Customer Reviews

Whose Death in the Tunnel?: A Tale of a Princess

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The melancholy style of the first pages juxtaposed against and the action packed progression of the story itself intensified my fascination with this book. The plot accurately follows Diana's activities during the last year of her life and suggests that Diana's "death" was not a mere accident. This story is not an account of Diana's life. Instead, it is a spell binding, action driven plan for Diana to change her identity. The complex characterizations of Adam and Elizabeth, the individuals who organize and carry out this plan for Diana, make me wonder if they are real people instead of fictional creations in the author's imagination. The characterization of Jennifer as self-centered and conniving made me feel as though she received what she deserved. The story offers everything: brutal murder; deceit; compassion; humour; sex; insight into relationships; not to mention a great read.

Here's the thing: I read this in about two days, so it obviously held my interest. The premise is fascinating. But the writing, badly in need of a good editor, often made me cringe. There were several loose ends and conclusions that didn't add up, besides the many spelling and grammatical errors. And who needs that horrible opening sequence about "Poor Di" who lived such a wretched existence, yadda yadda yadda. If you want a book that isn't so disgustingly slanted in favor of her being a saint rather than a real person (and no true "Di Fan" does), read "The Real Diana" -- but you won't. That one made me believe in her as a person, and it also made me admire her in the end for overcoming her problems when all I had seen was her whining and her rude exposure of the family secrets because she couldn't have everything her way. Implying (in "Whose Death") that the queen was Satan was a bit more than I could take.

What a wonderfully refreshing book. So many books today seem written to a formula to guarantee success. This book strikes out in fresh territory and is rather unlike anything I have ever read before. The dialogues with the thought processes that attend them gave me a much fuller insight into the characters than authors normally provide. I also liked the fact that Diana although a bit of victim took charge of a wretched situation and achieved a victory, but at what a cost. It shows strength of character that I never envisioned in her. I still can't decide if I like some of the characters or not; they don't fit in any convenient pigeon hole of good or bad. I hope this author writes again soon; he has a fan who will follow his career.

This is, by far, one of the most poorly written books I've ever read, and I resent those of you (apparently friends of the author) who wrote glowing reviews. I want my money back.

Admirers of the late Princess of Wales - who was never called "Di," by the way, would probably do anything to undo her sad fate in the Alma Tunnel but the theory posited on very thin "evidence" in "Whose Death in The Tunnel" is not the one that works for me. The book is not only very badly written and full of misspellings and errors in small details and facts which are annoying enough - but is so far-fetched that the term "speculative fiction" would be the only apt description for it. One would have to accept that Diana was an accomplice to murder - several times over - and the permanent abandonment of her children - to make this believable. I don't believe she was. That she may have wished to disappear is understandable, but I don't think this is how she would have done it. The basic premise that a double would have to die was the leap of faith I could not make. Diana, although portrayed as an out of control, dim bulb most of the time, could not have missed this obvious and pivotal condition of the plot and I don't expect she would have sanctioned it. I suspect the reason so many people enjoyed this book is the promise of a perceived happy ending for Diana and a general love of the "what if" scenario. The only happy ending I can imagine for Lady Diana Spencer would have been turning around at the altar at St. Paul's in 1981 and running for her life. The rest, unfortunately, is history. Read this one with a large cellar of salt and a copy of Strunk and White.

Written as a novel, Aaron McCallum Becker offers a page turner than portrys Diana as the victor in planning her own faked demise. It is an amazing story, written in British English, making the terminology and spelling of some words a challenge for American readers. Unlike so many accounts of Diana, Becker portrays the Princess as of sound mind and in total control of herself. In Becker's account, Diana makes difficult but sound decisions to protect herself and her children. She stands up to the wrath of the British Establishment. Becker's story is thought provoking and captivating. It is an absoulte must read.

Is it really the "Tale of a Princess?" Or is it the truth? "Whose Death in the Tunnel?" stimulates our imaginations. The story is almost beyond the realm of reality for our politically correct minds. But why not? People do step beyond the boundaries these days. Look at Clinton. Had he taken the same actions ten years ago, would he have remained a hero? "Whose Death in the Tunnel?" explores the concept that our boundaries are constantly being challenged, that it is acceptable to take extreme actions to survive and that people are able to adjust to the challenges that are placed in front of them. "Whose Death in the Tunnel?" is so much more than just story; it is a tribute to the ability of the human creature to survive. You will thoroughly enjoy every page.

My book club is reading "Whose Death in the Tunnel" for its October selection. I wanted to read the book early to insure time to finish before our meeting on the last Thursday of the month. I started reading last night and stayed up all night. I'm exhausted but fascinated. Could Diana possibly have conceived such a plot? At first, I thought it was impossible, but after reading the story, I'm not so sure. Maybe a new identity was her only alternative. I have read before about the true demise of the Shah of Iran, and Aaron Becker's account supports the like premise. Coupled with this, my brother works for the State Department. He has told me about a man who specializes in changing the identity of high profile individuals. Adam is absolutely this man. Maybe Adam is a real person and not just a figment of Aaron Becker's imagination. It's a great story, and one that needed to be told. I can hardly wait for the stimulated discussion "Whose Death" will promote at our meeting this month.

I've read many of the current books about Princess Diana that actually seem ill-informed. This one, while called a novel, contains many little-known facts about Diana that lead to the author's conclusion that it wasn't really Diana that died in the tragic accident. For example, there are certain things that Diana did prior to the accident that support this theme. What really happened, and why, and where Diana is right now are the questions this book answers. It is an enjoyable, fast-paced story. I enjoyed every page.

After reading this very well crafted novel, I decided to visit this website to see the other reviews.

"The reviews" As a retired English professor who taught creative writing and moon-lighted as proof reader for several authors, I found this book fascinating. Equally fascinating were the reviews. Some of the critics were clueless, some astute and the reviews were all over the spectrum. There was one critic who apparently wrote more that one negative review under different names. At least if it wasn't the same critic, it was his evil twin brother. He or she seems duty bound to protect Princess Diana's (never Di) honor and so missed the true story. There were the Enquirer types looking for a scandal who also missed the true story. There were the astute who grasped the sophisticated multi-layering. Overall a broad cross section of readers have attempted this book.

"The Technical" The nuts and bolts of this book hold together very well. It was extremely well researched and I constantly found myself making notes to check dates and facts. Clearly this work is a novel but often it is better supported than unauthorized biographies. In this day and age of computers, no one seems to use proof readers, much to their peril. Surprisingly for "First Time Author?", this book is remarkably free from the most common errors of the day. The verbiage and vocabulary is sophisticated and filled with little English and French gems.

"The Author" I question that this is a first time author. I recognized several flows of writing that lead me to believe that this author is a rather accomplished ghostwriter that has written for several other well published authors. I am confident that Mr. Becker is well published under another name. I admire his courage in writing a book of this genre and involving Princess Diana, it was destined to be controversial.

"The Story" The story line is really about a brother and sister who have overcome adversity. Princess Diana is actually a relatively minor character in the story. The interplay of the characters is refreshing and all the characters have depth. Mr. Becker takes characters and provides subtle first impressions, only to dribble out hints that our first impression could be wrong. The characters are masterfully developed and we perceive them the way might had we met them. I loved the writer's convention of showing the thought processes in Italics while the character was saying something totally different. It reminded me of so many people I have known in real life. Like so many real-life characters, I find myself liking some but wondering why. It is this level of character development that raises this novel to different plateau than that occupied by most modern writers.

"The Summary" This is a refreshingly well written novel and it belongs on the self of any reader who enjoys thrillers or alternate history.