book by Martina Cole is a gripping one. The topic is not one that would appear to be so compelling because it is about a crime family. However it is a powerful book and exciting. It goes through a couple of generations of this family and very well presents the different characters. I would read other books by this author.

J. Robert Ewbank author "John Wesley, Natural Man, and the 'Isms'"

Close was as exciting as all of the other Martina Cole books that I have read. No author comes close to describing the English underworld as Ms. Cole; and I have tried them all. I first read this in paperback and now have it on my Kindle; I actually reread all of her books every few years, because nothing compares to her tales.

This book was very good. It is one of the first books I have read by Ms. Cole and it sent me on a desperate search for more. It really takes you into London and the characters keep you enthralled. If I wasn't reading, I was thinking about the characters. I still wonder what they are up to. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a good read. It is perfect. Unfortunately, here in the U.S.A., I have only been able to locate two of her books at the library. Thank goodness I am able to order from amazon.

Did you ever start reading something and wonder at the end why you stayed with it?
This is how I felt about Close. The author is very long-winded with needless repetitive scenes and explanations. Surely, someone in this family must have a happy moment. The herone is one big baby factory and it is only in the last 10-15 pages that the story ties up loose ends. I just don't think Ms. Cole with be a best-selling cross-over to USA British author.

The very sad thing about Martina Cole's books is that she has no knowledge of the English language, or if she does she is too lazy to use it. All her books are swamped with swearing of the vilest kind and blasphemy as well. John Sullivan, Creator of Only Fools and Horses says "I think swearing ia a lazy way of getting laughs. Writers who suddenly use a swear word are just saying I can't think of anything else so I'll put in a f-word or something in here. You should be ptrofessional enough and clever enough not to need swear words"
Some may well like her books to be of the gutter variety, but I feel the very good story lines are destroyed but the language used frequently f-words, c-words etc, especially considering the writer is a female.
Martina may well have a good following, but I can't stand the appalling use of swearing etc anymore. The story can be told without resorting to it