Customer Reviews

Double Image (Thorndike Core)

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(8)

 

 

Like a lot of other readers at this site (and elsewhere), I am a longtime fan of David Morrell. I have read most, but not all of his works and I must agree with some of my fellow readers. There is a lot that iswrong with this book. First, Mr. Morrell seems to have broken a cardinal rule of plotting -- he combined two distinct, but unrelated plotlines into one novel and to what purpose? Second, as others have noted, some of the lines between Mitch Coltrane and his erstwhile lady-love border on the absurd and read like the trashy dialogue used on day-time soaps. It made me wonder if Mr. Morrell actually wrote entire sections of the book. In Mr. Morrell's defense, I will say this to his critics. It's very easy for those of us in his reading public to read his works and then "armchair quarterback" what he should and shouldn't have done with his plot and characters. It's another thing entirely to create something (in this case a novel) from nothing. Remember, Mr. Morrell make his living conjuring up stories to entertain the rest of us. That's a big task. How many of his readers could do half as good a job? How many of us could turn out books that please all readers, all of the time? I'm not a published author and I often wonder if any of my fellow critics are, either. Until such time as those of you who are his harshest critics become as big and best-selling an author as David Morrell, I say give him a break. After all, the only perfect person in the history of the world walked the face of the earth 2,000 years ago. He's gone now, David Morrell isn't him and will make a mistake now and then. So will the rest of us. Stop whining and wait for his next work. Or don't! The choice is yours.

Double Image is a slight departure from Davids other recent work, but is still an excellent read. Less action thriller and more psychological, it reminds me of when I first saw Vertigo and couldn't wait to learn the answer to the mystery.

In typical Morrell fashion the descriptions are vivid and the pace is perfect. There are no 'rough spots' to get through where the story drags, and every time you have to put it down you feel like you're missing out on something. I am very thankfull that David has never subscribed to the Clancy and King motto of 'bigger is better'. My biggest problem with David's work is that I stay up all night reading and am tired at work.

As other reviews have stated, this book is basically two novellas very loosely tied together by an aging legendary photographer and the influence he has had on the central character's life and work. It was good for a bit of escapist reading, but left me wanting something meatier.

I'll admit that I'm only an infrequent reader of Mr. Morrell's works, but what I have read, I've almost always enjoyed. Not so with this new novel.

What begins as another of his routine thrillers, with a seemingly superhuman villain killing all that the hero holds dear, ends about half-way through and turns into -- I don't know what. The book jacket describes it as a cross between _Vertigo_ and _Basic Instinct_, but it was just garbage. A supernatural explanation would have been better than what we eventually got by way of resolution. The book reads like an aborted screenplay for a really bad movie. Why Morrell felt the necessity to dovetail these two unrelated plots together is beyond me. It's almost as if he had enough material for two novellas and said "Maybe my readers will buy this, they're stupid!" The book is so disappointing, I think, because it hinted at and promised so much more. Avoid this at all costs!

This was a great book by David Morrell, in fact a double book as it had two distinct halves, one almost mirroring the other.

The story begins in Bosnia during the violent years of the mid-nineties. Professional, award-winning photographer, Mitch Coltrane, is hiding in a pit, three feet wide, seven feet long and three feet deep which smells of loam, mold and urine. He has already been waiting 36 hours and is prepared to wait longer . His aim is to photograph the evil Bosnian Serb leader Dragan Ilkovic exhuming bodies of innocent victims from a mass grave for removal and disposal elsewhere. The photographic evidence, should he succeed in getting it without being caught, should enable the International Courts or War Crimes Commission to convict Ilkovic and lock him away for a very long time. Eventually Coltrane's patience is rewarded as Ilkovic arrives and the horror of the subsequent events leaps out through the pages.

The story then takes on a more sedate theme, giving the reader time to relax and enjoy the book as Coltrane begins a fascinating photographic project back in California with the help of his beautiful girlfriend, Jennifer. However, the tension, suspense and horror gradually return, accelerating through the chapters, to another climax and the conclusion of the first "half" of the book. In this section, the detailed knowledge of author Morrell of cameras and photography is evident and he weaves this technical thread through the story without in any way confusing or boring the reader - in fact the very opposite.

As the second "half" of the story unfolds, our hero Coltrane becomes fascinated with, entranced by, obsessed with and ultimately seduced by the irresistible new heroine Tash. The unstoppable development of their relationship and the vivid descriptions of the inner and outer beauty of Tash are described in the most convincing way. It is excellent imaginative writing of the highest calibre. It is not long before terror and fear return, becoming an overwhelming backdrop to the saga. More and more, the second half of the story mirrors the first half in a coincidental but nevertheless believable manner.

It is a very clever book in structure, style, content and presentation. It captures the reader's attention from start to finish and leaves you wanting to read it again for another helping of imagination, romance and fear. Nothing less than true escapism.

Unfortunately, the Booklist review is quite accurate and Double Image is comprised of two stories that are poorly integrated. Additionally, the character development is weak and character motivations seem "out-of-character" and contrived. On several occasions I was tempted to disspose of the novel. Though, with morbid fascination, I continued reading to uncover how many more irrelevant and unrelated plot twists Morrel was going to throw in. The story itself is worthy of a 1 ranking, while following the mistakes of a prominant writer (Morrel) earns a 5, thus averaging a 3 overall. It was a very dissapointing read in light of Morrel's previous efforts. Also, it's always a shame to give away ~$20 for a book that doesn't entertain.

Double Image is one novel where the reader follows the main character, photographer Mitch Coltrane through one storyline for about a third of the novel then moves onto another for the final two thirds. Morrell keeps readers gripped through the pages which they'll keep turning until the final one. There are plenty of twists along the way. A little bit unrealistic in parts yes, but you won't be able to put Double Image down. A great read also check out Morrell's other great novels such as First Blood, The Protector, Long Lost, Creepers and Burnt Sienna.

Coltrane is an award winning photographic reporter who has taken pictures of atrocities around the world with his latest assignment having him lying for days on a hillside as he watches through the viewfinder corpses being dug up and destroyed from a ethnic cleansing mass grave as well as further barbaric crimes being undertaken by Serbian Dragan Ilkovic. Discovered he barley makes it out of the country with his life, the photographs are published and Ilkovic is exposed as the Hitler wannabe he is. As a result of these events however Coltrane however has evaluated his life's work, why he wanted to be a photographer in the first place. He sees nothing worthwhile in his subject matter so far. His life long hero Packard has an exhibition of his work and Coltrane is shocked to find his images although technically perfect as ugly as his own which he tells him. Soon Coltrane is surprised when he is asked is to do a comparison of Packard's early work of a series of houses by taking photographs of them today. His life seems to be turned around, he couldn't be happier until he realises he has a violent stalker, who isn't happy about recent Bosnian photographs. He also finds a secret room in one of his subject matter houses a home he decided to purchase and inside pictures of the most beautiful woman he has ever seen. He will do whatever he can to find out all he can about her.

Who knew that one photograph could change your life so much! The main character in this book certainly didn't suspect that would happen! This book was a quick read (ie I couldn't put it down!), and the thrill/suspense level was right up there. I had to read it during the daytime! The twists and turns were incredible, and I didn't see them coming at all! I really enjoyed reading it, and I enjoyed the end.

David Morrell has done it once again with this book--he's truly outdone himself this time. When reading the book, one would wonder why on earth we've gone nearly halfway through the story before the sudden change in plot. The reason is obvious--the title gives much of it away. Most of Morrell's previous novelis have been international thrillers. And why not? That's what he's known for. But the man who gave us "First Blood" has done much more here. There are bright, surface impressions about his main character, Coltrane, but as the story moves onward we go deeper and deeper into the shadows of Coltrane's darker side. We immediately understand the relationship with the heroine, left with the ability to feel her hurt as Coltrane gets sidetracked by a beautiful but dangerous seductress. The great truth about the book is that Morrell ingeniously weaves two themes here in seamless style: man vs. man (and woman) and man vs. himself. The story is told at a relentless pace, with the clarity and flow that makes Morrell one of the best contemporary suspense writers today. The only downside to the book were times where it seemed events took place that didn't need to; events that seemed more interior character studies than contributing essences to the story. Nonetheless, "Double Image" is a chilling, haunting tale of action, suspense and romance. It's chock full of plot and entertaining story and readers are sure to enjoy it. On the reverse side it may not be what Morrell fans are used to, albeit this only adds to the fun and thrill of the book.

David Morrell deviates from his normal style of writing in Double Image. The book begins as a promising piece with gripping imagery and text, but quickly deteriorates into a book more befitting Tami Hoag. Morrell has too much going on at once and lacks cohesion. I look forward to his next work. Allow me to add that David Morrell is one of the best in his genre, and this minor setback will not restrain his creative edge.