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Time & Chance: An Iowa Murder Mystery - A Serial Novel by 17 Iowa Writers
190 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 1998
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
January 9, 2008
This is a mystery where each chapter is written by a different Iowa writer and was commissioned by Iowa Public Radio. It was pretty bad. The best part was the fact that it was set in Iowa and dealt with Iowa type people and topics, but the seriality of the writing made for really uneven reading, characters I barely distinguished one from the other, and an ending that was preposterous. Probably more fun to write and put together than it will ever be to read.
November 12, 2016
WHAT I LOVED: I loved reading something written by Iowa writers who were so clearly having fun with the project. The delight of the writing process shown through in each chapter with tongue-in-cheek Iowa references and moments that made laugh out loud. The book is filled with Iowa references from cities, institutions, traditions, and history.
WHAT I LIKED: I liked that there was continuity in the book, despite being written by 17 different authors. I was more than willing to give this book some wiggle room when it came to consistency of character or style, and was pleasantly surprised that there were very few issues with this. The few I could find didn't really stand out of pull me away from the story.
WHAT I COULD DO WITHOUT: You know, I love a good murder mystery, but I couldn't take this book that seriously. I think this is because you could tell the writers weren't taking themselves too seriously. I can appreciate it this based on the goal of the book. They were writing it for fun, not to write a best seller, but it made my commitment to the story wane.
RECOMMEND FOR: Anyone who wants a fun, quick, read full of Iowa references.
NOT RECOMMENDED FOR: Serious mystery readers who want something of substance.
WHAT I LIKED: I liked that there was continuity in the book, despite being written by 17 different authors. I was more than willing to give this book some wiggle room when it came to consistency of character or style, and was pleasantly surprised that there were very few issues with this. The few I could find didn't really stand out of pull me away from the story.
WHAT I COULD DO WITHOUT: You know, I love a good murder mystery, but I couldn't take this book that seriously. I think this is because you could tell the writers weren't taking themselves too seriously. I can appreciate it this based on the goal of the book. They were writing it for fun, not to write a best seller, but it made my commitment to the story wane.
RECOMMEND FOR: Anyone who wants a fun, quick, read full of Iowa references.
NOT RECOMMENDED FOR: Serious mystery readers who want something of substance.
October 28, 2011
Probably more fun to write this book then to read it. Disjointed due to using 17 different authors. Good premise, but unstable metre.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews