Pandora By Holly Hollander [Paperback]

Gene Wolfe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 15, 1993

The box is heavy, locked, and very old. The only clue to its contents is the name written in gold upon its lid: PANDORA. Bright teenager Holly Hollander is understandably curious about what's inside, but when the box is opened, death is unleashed . . . and Holly is the only one who can solve the deadly puzzle.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Barton is a wealthy Chicago suburb where, for many, boredom is staved off chiefly via an active social life that culminates yearly with the town fair. This year young Holly Hollander's mother is chairwoman, and for the raffle she has found a sealed antique box with who-knows-what inside and "Pandora" engraved on the lid. Is that a warning? Holly's chance acquaintance, criminologist Aladdin Blue, thinks so. When Holly's father hires Blue to study the murder of Holly's uncle, narrator Holly appoints herself as Blue's apprentice. Sci-fi writer Wolfe ( There Are Doors ) has Holly write in engaging, consistent teenage yup-speak, while allowing her to wrestle convincingly with both logical deductions and emotional conclusions. Blue is also an intriguing, fully dimensioned character. And it is most fitting that he, and not Holly, provides the solution, complete with a rationale for gathering together all the involved parties for the denouement. The town of Barton could well afford to sacrifice more socialties if doing so would bring this pair back on another case.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Holly Hollander's seemingly chance encounter with the enigmatic detective Mr. Blue takes on added significance when her family becomes involved in a murder that centers on the contents of a mysterious wooden box marked "PANDORA." The author of Soldier of Arete ( LJ 10/15/89) and Castleview ( LJ 3/15/90) infuses a realistic mystery with subtle elements of fantasy and myth in his latest contemporary novel. Recommended.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Orb Books; 1st American paperback edition (June 15, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312852983
• ISBN-13: 978-0312852986
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 4.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,000,006 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Gene Wolfe is winner of the World Fantasy Award for Life Achievement, and many other awards. In 2007, he was inducted into the Science Fiction Hall of Fame. He lives in Barrington, Illinois.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wolfe's least tricky work, a highly entertaining mystery, March 23, 2002

By 

Christopher Culver - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pandora By Holly Hollander (Paperback)

PANDORA, BY HOLLY HOLLANDER is perhaps Gene Wolfe's most mainstream novel. A murder mystery set in a small town in Illinois, the novel contains little of the fantastic elements of his other works, such as his acclaimed masterwork The Book of the New Sun. The book also lacks the puzzles for which Wolfe is notorious, so that the reader gets pretty much everything on the first time through.

The narrator of PANDORA is Holly Hollander, a 17-year old girl who, though plainly immature, is no ditz. She has a thing for mystery novels and can think quite logically. The plot of PANDORA is that Holly's mother buys an locked box marked "Pandora" to be the star attraction of the annual town fair. Tickets are sold, and whoever wins the raffle gets whatever is in the box. I can't say too much to spoil the plot, but the box unleashes death and Holly is determined to find the culprit.She meets a criminologist, Alladin Blue, who seems to know more than he should about the people of her small town.

PANDORA was the third of Gene Wolfe's turn-of-the-90's trilogy of books with contemporary settings. It is perhaps the least substantial, both THERE ARE DOORS and CASTLEVIEW better reward repeat reading with their numerous riddles. Nonetheless, PANDORA is entertaining, and I'd recommend it to any fan of Gene Wolfe. Nonetheless, for people who haven't read anything by Wolfe, I'd suggest starting with the Book of the New Sun, his acclaimed four-volume work.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An intriguing mystery written two-fold, July 14, 1998

By 

Stephen (Orlando, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Pandora By Holly Hollander (Paperback)

This is a great mystery, with odd twists and thrilling turns, told with a refrshingly new voice about a very unseemly murder. Although not overtly at first (ignoring the title), it uses every bit as much symbolism and allusions and references and all that kind of literary stuff that make you wonder--as people who read Gene Wolfe's work already know about--what you're gong to catch the next time you read it. Arthur'd be proud.

4.0 out of 5 stars Who Done It?, November 29, 2010

By 

Eric Wisdahl (Jacksonville, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Pandora by Holly Hollander (Hardcover)

This one for me was an incredibly quick and easy read. It was fun, and not nearly as dense as most of Wolfe's other works. It dealt with a story written by Holly Hollander, a younger woman who is caught up in some strange events when her mother brings home a strange box labeled "Pandora" which she auctions off the right to open and keep the contents during a fund raiser. As one would guess, opening up pandora's box is not exactly the wisest decision and events lead towards multiple deaths, including at least one murder and the eventual revelation of 'who done it'.