Customer Reviews

The Jonah

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James Herbert crafts an interesting novel about a cop that is considered a 'Jonah' (i.e. one believed to bring bad luck) by his fellow officers, because all the cases the man works end in tragedy (as the opening pages of the novel show too well). The jinxed hero is soon given a beautiful female partner and another prickly case to solve, one that opens up past traumas that might hold the answer to his cursed luck. Herbert pulls out all the stops at the finale and the ending is truly haunting. Recommended.

Readers in the US might know James Herbert better as the creator of Fluke, the dog. His excellent book was taken totally out of context and turned into a kids movie. How Mr Herbert let that happen I have no idea!!!

I have been reading Herberts books for years now and have enjoyed every single one of them... except this one!!!

I read this about 3 years ago. It has to be the worst James Herbert book there is. Not only is the story slow, boring and badly written, the ending is terrible.

The only blessing is the fact that its not too long although it still feels like a slow death.

If you are new to James Herbert, avoid this one and go for Magic Cottage, Ghosts Of Sleath or The Shrine (the best).

cheers

With The Jonah, James Herbert has taken a big step forward from his previous work, though this is not saying that the novel is a classic, by any means. The premise of the novel is intriguing-- a decent cop who, through no fault of his own, brings misfortune to those around him. I was hoping for some deep exploration into philosophy or religion, but was sorely disappointed when, instead, it turned into a routine cop story (albeit a rather decent one) and then a disaster story (!!). Better writing and unexpected twists and turns made this an enjoyable read, but it lacked the profound exploration into the man's situation that I was looking for.