What do you think?
Rate this book
Vanessa Michael Munroe #1
The Informationist
"Vanessa Michael Munroe deals in information--expensive information--working for corporations, heads of state, private clients, and anyone else who can pay for her unique brand of expertise. Born to missionary parents in lawless central Africa, Munroe took up with an infamous gunrunner and his mercenary crew when she was just fourteen. As his protégé, she earned the respect of the jungle's most dangerous men, cultivating her own reputation for years until something sent her running. After almost a decade building a new life and lucrative career from her home base in Dallas, she's never looked back. Until now."
307 pages, Hardcover
First published March 8, 2011
428 people are currently reading
6837 people want to read
About the author
Taylor Stevens
50 books823 followersTAYLOR STEVENS is a critically acclaimed, multiple award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of international thrillers. Her books, known for high-octane plots populated with fascinating characters in vivid boots-on-the-ground settings, have been published in over twenty languages. THE INFORMATIONIST, first in the Vanessa Michael Munroe series has also been optioned for film by James Cameron’s production company, Lightstorm Entertainment.
Stevens came to writing fiction late. Born into an apocalyptic cult, separated from her family at age twelve and denied an education beyond sixth grade, she lived on three continents and in a dozen countries before she turned fourteen. In place of schooling, the majority of her adolescence was spent begging on city streets at the behest of cult leaders, or as a worker bee child caring for the many younger commune children, washing laundry, and cooking meals for hundreds at a time. In her twenties, Stevens broke free in order to follow hope and a vague idea of what possibilities lay beyond.
In addition to writing novels, Stevens shares extensively about the mechanics of storytelling, writing, overcoming adversity, and the details of her journey into publishing through email, podcast, and video tutorials.
You can find her at:
* taylorstevensbooks.com/connect.php
* taylorstevensshow.com
* patreon.com/taylorstevens
* facebook.com/taylorstevens
* twitter @taylorstevens
Stevens came to writing fiction late. Born into an apocalyptic cult, separated from her family at age twelve and denied an education beyond sixth grade, she lived on three continents and in a dozen countries before she turned fourteen. In place of schooling, the majority of her adolescence was spent begging on city streets at the behest of cult leaders, or as a worker bee child caring for the many younger commune children, washing laundry, and cooking meals for hundreds at a time. In her twenties, Stevens broke free in order to follow hope and a vague idea of what possibilities lay beyond.
In addition to writing novels, Stevens shares extensively about the mechanics of storytelling, writing, overcoming adversity, and the details of her journey into publishing through email, podcast, and video tutorials.
You can find her at:
* taylorstevensbooks.com/connect.php
* taylorstevensshow.com
* patreon.com/taylorstevens
* facebook.com/taylorstevens
* twitter @taylorstevens
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,600 reviews
April 7, 2011
Honestly, I'm only halfway through this but I have absolutely no idea why this book is rated so highly everywhere. Not to be "that guy" here but did anyone else READ the Girl With the Dragon Tattoo?? First of all, the main character Michael (who is actually a woman named Vanessa) is such an almost painfully blatant poor-man's version of Lisbeth Salander that it's almost ridiculous. HOW IS NO ONE CALLING THIS OUT?? And ok, not that every intelligent, super gifted, socially inept main female character should automatically get tagged to Salander but COME ON.
Michael speaks TWENTY TWO languages? That in itself is pretty damn ridiculous. Granted, most of them are briefly explained away as 'dialects', as if the author subconsciously realizes how unbelievable twenty two language proficiency really is. At least Lisbeth has a photographic memory which is a lot more believable and way more endearing considering her general attitude and complete lack of social skills. Gifted in one thing, handicapped in the other. It's a believable balance.
Michael, on the other hand, is a super gifted linguist with an almost equally ridiculous fighting capability that is only explained away as a fragmented version of her past involving an abusive caregiver figure. The author would have done better to only give away bits and pieces of Michael's past at a time (a'la Salandar) making the character more appealing and intriguing instead of giving it all away up front like a hurried exhale of breath. Literally, in about four or five paragraphs Michael's entire history is summed up to basically rebellion from parents because she's a super genius, wandering around Africa with some random dude she met through some other random dude, and then being physically abused by some OTHER random dude who was also traveling with them. And somehow this all adds up to angst and a supposedly bruised and endearing main character. When really, I'm just annoyed at how much the author keeps shoving the facts of Michael's supposed awesomeness on her audience instead of actually demonstrating it throughout the novel.
It's the typical rush job explanations of a wam-bam-thank-you-ma'am action/crime novel. Except even Patterson does a better job then this.
The dialogue is choppy at best, not well thought out and at times painful to read. At one point Michael holds a knife to a companion's throat after a very poorly described upper-hand gaining action scene that only takes about three sentences to get to across, saying, "I could have easily killed you. Never forget that." And then promptly dropping the knife. It's some of the most lazyily constructed almost dime-store novel dialogue I've come across in awhile. Nobody talks like that. I'm sorry, it's ridiculous.
I don't know, maybe I'm just one of the many tainted by Stieg Laarson's total awesomeness at writing what is some of the best action/crime fiction I've come across in years but this is nowhere near that status. It's so depressingly far away from it in fact I'm not sure I could even be bothered to recommend this book to anyone. And I got it for free.
Not to mention, the main crux of the novel (who killed Emily Burbank?) is basically the entire premise of The Girl With the Dragon tattoo. Wealthy tycoon (insert old Swedish billionaire tycoon) hires genius investigator/informationist (Insert Lisbeth Salander) to find out what happened to his adopted daughter (insert Swedish niece here) who suddenly goes missing. Hello? Anyone else seeing this here?
Oh and also I'm not entirely sure why exactly I'm bothering to wade all the way through this dizzing epic of nonsense considering the "mystery" of what happened to Emily Burbank is given away in the first four pages of the novel via someone else's point of view. Sooo....why am I still here?
Good question.
Michael speaks TWENTY TWO languages? That in itself is pretty damn ridiculous. Granted, most of them are briefly explained away as 'dialects', as if the author subconsciously realizes how unbelievable twenty two language proficiency really is. At least Lisbeth has a photographic memory which is a lot more believable and way more endearing considering her general attitude and complete lack of social skills. Gifted in one thing, handicapped in the other. It's a believable balance.
Michael, on the other hand, is a super gifted linguist with an almost equally ridiculous fighting capability that is only explained away as a fragmented version of her past involving an abusive caregiver figure. The author would have done better to only give away bits and pieces of Michael's past at a time (a'la Salandar) making the character more appealing and intriguing instead of giving it all away up front like a hurried exhale of breath. Literally, in about four or five paragraphs Michael's entire history is summed up to basically rebellion from parents because she's a super genius, wandering around Africa with some random dude she met through some other random dude, and then being physically abused by some OTHER random dude who was also traveling with them. And somehow this all adds up to angst and a supposedly bruised and endearing main character. When really, I'm just annoyed at how much the author keeps shoving the facts of Michael's supposed awesomeness on her audience instead of actually demonstrating it throughout the novel.
It's the typical rush job explanations of a wam-bam-thank-you-ma'am action/crime novel. Except even Patterson does a better job then this.
The dialogue is choppy at best, not well thought out and at times painful to read. At one point Michael holds a knife to a companion's throat after a very poorly described upper-hand gaining action scene that only takes about three sentences to get to across, saying, "I could have easily killed you. Never forget that." And then promptly dropping the knife. It's some of the most lazyily constructed almost dime-store novel dialogue I've come across in awhile. Nobody talks like that. I'm sorry, it's ridiculous.
I don't know, maybe I'm just one of the many tainted by Stieg Laarson's total awesomeness at writing what is some of the best action/crime fiction I've come across in years but this is nowhere near that status. It's so depressingly far away from it in fact I'm not sure I could even be bothered to recommend this book to anyone. And I got it for free.
Not to mention, the main crux of the novel (who killed Emily Burbank?) is basically the entire premise of The Girl With the Dragon tattoo. Wealthy tycoon (insert old Swedish billionaire tycoon) hires genius investigator/informationist (Insert Lisbeth Salander) to find out what happened to his adopted daughter (insert Swedish niece here) who suddenly goes missing. Hello? Anyone else seeing this here?
Oh and also I'm not entirely sure why exactly I'm bothering to wade all the way through this dizzing epic of nonsense considering the "mystery" of what happened to Emily Burbank is given away in the first four pages of the novel via someone else's point of view. Sooo....why am I still here?
Good question.
September 22, 2022
Overall, a bit weird, a bit different though engrossing. The strategic part was with way too much emphasis. And the emotional line rather crazyish:
You get employed by a guy #1
> You
The timeline is also very thought-inducing:
1. Q: Each of his steps brought back the dread of her first entry into the United States. Similar doors and a similar experience—how much could have changed in nine years?(c)
2. Q: The arrangement had been going on as far back as Munroe had known him—that muggy summer night seven years before, when prejudice in a hole-in-the-wall bikers’ bar had turned to violence and she’d thrown in her lot with the underdog.(c)
From 1 it followed that Vanessa hasn't been to the US for 9 years. From 2 it followed she was in a fight in some godforsaken bikers' bar in the US 7 years prior.
3. Q: SIX YEARS AGO Kate Breeden had a thriving law practice in downtown Austin ... Breeden took what was left, put it into an investment fund, packed up, and moved to Dallas to start over.
They’d met on the Southern Methodist University campus, where Breeden had returned for an M.B.A. and Munroe was in her sophomore year. (c)
4. Q: Breeden spoke again. “It’s been two years, Michael. Consider it a good omen. Come on home.”(c)
5. Q: Now came the possibility of an assignment far outside the area of her expertise, and for that reason it intrigued her—that, and the fact that she had not returned to the continent of her birth since abruptly departing it nine years ago. (c)
Overall it seemes the timeline is as follows (some thinking and some very thorough explanatory feedback from the author were needed to understand the sequence):
'9 years ago, Munroe's first entry into the United States (which involved a visit to that room):
7 years ago, Munroe met Logan
6 years ago, Munroe met Breeden
2 years ago, Munroe last left the United States and hasn't returned since.' A bit tangled but it was a core part of the plot, allowing our gal to be a wiz with languages.
And don't even get me started on the villain(s). Naive, that's their second name!
The narrative is really different from this reading segment which guarantees the book its 5 stars. I always praise originality and novelty more than anything.
Basically, this book clicked quite a bit with me, which gets it bonus points.
You get employed by a guy #1
> You
The timeline is also very thought-inducing:
1. Q: Each of his steps brought back the dread of her first entry into the United States. Similar doors and a similar experience—how much could have changed in nine years?(c)
2. Q: The arrangement had been going on as far back as Munroe had known him—that muggy summer night seven years before, when prejudice in a hole-in-the-wall bikers’ bar had turned to violence and she’d thrown in her lot with the underdog.(c)
From 1 it followed that Vanessa hasn't been to the US for 9 years. From 2 it followed she was in a fight in some godforsaken bikers' bar in the US 7 years prior.
3. Q: SIX YEARS AGO Kate Breeden had a thriving law practice in downtown Austin ... Breeden took what was left, put it into an investment fund, packed up, and moved to Dallas to start over.
They’d met on the Southern Methodist University campus, where Breeden had returned for an M.B.A. and Munroe was in her sophomore year. (c)
4. Q: Breeden spoke again. “It’s been two years, Michael. Consider it a good omen. Come on home.”(c)
5. Q: Now came the possibility of an assignment far outside the area of her expertise, and for that reason it intrigued her—that, and the fact that she had not returned to the continent of her birth since abruptly departing it nine years ago. (c)
Overall it seemes the timeline is as follows (some thinking and some very thorough explanatory feedback from the author were needed to understand the sequence):
'9 years ago, Munroe's first entry into the United States (which involved a visit to that room):
7 years ago, Munroe met Logan
6 years ago, Munroe met Breeden
2 years ago, Munroe last left the United States and hasn't returned since.' A bit tangled but it was a core part of the plot, allowing our gal to be a wiz with languages.
And don't even get me started on the villain(s). Naive, that's their second name!
The narrative is really different from this reading segment which guarantees the book its 5 stars. I always praise originality and novelty more than anything.
Basically, this book clicked quite a bit with me, which gets it bonus points.
January 15, 2019
I've read The Informationist at least four times and just finished listening to the audio tape. Let me take a moment here, Hillary Huber narrated the audio and did a fantastic job. I might actually listen to The Bible being narrated if she was doing it. Okay, back to the The Informationist,
Vanessa Michael Munroe (VMM) burst out of the jungle, smuggled herself into the US (even though she was born here) and reinvented herself as an almost normal person.
A chameleon, she could take on the coloration of her surroundings. It helped that she was a polymath, able to pick up a language within days. VMM could also usually keep her demons inside. She utilized this unusual "skill set" and became one who could find out almost anything about anyone or anywhere for high end clients.
VMM didn't work cheap, but even she was shocked and intrigued by an offer of millions to go back into Africa to find a missing girl. Not her usual kind of work; then again, those millions. Plus her attorney and dear friend really wanted her to take the job. But VMM wanted a long rest from a year long job. A chance to become herself again; demons and all.
So welcome to the world of one the most intriguing, and beguiling characters I have ever come across. Those four readings and one listening should be a hint to how amazing I find VMM and her world. The action was non-stop, the setting of Central Africa, a true love/hate portrayal of a terrifying part of the world.
Read a bit about the author, Taylor Stevens, and you will encounter someone with a background far different from VMM, but just as fascinating and the wellspring of her portrait of growing up as an "other".
Vanessa Michael Munroe (VMM) burst out of the jungle, smuggled herself into the US (even though she was born here) and reinvented herself as an almost normal person.
A chameleon, she could take on the coloration of her surroundings. It helped that she was a polymath, able to pick up a language within days. VMM could also usually keep her demons inside. She utilized this unusual "skill set" and became one who could find out almost anything about anyone or anywhere for high end clients.
VMM didn't work cheap, but even she was shocked and intrigued by an offer of millions to go back into Africa to find a missing girl. Not her usual kind of work; then again, those millions. Plus her attorney and dear friend really wanted her to take the job. But VMM wanted a long rest from a year long job. A chance to become herself again; demons and all.
So welcome to the world of one the most intriguing, and beguiling characters I have ever come across. Those four readings and one listening should be a hint to how amazing I find VMM and her world. The action was non-stop, the setting of Central Africa, a true love/hate portrayal of a terrifying part of the world.
Read a bit about the author, Taylor Stevens, and you will encounter someone with a background far different from VMM, but just as fascinating and the wellspring of her portrait of growing up as an "other".
April 3, 2014
Absolutely absorbing thriller. At times, Michael's character is just ludicrous in her abilities but that's okay. This was still one of the most enjoyable books I've read this year. Dark, violent, kind of sexy. That's what's up.
May 3, 2013
The Informationist has one of the most daring and distinctive heroines I've personally read about. Vanessa Michael Monroe is practically a force of nature. Her personality is hard to pin down, even if you know her very well, which few people do. And she makes a very bad enemy. While some characters might go to Africa to run away from their past or to define a new life for themselves, Monroe is the opposite. She was born in Africa and raised there. Although she is Caucasian American descent, Africa flows in her veins and helped to make her who she was, and not all in good ways.
Monroe doesn't let fear define her, instead she walks in defiance of it. Being afraid is not her problem. It's the rage and anger she keeps under lock and key. She struggles against demons from her past that simmer in her blood and make her heart beat fast with the tribal beat of war. Control is a way of life when she knows just what she's capable of. Yet, she is unafraid to go into dangerous places when others would shirk such a responsibility. When Emily Burbank's adoptive father contacts her to find out what happened to his daughter in Africa four years ago, she is going to have to go back to the place she was born and face her ugly past.
I love to read about heroines who are tough and resourceful. Who can kick butt just like the action heroes. Monroe is definitely one of those kinds of heroines. I like that she is very adaptable and clever about thinking through situations. While she has other weapons, she uses the one between her ears very well. Her personality is really abrasive and she's not what I would consider a typical "likable" heroine. And yet, there is something about her that resonates with me. I like that she is such a survivor. I mean, who could go through what she did and still be 100% sane and free of scars? She actually is quite sane, although I think deep down, she fears what lurks in the abyss she keeps locked away inside. She's sort of the opposite of Kurtz in The Heart of Darkness. She's been there and she walked away. It holds no appeal for her.
I liked the complex relationship that Monroe has with Francisco. I didn't expect it, yet when it happened, I thought, "Of course." I knew that Monroe would have to come full circle and get closure about Africa in order to heal. That process was ugly and painful, but necessary. I also liked her relationship with Miles. Each encounter helped to shape her in different ways, as relationship with others should do.
While I didn't like everything about the narrative, I did like how the author builds tension and unfolds the story, and keeps me guessing what's going to happen next. While one could easily draw conclusions about what happened in Equatorial Guinea, it's different from what I thought, and complicated. I think this is a book that lends itself well to audio, because some of the written facts about Emily's disappearance and the various places she went/the stonewalling she encounters, and Monroe's search in those places might be a bit dry on paper. I also think that some of the action scenes could have been more suspenseful and intensely written. There was a sense of risk, but it was a bit muted at times. As far as the narrator, I liked her voice a lot. She captures who Michael aka Monroe very well.
This is one of those books that doesn't build up one's faith in humanity. Corruption runs so deep and twisted in this world, and some places are built on this foundation. And while some of us who are lucky to live in a more lawful country, those same individuals go to other places in the world and make things worse in their conquest for power and money because they can get away with that in some places in the world, where life is cheap. Like some of my other thriller/suspense/action hero favorites, Monroe is there to teach them a lesson, but in her case, that lesson is a costly one for her as well.
I couldn't imagine living the life that Vanessa Michael Monroe has lived. One of the things I love about fiction is that I can go on a journey with a distinctive heroine like Monroe and see life through her lenses. I can feel her pain and her anger and experience the victories and defeats she has, and it helps me to understand that life is a complicated thing, but we can make it through things we never imagined possible.
This book might not work for everyone, but I found it interesting and thought-provoking. It felt unique and Monroe is an unforgettable heroine. She's kind of lawless in some ways, but deep down, she has a code that she won't stray from. She's a complicated women. Readers who enjoy this kind of heroine or a reader looking for something different might enjoy The Informationist.
Monroe doesn't let fear define her, instead she walks in defiance of it. Being afraid is not her problem. It's the rage and anger she keeps under lock and key. She struggles against demons from her past that simmer in her blood and make her heart beat fast with the tribal beat of war. Control is a way of life when she knows just what she's capable of. Yet, she is unafraid to go into dangerous places when others would shirk such a responsibility. When Emily Burbank's adoptive father contacts her to find out what happened to his daughter in Africa four years ago, she is going to have to go back to the place she was born and face her ugly past.
I love to read about heroines who are tough and resourceful. Who can kick butt just like the action heroes. Monroe is definitely one of those kinds of heroines. I like that she is very adaptable and clever about thinking through situations. While she has other weapons, she uses the one between her ears very well. Her personality is really abrasive and she's not what I would consider a typical "likable" heroine. And yet, there is something about her that resonates with me. I like that she is such a survivor. I mean, who could go through what she did and still be 100% sane and free of scars? She actually is quite sane, although I think deep down, she fears what lurks in the abyss she keeps locked away inside. She's sort of the opposite of Kurtz in The Heart of Darkness. She's been there and she walked away. It holds no appeal for her.
I liked the complex relationship that Monroe has with Francisco. I didn't expect it, yet when it happened, I thought, "Of course." I knew that Monroe would have to come full circle and get closure about Africa in order to heal. That process was ugly and painful, but necessary. I also liked her relationship with Miles. Each encounter helped to shape her in different ways, as relationship with others should do.
While I didn't like everything about the narrative, I did like how the author builds tension and unfolds the story, and keeps me guessing what's going to happen next. While one could easily draw conclusions about what happened in Equatorial Guinea, it's different from what I thought, and complicated. I think this is a book that lends itself well to audio, because some of the written facts about Emily's disappearance and the various places she went/the stonewalling she encounters, and Monroe's search in those places might be a bit dry on paper. I also think that some of the action scenes could have been more suspenseful and intensely written. There was a sense of risk, but it was a bit muted at times. As far as the narrator, I liked her voice a lot. She captures who Michael aka Monroe very well.
This is one of those books that doesn't build up one's faith in humanity. Corruption runs so deep and twisted in this world, and some places are built on this foundation. And while some of us who are lucky to live in a more lawful country, those same individuals go to other places in the world and make things worse in their conquest for power and money because they can get away with that in some places in the world, where life is cheap. Like some of my other thriller/suspense/action hero favorites, Monroe is there to teach them a lesson, but in her case, that lesson is a costly one for her as well.
I couldn't imagine living the life that Vanessa Michael Monroe has lived. One of the things I love about fiction is that I can go on a journey with a distinctive heroine like Monroe and see life through her lenses. I can feel her pain and her anger and experience the victories and defeats she has, and it helps me to understand that life is a complicated thing, but we can make it through things we never imagined possible.
This book might not work for everyone, but I found it interesting and thought-provoking. It felt unique and Monroe is an unforgettable heroine. She's kind of lawless in some ways, but deep down, she has a code that she won't stray from. She's a complicated women. Readers who enjoy this kind of heroine or a reader looking for something different might enjoy The Informationist.
September 5, 2017
Bought this book because of the reviews and it's title. Started and stopped couple times. Vanessa character is one hard woman, learned somethings about Africa. But overall story didn't much entertained me. Parts were really slow and bloody. As always money and how to deceive someone to get what they have.
May 26, 2015
I'm reviewing the audiobook version and although I threatened during the experience to tear my stereo from my car, I am happy to report that it is still intact within its housing.
What would push a gentle person such as myself toward such automotively destructive fantasies? a)commuting in general b)an author who uses the same descriptive phrase for every character's posture while sitting over, and over, and over again! WTF? Where's the editor ? How many times can a person sit with their forearms or elbows on their legs or knees? Why do they all do it? Why is it even worth talking about or mentioning if they all do it?
The saving grace(s) or Why I don't need to go to stereo repair:
a) The main character is female and she kicks ass -very cool.
b) She is crazy, but her psychoses are not explored as though they are the raison d'etre of the story
c) Relationships between various characters are well presented and the dynamics change over time
d) the African locales and characters in the book -what great settings
e) the special edge the main character has is her skill with languages, especially local dialects.
f) the voice actress -she was good. An "A" for effort for Hillary Huber (Narrator).
g) the audiobook production -it was above average in my limited experience.
All the above made for a fun read that was above the typical sensationalist audiobook production of popular fiction.
What would push a gentle person such as myself toward such automotively destructive fantasies? a)commuting in general b)an author who uses the same descriptive phrase for every character's posture while sitting over, and over, and over again! WTF? Where's the editor ? How many times can a person sit with their forearms or elbows on their legs or knees? Why do they all do it? Why is it even worth talking about or mentioning if they all do it?
The saving grace(s) or Why I don't need to go to stereo repair:
a) The main character is female and she kicks ass -very cool.
b) She is crazy, but her psychoses are not explored as though they are the raison d'etre of the story
c) Relationships between various characters are well presented and the dynamics change over time
d) the African locales and characters in the book -what great settings
e) the special edge the main character has is her skill with languages, especially local dialects.
f) the voice actress -she was good. An "A" for effort for Hillary Huber (Narrator).
g) the audiobook production -it was above average in my limited experience.
All the above made for a fun read that was above the typical sensationalist audiobook production of popular fiction.
April 20, 2014
She’s a tool. A weapon. Like Jason Bourne or James Bond. Able to blend into her surroundings. She speaks 22 languages, and she’s damn near deadly with a knife. And she’s androgynous. She’s Vanessa Michael Munroe. Or Michael for short.
Revenge might as well be her middle name, though. She reminded me of Lisbeth Salander with the way rage completely consumed her. And yet she still managed to show some heart, or at least her slightly abbreviated version of it. Emotions seemed to fill her, consume her, even as she struck out at the imperfections of this world.
Her ability to seek out, consume, and process information rapidly helped explain the title. Even when she was just traversing through a particular area, it felt as though her brain worked at a higher level than everyone else around her. Almost like a game of dominoes where she already had the perfect plan mapped out in her head.
The Equatorial Guinea setting proved as real and as feral to me as she was, and it was the perfect setting for such an untamed creature. Had THE INFORMATIONIST been set anywhere else, it probably wouldn’t have worked as well as it did.
Kudos to you, Ms. Stevens. Michael is one interesting, intriguing character, and this proved to be one interesting and intriguing read.
Cross-posted at Robert's Reads
Revenge might as well be her middle name, though. She reminded me of Lisbeth Salander with the way rage completely consumed her. And yet she still managed to show some heart, or at least her slightly abbreviated version of it. Emotions seemed to fill her, consume her, even as she struck out at the imperfections of this world.
Her ability to seek out, consume, and process information rapidly helped explain the title. Even when she was just traversing through a particular area, it felt as though her brain worked at a higher level than everyone else around her. Almost like a game of dominoes where she already had the perfect plan mapped out in her head.
The Equatorial Guinea setting proved as real and as feral to me as she was, and it was the perfect setting for such an untamed creature. Had THE INFORMATIONIST been set anywhere else, it probably wouldn’t have worked as well as it did.
Kudos to you, Ms. Stevens. Michael is one interesting, intriguing character, and this proved to be one interesting and intriguing read.
Cross-posted at Robert's Reads
August 20, 2014
This is the worst book ever. The writing is boring, the plot is brain-dead dumb, and the character Vanessa Michael Munroe is the stupidest 'genius' I've run across since the biker Eric Von Zipper in the 'Beach Blanket Bingo' movies starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello. Munroe, the main character, unfortunately, is the dumbest one of all. No one is SUPPOSED to be dumb in 'The Informationist.' This is supposedly a serious thriller. Really. Really? This novel is such a stinking piece of dung.
Can anyone do a phrase count on how often Munroe thought, "she fought down the urge to cut his throat"? What a douchebag moron. Her focus IS rather amazing. However, if you notice a person thinks only one thought, and that one thought is to cut everyone's throat, would you be thinking 'she is so intelligent and cool'? Or, like me, would you be thinking, 'RUN!'
If this character was on Paxil or if she had at least taken up chewing Khat, she might have more of a personality. But all the handsome lads love her manly physique and wooden unsmiling face and hands of steel. What a guy, uh, girl. Let's not forget the 47 saber nicks on her scarred hide, or her strange inability to avoid daily rape for three years while volunteering to be an adventurer with a jungle martial arts gang in Africa. She is a genius and manly and strong and independent, but in spite of her superior mentality she sticks around and pays up when she loses in martial arts lessons by giving head, body and soul to a man she "hates", every day! EVeRY DAY! Holy masochistic charms! With all of her native brilliance, she can't think of some way to avoid being raped daily to learn her craft, like learning it somewhere else where being raped isn't on the table. Gee whiz.
There are Arnold Schwarzenegger movies and there are Jackie Chan movies and then you've got that zombie-walking Chuck Norris. Could any movie star imitate a piece of wood better than Chuck?
Well. Hello Munroe!
Chuck Norris demonstrated more emoting in his movies than anyone in these pages. A dead animal has more character than anyone living in these pages. Not to mention motivation or logic.
Emily, the victim who is supposed to need help, is a Stepford wife who has absolutely no interest in being rescued except when people tell her she should, at least for a minute. There is the bad guy in Texas who doesn't want Emily found but he sends the world's best tracker after her instead of a hit squad, which would have been the logical thing. Then there are the African towns, where young tourists are abused and threatened and beaten on their vacations, which is such fun that after many near death experiences and much hatred from the inhabitants the tourists study maps to find even more dangerous African countries to party on in rather than go home to their parents.
I wish I could say this all was a satire, but it was written obviously as a serious thriller with a serious group of characters. Despite the occasional and unintentional hilarious scenes, this is really such a bore to read.
Can anyone do a phrase count on how often Munroe thought, "she fought down the urge to cut his throat"? What a douchebag moron. Her focus IS rather amazing. However, if you notice a person thinks only one thought, and that one thought is to cut everyone's throat, would you be thinking 'she is so intelligent and cool'? Or, like me, would you be thinking, 'RUN!'
If this character was on Paxil or if she had at least taken up chewing Khat, she might have more of a personality. But all the handsome lads love her manly physique and wooden unsmiling face and hands of steel. What a guy, uh, girl. Let's not forget the 47 saber nicks on her scarred hide, or her strange inability to avoid daily rape for three years while volunteering to be an adventurer with a jungle martial arts gang in Africa. She is a genius and manly and strong and independent, but in spite of her superior mentality she sticks around and pays up when she loses in martial arts lessons by giving head, body and soul to a man she "hates", every day! EVeRY DAY! Holy masochistic charms! With all of her native brilliance, she can't think of some way to avoid being raped daily to learn her craft, like learning it somewhere else where being raped isn't on the table. Gee whiz.
There are Arnold Schwarzenegger movies and there are Jackie Chan movies and then you've got that zombie-walking Chuck Norris. Could any movie star imitate a piece of wood better than Chuck?
Well. Hello Munroe!
Chuck Norris demonstrated more emoting in his movies than anyone in these pages. A dead animal has more character than anyone living in these pages. Not to mention motivation or logic.
Emily, the victim who is supposed to need help, is a Stepford wife who has absolutely no interest in being rescued except when people tell her she should, at least for a minute. There is the bad guy in Texas who doesn't want Emily found but he sends the world's best tracker after her instead of a hit squad, which would have been the logical thing. Then there are the African towns, where young tourists are abused and threatened and beaten on their vacations, which is such fun that after many near death experiences and much hatred from the inhabitants the tourists study maps to find even more dangerous African countries to party on in rather than go home to their parents.
I wish I could say this all was a satire, but it was written obviously as a serious thriller with a serious group of characters. Despite the occasional and unintentional hilarious scenes, this is really such a bore to read.
May 11, 2011
I can't say that I liked it. I thought that it was boring, over-written, and unbelievable -- to the point of being silly. To be honest, I couldn't even enjoy it on the level of "fantasy" or escapism.
It reminded me of your standard, second-rate, mildly-ridiculous gun-for-hire novel - only this time written with a tormented female lead, instead of a tormented male lead.
I'm guessing that one is supposed to like the book largely because of the gender-switch. If you enjoy silly, poorly written fantasy novels -- where jaded men with super-macho abilities struggle with their demons, while beating the corrupt bad guys -- but you've wanted to see a woman in the lead role instead of a man -- well, this might be the book for you.
For me, though, the gender-switch didn't really add anything terribly interesting, other than perhaps a few laughs. The character basically ended up seeming just like a man, to me. Plus, there was nothing even slightly believable or "real" about the character.
And although it started off intriguingly enough, it just kept getting more ridiculous as the book went on.
I felt like I had to read the same, over-wrought scenes over and over again: (Vanessa: "Who is the traitor? I'm going to bitch-slap you until you tell me the truth! I wish I worked alone!!").
Some have compared the main character to Lisbeth Salander. While I found Salander to be compelling, I just thought this heroine was basically a flatly-drawn, selfish b**ch (sorry for my French)- with ridiculously unbelievable super-abilities. (And I have to laugh: if this was supposed to be some sort of a knock-off of The Dragon Tattoo series, that fact was completely lost on me!!)
I did appreciate the introduction to that part of Africa, but that's about all the positive I can say about it.
It reminded me of your standard, second-rate, mildly-ridiculous gun-for-hire novel - only this time written with a tormented female lead, instead of a tormented male lead.
I'm guessing that one is supposed to like the book largely because of the gender-switch. If you enjoy silly, poorly written fantasy novels -- where jaded men with super-macho abilities struggle with their demons, while beating the corrupt bad guys -- but you've wanted to see a woman in the lead role instead of a man -- well, this might be the book for you.
For me, though, the gender-switch didn't really add anything terribly interesting, other than perhaps a few laughs. The character basically ended up seeming just like a man, to me. Plus, there was nothing even slightly believable or "real" about the character.
And although it started off intriguingly enough, it just kept getting more ridiculous as the book went on.
I felt like I had to read the same, over-wrought scenes over and over again: (Vanessa: "Who is the traitor? I'm going to bitch-slap you until you tell me the truth! I wish I worked alone!!").
Some have compared the main character to Lisbeth Salander. While I found Salander to be compelling, I just thought this heroine was basically a flatly-drawn, selfish b**ch (sorry for my French)- with ridiculously unbelievable super-abilities. (And I have to laugh: if this was supposed to be some sort of a knock-off of The Dragon Tattoo series, that fact was completely lost on me!!)
I did appreciate the introduction to that part of Africa, but that's about all the positive I can say about it.
October 27, 2020
I think The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo has spawned a new genre of the novel -- girls with abusive pasts who grow up into emotionally crippled, gender-ambiguous women. The novel is set in Africa and that makes up for a lot; the detail is good and it seems well researched. At times this book teeters on the edge of a romance novel. It was a fast read, entertaining enough for a plane ride, and who knew one could purposefully dislocate a thumb to escape handcuffs. Reading really expands my horizons.
May 5, 2011
WOW, what a ride!!! Very similiar to The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo... took a little while to get into, but once you do... what a ride!!! Hope this is the first in a series... would love for it to continue!!!
September 14, 2017
Note, Sept. 14, 2017: I just edited this review to correct a slight misspelling of one word.
The Goodreads description for this book simply quotes the first paragraph of the jacket copy, which gives the impression that our heroine's adolescent career as part of a gang of gunrunners lasted for years. It didn't --she fled from Africa at the age of 15, after about a year with the gang. (They also weren't mercenaries, and their smuggling operations included drugs as well as guns.) Otherwise, the information is accurate as far as it goes. We meet her nine years later, when she's 24 years old. Before we do, though, we're treated to a two-page, attention-grabbing prologue, set somewhere in West Central Africa, describing a terrifying experience which we quickly realize is related to our main plot, and which gives us a little bit of information and a whole lot of tantalizing ambiguity.
Four years later, Michael is approached by a super-wealthy oil tycoon, who wants to hire her to trace the now four-years-cold trail of his adopted step-daughter, who vanished somewhere in Africa on the cusp of adulthood. Finding a missing person isn't something she's ever done; she's an information broker, a compiler of deep background on foreign countries, for governments, NGOs and corporations. But she's extremely good at this, blessed with a facility for learning languages, strong computer skills, a powerful intelligence and single-minded focus and determination. She's also a mistress of disguise, who (with her hair cut short and her bosom tightly bound) can pass for a male if she needs to. [Some reviewers focus on this, and on her preference for using her middle name, to make "androgyny" a central aspect of her character. IMO, this idea has been overstated; her character comes across as essentially female, without any ambiguity (though she's more in touch with her kick-butt side than many women are). Passing for a male is a tactical device that can come in handy in some situations (and she's not the only fictional heroine to find it so; Madeleine E. Robins' Sarah Tolerance, for instance, does it frequently), and doesn't entail any repudiation of her femininity. As for preferring "Michael" over "Vanessa," she's not the first person in literature or real life to want to change the way she's addressed after a major transition in her life --especially from a traumatic period that she'd like to forget. (Her African associates knew her as Essa.]) Anyway, Richard Burbank has been assured that these skills will be transferable to ferreting out the fate and whereabouts of a person, and that Michael can succeed where others have failed.
Combat-capable females aren't as rare in literature as they once were, but her fighting skills aren't what make Michael a rather unique fictional heroine (though she has few peers where those skills are concerned). She's a very complex and nuanced character, with aspects of her personality that aren't all pretty. Her missionary parents, who didn't plan for or want her, raised her in a mindset that sees God as an angry and condemning Judge rather than a loving and forgiving Father. The experiences of her African adolescence left her with massive internal abysses of guilt and anger which she uses her work to keep at bay; she has hardly any friends, and walks a psychological knife edge between moral decency and a homicidal darkness she could easily plunge into for keeps. Now, with the quest for Emily Burbank taking her back into a world she left nine years ago, she'll face external conflicts with some very nasty villains; but her most desperate and consequential battle will be inside herself, and she'll come to a moral decision that may save her --or destroy her.
Taylor Stevens' unique personal upbringing gave her a first-hand knowledge of a number of world locales; this is probably reflected in the vivid way settings in several countries on three continents are realized. (Some of Michael's formative experiences may have something in common with Stevens' own as well --though one hopes not.) The African milieu that forms the main setting is particularly life-like, with a you-are-there immediacy especially marked in the portrayal of the dangerous, paranoid Twilight-Zone nation of Equatorial Guinea, the model for Frederick Forsythe's setting in The Dogs of War, a novel that Stevens references here (see my comment at www.goodreads.com/review/show/342479647 ). Her prose style is crisp and quick-moving, with a wealth of realistic detail that lends verisimilitude. All of the major characters are fully three-dimensional, adding to the texture and emotional evocative quality of the storyline. Plotting here is a tour-de-force, with major twists and surprises in store; the quality of suspense is very taut through much of the book, and comes right down to the wire.
This is an action-adventure novel, so the reader should expect that it's going to have some violence; more than a few people are going to get killed here. None of the violence is gratuitous, and it isn't over-described for its own sake; but some readers might find one scene a bit disturbing. There's no explicit sex, but some sexual encounters are noted without being described in detail, and Michael's sexual behavior is, like every other aspect of her life, affected by the psychic damage she carries. The most problematic aspect of the book in terms of content is the bad language; there's a lot of obscenity, and profanity/cursing. (For perhaps the first third or more of the book, this isn't so marked, but it gets worse.) Granted, a couple of the English-speaking characters could be expected to have barracks-room vocabularies, but "realism" isn't a useful excuse to invoke for putting English obscenities into the mouth of non-English speakers. It's also not likely that Michael's English speech would be that much colored by this kind of thing, given the probable absence of that type of peer modeling when she was developing her speaking style. I considered this stylistically lazy on the author's part, and deducted a star for it.
In a couple of places, I have a quibble or two with details. (A camera affixed to the peephole of a hotel door, for instance, would register images directly in front of it --NOT the adjacent door. And one tactical action near the end seems to have no credible reason for being done, except that it serves the author's ultimate plotting purposes.) But quibbles don't interfere with the fact that this is, overall, a very strong first novel. And, although there are sequels in the series, this opener comes to a very satisfying conclusion in itself; for readers who don't want to get sucked into another open-ended series, this book can function perfectly well as a completed stand-alone.
The Goodreads description for this book simply quotes the first paragraph of the jacket copy, which gives the impression that our heroine's adolescent career as part of a gang of gunrunners lasted for years. It didn't --she fled from Africa at the age of 15, after about a year with the gang. (They also weren't mercenaries, and their smuggling operations included drugs as well as guns.) Otherwise, the information is accurate as far as it goes. We meet her nine years later, when she's 24 years old. Before we do, though, we're treated to a two-page, attention-grabbing prologue, set somewhere in West Central Africa, describing a terrifying experience which we quickly realize is related to our main plot, and which gives us a little bit of information and a whole lot of tantalizing ambiguity.
Four years later, Michael is approached by a super-wealthy oil tycoon, who wants to hire her to trace the now four-years-cold trail of his adopted step-daughter, who vanished somewhere in Africa on the cusp of adulthood. Finding a missing person isn't something she's ever done; she's an information broker, a compiler of deep background on foreign countries, for governments, NGOs and corporations. But she's extremely good at this, blessed with a facility for learning languages, strong computer skills, a powerful intelligence and single-minded focus and determination. She's also a mistress of disguise, who (with her hair cut short and her bosom tightly bound) can pass for a male if she needs to. [Some reviewers focus on this, and on her preference for using her middle name, to make "androgyny" a central aspect of her character. IMO, this idea has been overstated; her character comes across as essentially female, without any ambiguity (though she's more in touch with her kick-butt side than many women are). Passing for a male is a tactical device that can come in handy in some situations (and she's not the only fictional heroine to find it so; Madeleine E. Robins' Sarah Tolerance, for instance, does it frequently), and doesn't entail any repudiation of her femininity. As for preferring "Michael" over "Vanessa," she's not the first person in literature or real life to want to change the way she's addressed after a major transition in her life --especially from a traumatic period that she'd like to forget. (Her African associates knew her as Essa.]) Anyway, Richard Burbank has been assured that these skills will be transferable to ferreting out the fate and whereabouts of a person, and that Michael can succeed where others have failed.
Combat-capable females aren't as rare in literature as they once were, but her fighting skills aren't what make Michael a rather unique fictional heroine (though she has few peers where those skills are concerned). She's a very complex and nuanced character, with aspects of her personality that aren't all pretty. Her missionary parents, who didn't plan for or want her, raised her in a mindset that sees God as an angry and condemning Judge rather than a loving and forgiving Father. The experiences of her African adolescence left her with massive internal abysses of guilt and anger which she uses her work to keep at bay; she has hardly any friends, and walks a psychological knife edge between moral decency and a homicidal darkness she could easily plunge into for keeps. Now, with the quest for Emily Burbank taking her back into a world she left nine years ago, she'll face external conflicts with some very nasty villains; but her most desperate and consequential battle will be inside herself, and she'll come to a moral decision that may save her --or destroy her.
Taylor Stevens' unique personal upbringing gave her a first-hand knowledge of a number of world locales; this is probably reflected in the vivid way settings in several countries on three continents are realized. (Some of Michael's formative experiences may have something in common with Stevens' own as well --though one hopes not.) The African milieu that forms the main setting is particularly life-like, with a you-are-there immediacy especially marked in the portrayal of the dangerous, paranoid Twilight-Zone nation of Equatorial Guinea, the model for Frederick Forsythe's setting in The Dogs of War, a novel that Stevens references here (see my comment at www.goodreads.com/review/show/342479647 ). Her prose style is crisp and quick-moving, with a wealth of realistic detail that lends verisimilitude. All of the major characters are fully three-dimensional, adding to the texture and emotional evocative quality of the storyline. Plotting here is a tour-de-force, with major twists and surprises in store; the quality of suspense is very taut through much of the book, and comes right down to the wire.
This is an action-adventure novel, so the reader should expect that it's going to have some violence; more than a few people are going to get killed here. None of the violence is gratuitous, and it isn't over-described for its own sake; but some readers might find one scene a bit disturbing. There's no explicit sex, but some sexual encounters are noted without being described in detail, and Michael's sexual behavior is, like every other aspect of her life, affected by the psychic damage she carries. The most problematic aspect of the book in terms of content is the bad language; there's a lot of obscenity, and profanity/cursing. (For perhaps the first third or more of the book, this isn't so marked, but it gets worse.) Granted, a couple of the English-speaking characters could be expected to have barracks-room vocabularies, but "realism" isn't a useful excuse to invoke for putting English obscenities into the mouth of non-English speakers. It's also not likely that Michael's English speech would be that much colored by this kind of thing, given the probable absence of that type of peer modeling when she was developing her speaking style. I considered this stylistically lazy on the author's part, and deducted a star for it.
In a couple of places, I have a quibble or two with details. (A camera affixed to the peephole of a hotel door, for instance, would register images directly in front of it --NOT the adjacent door. And one tactical action near the end seems to have no credible reason for being done, except that it serves the author's ultimate plotting purposes.) But quibbles don't interfere with the fact that this is, overall, a very strong first novel. And, although there are sequels in the series, this opener comes to a very satisfying conclusion in itself; for readers who don't want to get sucked into another open-ended series, this book can function perfectly well as a completed stand-alone.
July 10, 2011
I picked this one up for several reasons. First, I love the title and the picture it evokes. An Informationist, someone who deals in information. In this case this person is one Vanessa "Michael" Munroe,. That's the second reason I picked up the book. Reviews depicted Vanessa/Michael as one strong female,a character trait I like in my reading. Third reason; reviews called it a gripping, fast paced, high octane thriller. And lastly, I picked it up as it is debut fiction, always a treat for me.
So did it deliver? Yes on several counts, almost too much so. Munroe is intelligent, tough, ruthless when she needs to be, and yet there is a feminine side that she knows how to play and says woman all the way. The story is definitely fast paced and would keep any thriller fan engaged. Munroe is being compared to Lizbeth Salander of Girl With the Dragon Tattoo fame but though I see some similarities, I didn't immediately make this connection. Yet, if you liked Dragon, I think you'd like this too.
I liked the way Taylor Stevens revealed bits and pieces of Munroe's background, the things that make her who she is, throughout the book. I love the switchback changing of names, rapid fire at times; Vanessa, Michael, Monroe, each revealing their own complexity of character, almost like three different people contributing to the intrigue of the story. What didn't quite work for me was Munroe's ability to come out on top of some very serious situations. You know what I mean, the Indiana Jones sort of story, where coming out alive is almost unbelievable. Normally, I'd say, hey this fiction, suspend belief, and just enjoy the ride. Here, though, it detracts from the whole for me. Munroe is enough of a guerrilla warfare type gal, gutsy and well-trained, that taking it over the top is not necessary.
I need not tell you much more. A synopsis of the book will give you a better picture of plot. A solid 4; a good summer read, great setting (Africa) and interesting character. I'm certain we'll see a sequel.
Be certain to read a bit about the author. Intersting to say the least.
So did it deliver? Yes on several counts, almost too much so. Munroe is intelligent, tough, ruthless when she needs to be, and yet there is a feminine side that she knows how to play and says woman all the way. The story is definitely fast paced and would keep any thriller fan engaged. Munroe is being compared to Lizbeth Salander of Girl With the Dragon Tattoo fame but though I see some similarities, I didn't immediately make this connection. Yet, if you liked Dragon, I think you'd like this too.
I liked the way Taylor Stevens revealed bits and pieces of Munroe's background, the things that make her who she is, throughout the book. I love the switchback changing of names, rapid fire at times; Vanessa, Michael, Monroe, each revealing their own complexity of character, almost like three different people contributing to the intrigue of the story. What didn't quite work for me was Munroe's ability to come out on top of some very serious situations. You know what I mean, the Indiana Jones sort of story, where coming out alive is almost unbelievable. Normally, I'd say, hey this fiction, suspend belief, and just enjoy the ride. Here, though, it detracts from the whole for me. Munroe is enough of a guerrilla warfare type gal, gutsy and well-trained, that taking it over the top is not necessary.
I need not tell you much more. A synopsis of the book will give you a better picture of plot. A solid 4; a good summer read, great setting (Africa) and interesting character. I'm certain we'll see a sequel.
Be certain to read a bit about the author. Intersting to say the least.
October 13, 2020
2.5 ☆ the origin story of an anti heroine
I am so glad that I didn't jump into the Vanessa Michael Munroe (VMM) series here. The Informationist suffered a case of the first book overkill syndrome. Symptoms included a character with near supernatural abilities who can repeatedly survive episodes of danger against all odds and who can enthrall all the male characters into falling in love with her.
VMM has made a living since age 20 as a spy for hire. She wasn't presented as a thief who steals information but she can acquire the needed intel and analysis (the manner of how is a bit murky). Her unique backstory included being born in Cameroon to American missionary parents and she's been gifted with a linguistic ability to the point that her African community labeled her a witch. (OK, I can accept how verbal fluency with 22 languages and dialects could be had as described. Although only five languages would have impressed me.) Like any pastor's kid, VMM rebelled and, at age 14, took up with guns- and drugs-runner Francisco Beyard. VMM is capable with guns but her love is for knives. There's a dark, twisty narrative to explain this affinity for knives. Clearly, she's been psychologically hurt and she's not wholly on the side of angels.
Now in her late 20s, VMM has been offered a missing persons investigation for Emily Burbank, who disappeared in west Africa four years earlier. The pay of $5 million was too enticing to reject despite that this was far from her typical project. Well, when something sounds too good to be true...
VMM had adopted the Michael persona to capitalize on her androgynous appearance as a tactical ploy when needed (I have no objection to this). But the author had to gild the lily further. As a woman, VMM is beautiful and desired or loved by the men in her proximity. She manipulated and used the men, who are described as quite capable in intelligence, strategic thinking, and fighting abilities. (And yet, when she was a teen, she had viewed Beyard as weaker and unable to solve her predicament?)
This missing persons case was complicated by its location. Stevens had lived in Africa and the setting is a crucial player in The Informationist. The portrait of west Africa is not something any tourist board would want. The physical dangers arise from extreme weather and the jungles with their snakes and disease-carrying insects. But more alarming is the ever present malfeasance and corruption from wait staff in hotels to every interaction with a person in the government.
So VMM and her colleagues' lives were in constant danger just for being foreigners who were asking questions.
I look for atypical protagonists in the crime fiction genre, so from the get go, that means finding a woman main character. This first book has an intriguing premise and the series has sold well and received more than decent ratings. But the story would serve better as an action movie than in the written form. There's too much wish fulfillment in this book for a powerful, tough female. I read this series out of sequence, so I can say that the future installments are more palatable if this is your introduction to VMM.
2.5 Stars rounded up to 3 stars because I read the series in reverse order.
#2 The Innocent 3.5 ☆
#3 The Doll 4 ☆
#3.5 The Vessel 3.5 ☆
#4 The Catch 3 ☆
#5 The Mask 3.5 ☆
I am so glad that I didn't jump into the Vanessa Michael Munroe (VMM) series here. The Informationist suffered a case of the first book overkill syndrome. Symptoms included a character with near supernatural abilities who can repeatedly survive episodes of danger against all odds and who can enthrall all the male characters into falling in love with her.
VMM has made a living since age 20 as a spy for hire. She wasn't presented as a thief who steals information but she can acquire the needed intel and analysis (the manner of how is a bit murky). Her unique backstory included being born in Cameroon to American missionary parents and she's been gifted with a linguistic ability to the point that her African community labeled her a witch. (OK, I can accept how verbal fluency with 22 languages and dialects could be had as described. Although only five languages would have impressed me.) Like any pastor's kid, VMM rebelled and, at age 14, took up with guns- and drugs-runner Francisco Beyard. VMM is capable with guns but her love is for knives. There's a dark, twisty narrative to explain this affinity for knives. Clearly, she's been psychologically hurt and she's not wholly on the side of angels.
Now in her late 20s, VMM has been offered a missing persons investigation for Emily Burbank, who disappeared in west Africa four years earlier. The pay of $5 million was too enticing to reject despite that this was far from her typical project. Well, when something sounds too good to be true...
VMM had adopted the Michael persona to capitalize on her androgynous appearance as a tactical ploy when needed (I have no objection to this). But the author had to gild the lily further. As a woman, VMM is beautiful and desired or loved by the men in her proximity. She manipulated and used the men, who are described as quite capable in intelligence, strategic thinking, and fighting abilities. (And yet, when she was a teen, she had viewed Beyard as weaker and unable to solve her predicament?)
This missing persons case was complicated by its location. Stevens had lived in Africa and the setting is a crucial player in The Informationist. The portrait of west Africa is not something any tourist board would want. The physical dangers arise from extreme weather and the jungles with their snakes and disease-carrying insects. But more alarming is the ever present malfeasance and corruption from wait staff in hotels to every interaction with a person in the government.
So VMM and her colleagues' lives were in constant danger just for being foreigners who were asking questions.
I look for atypical protagonists in the crime fiction genre, so from the get go, that means finding a woman main character. This first book has an intriguing premise and the series has sold well and received more than decent ratings. But the story would serve better as an action movie than in the written form. There's too much wish fulfillment in this book for a powerful, tough female. I read this series out of sequence, so I can say that the future installments are more palatable if this is your introduction to VMM.
2.5 Stars rounded up to 3 stars because I read the series in reverse order.
#2 The Innocent 3.5 ☆
#3 The Doll 4 ☆
#3.5 The Vessel 3.5 ☆
#4 The Catch 3 ☆
#5 The Mask 3.5 ☆
August 22, 2022
Book Blog | Bookstagram
Um...
Ridiculous.
This was too long, over-written and tried too hard to make the main character of Vanessa Michael Munroe, damaged and dark, leaving her annoying and emotionless with a contrived background. There's an attempt to make her a genius/superhero/heroine but it's so forced that I could only roll my eyes.
For a novel packed with continent-to-continent action, adventure, espionage and blah blah blah, it was pretty boring. The romance was cheesy and weird, and the plot was just too much. Every time something big happened, it took pages of explanation for the reader to "get it", drying up the pace faster than a drought. If something needs that much explanation, it's time to rethink the delivery of the plot.
⭐⭐ | 2 Stars
Um...
Ridiculous.
This was too long, over-written and tried too hard to make the main character of Vanessa Michael Munroe, damaged and dark, leaving her annoying and emotionless with a contrived background. There's an attempt to make her a genius/superhero/heroine but it's so forced that I could only roll my eyes.
For a novel packed with continent-to-continent action, adventure, espionage and blah blah blah, it was pretty boring. The romance was cheesy and weird, and the plot was just too much. Every time something big happened, it took pages of explanation for the reader to "get it", drying up the pace faster than a drought. If something needs that much explanation, it's time to rethink the delivery of the plot.
⭐⭐ | 2 Stars
April 26, 2011
This is honestly one of the worst plotted books I've ever read. The dialogue is cheesy and the major plot points revealed at the strangest moments. For example, when the main characters are finally rescuing the woman they've been searching for the whole book, the author has the characters take the time to have her explain how she came to be in this predicament instead ofgetting her the hell out of there.
The action is disjointed and the reader needs to take great leaps in imagination to get from point "a" to point "b". I sometimes felt like I was reading a script for an old-fashioned melodrama with ham actors reading the dialogue.
All and all a big thumbs down.
The action is disjointed and the reader needs to take great leaps in imagination to get from point "a" to point "b". I sometimes felt like I was reading a script for an old-fashioned melodrama with ham actors reading the dialogue.
All and all a big thumbs down.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 1, 2011
Not until now has there been a heroine that could rival Lisbeth Salander of "The Girl with the Dragon Tatto". That girl is Vanessa Michael Munroe and she is "The Informationist".
Michael, as she is called, comes from a missionary family that was based in Africa. Her family had little to do with her and she became strongly independent and became ver familiar with the language, customs, and culture of the many African tribes.
In her teens she became involved with Francisco Beyard. Beyard made his living in Africa by gun and drug smuggling. He fell deeply in love with Michael who, one day, left him unexpectedly and without explanation.
Michael found she had a knack for finding out information that other people wanted and that her clients were willing to pay millions of dollars for that information.
A Texas billionaire, who lost his daughter in Africa over four years ago, has hired Michael to find out whether she is alive or dead. His only stipulation is that she must accept Miles Bradford as her companion and body guard.
Michael, Beyard, and Bradford pull together to unravel the mystery of the missing girl. They, especially Michael, seem to be marked for death because of their search. They must work their way through the different countries of Africa that has danger at every crossroads.
It doesn't take long for everyone to know that they are up against a formidable adversary in Michael. She leaves a trail of dead bodies that would equal any undercover agent. The situation turns ugly when she realizes that things are going wrong because there is a traitor in her organization.
A highly entertaining story that reaches into the psyche of Michael that reveals a past that haunts her and may be responsible for her actions. After finishing "The Informationist", you will anixiously await the next Michael Munroe mystery.
Michael, as she is called, comes from a missionary family that was based in Africa. Her family had little to do with her and she became strongly independent and became ver familiar with the language, customs, and culture of the many African tribes.
In her teens she became involved with Francisco Beyard. Beyard made his living in Africa by gun and drug smuggling. He fell deeply in love with Michael who, one day, left him unexpectedly and without explanation.
Michael found she had a knack for finding out information that other people wanted and that her clients were willing to pay millions of dollars for that information.
A Texas billionaire, who lost his daughter in Africa over four years ago, has hired Michael to find out whether she is alive or dead. His only stipulation is that she must accept Miles Bradford as her companion and body guard.
Michael, Beyard, and Bradford pull together to unravel the mystery of the missing girl. They, especially Michael, seem to be marked for death because of their search. They must work their way through the different countries of Africa that has danger at every crossroads.
It doesn't take long for everyone to know that they are up against a formidable adversary in Michael. She leaves a trail of dead bodies that would equal any undercover agent. The situation turns ugly when she realizes that things are going wrong because there is a traitor in her organization.
A highly entertaining story that reaches into the psyche of Michael that reveals a past that haunts her and may be responsible for her actions. After finishing "The Informationist", you will anixiously await the next Michael Munroe mystery.
October 13, 2014
Well....if you love this/these books please forgive me. I just could not get involved or even interested in it. The character(s) left me cold. This includes the protagonist.
I just didn't get into the book at all and finally laid it aside. I decided "back when" that if I "quit" a book I'd go 1 star.
Now I know many people love these. In a way I get this. I can tell it's well written. That said, I'm just not the intended audience for the book. The odd thing is the subject seems very interesting. It's just that once we started into the book it seemed like familiar ground but not as interesting as it was the last time. Tough girl from tough background...leather, motorcycle etc.
Well, if you like it, enjoy. I can't recommend it, didn't care for it.
I just didn't get into the book at all and finally laid it aside. I decided "back when" that if I "quit" a book I'd go 1 star.
Now I know many people love these. In a way I get this. I can tell it's well written. That said, I'm just not the intended audience for the book. The odd thing is the subject seems very interesting. It's just that once we started into the book it seemed like familiar ground but not as interesting as it was the last time. Tough girl from tough background...leather, motorcycle etc.
Well, if you like it, enjoy. I can't recommend it, didn't care for it.
May 3, 2011
This is the first time I’ve taken the time to write a review for a book. I’m generally a word-of-mouth “reviewer”. But I believe this book is worth sharing an opinion. I’m not a voracious reader (like I was in my early youth) but I do read a lot - just an ordinary guy who likes to read thrillers, espionage, adventure, and variations thereof. I also dabble in early American history and American military history.
I came across this book via my local indie bookstore weekly email. The dust cover description was compelling, the author bio even more so, and the recommendation by Vince Flynn piqued my interest enough to purchase a copy and attend the upcoming book signing with the author. I won’t bother to describe the book here – the dust cover description is “tease” enough and more professionally done than I could muster.
While waiting on the author to begin the talk before the signing, I started reading. By page two, I was hooked. I like that in a thriller. By the time the author came in I was on page 14 and a bit disappointed I had to stop reading, be polite, and listen. And I’m glad I did – the author, Taylor Stevens, was an utterly charming and engaging person who charmed the socks off the audience gathered. Well, my socks were off by the end if no one else’s were.
Apart from Ms. Steven’s fascinating journey to write this book, which makes it even more worth the read, the book stands alone. The story is a great thrill ride that I couldn’t put down. I was finished within hours. I found the story fast-paced with nice surprises thrown in to keep you guessing. The exotic setting was so realistically conveyed that it was a major source of tension for me apart from the tension of the story. Additionally, I found the heroine to be highly interesting but kept mysterious enough that I was left wanting to know more, more, more about her. I suspect we will in coming books in the series.
Finally, I want to add that I’ve seen what I believe are some unfair comparisons to The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. I’ve read both. Granted there are some commonalities but I believe they’re superficial. I enjoyed The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo but must say it was very slooooowww in getting to the point where the tension really started. I liked the story but I couldn’t put the The Informationist down once I started. I was able to put down the Dragon Tattoo many times until about two thirds of the way through when the story finally began to move quickly. Personally, I’m at a loss for that book’s level of success but to each his own, I suppose.
I’m looking forward to the next book in this three-book series with eager anticipation. I must say that I was in a bit of a fiction-reading lull for some months but this book has fueled my fire and I’ve been on a hot reading streak since. Perhaps to fill the emptiness until the 2nd book in this series arrives…?
I came across this book via my local indie bookstore weekly email. The dust cover description was compelling, the author bio even more so, and the recommendation by Vince Flynn piqued my interest enough to purchase a copy and attend the upcoming book signing with the author. I won’t bother to describe the book here – the dust cover description is “tease” enough and more professionally done than I could muster.
While waiting on the author to begin the talk before the signing, I started reading. By page two, I was hooked. I like that in a thriller. By the time the author came in I was on page 14 and a bit disappointed I had to stop reading, be polite, and listen. And I’m glad I did – the author, Taylor Stevens, was an utterly charming and engaging person who charmed the socks off the audience gathered. Well, my socks were off by the end if no one else’s were.
Apart from Ms. Steven’s fascinating journey to write this book, which makes it even more worth the read, the book stands alone. The story is a great thrill ride that I couldn’t put down. I was finished within hours. I found the story fast-paced with nice surprises thrown in to keep you guessing. The exotic setting was so realistically conveyed that it was a major source of tension for me apart from the tension of the story. Additionally, I found the heroine to be highly interesting but kept mysterious enough that I was left wanting to know more, more, more about her. I suspect we will in coming books in the series.
Finally, I want to add that I’ve seen what I believe are some unfair comparisons to The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo. I’ve read both. Granted there are some commonalities but I believe they’re superficial. I enjoyed The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo but must say it was very slooooowww in getting to the point where the tension really started. I liked the story but I couldn’t put the The Informationist down once I started. I was able to put down the Dragon Tattoo many times until about two thirds of the way through when the story finally began to move quickly. Personally, I’m at a loss for that book’s level of success but to each his own, I suppose.
I’m looking forward to the next book in this three-book series with eager anticipation. I must say that I was in a bit of a fiction-reading lull for some months but this book has fueled my fire and I’ve been on a hot reading streak since. Perhaps to fill the emptiness until the 2nd book in this series arrives…?
May 23, 2012
Kismet, from the Turkish qisma, or fate. I buy too many books to keep track of where they come from or how I heard about them or even what attracted me to them. This book was sitting there after I’d read my Christmas stack and before I made another book run. I picked it up and was surprised to learn that she was an apocalyptic cult survivor. Hey, me too! Kinda. My childhood cult was a bunch of wacky architects who worship Frank Lloyd Wright. Better deal? Maybe. Anyway, I figured, OK definitely gotta read this one. Kismet.
Vanessa Michael Munroe is the Informationist. I’m a bit thick. I never got the ‘Michael’ part despite it being explained. It never really came into play and could easily have been left out. The Informationist part was also explained and also could have been left out. What would remain is a compelling central character: Munroe, an ass-kicking heroine first class. The author has given her an appropriately tragic background from which she freed herself. The background also gives us some richly drawn characters who have become loyal friends and aides in times of need.
Vanessa/Michael is asked to find the missing daughter of a wealthy businessman. She gets a babysitter in the form of Miles Bradford. She tolerates the well intentioned lug, while we readers suspect him of treachery. They tangle with authorities, nasty people, impossible situations, spies following them, etc. etc. This may sound like a typical mystery/thriller, but there are two things that separate it: 1) Excellent writing. Taylor Stevens has a literary bend in her somewhere that gives us great some great scenery. Descriptive passages are rarely found in thrillers because they slow down the action. She gets into and out of several passages with the right balance. Readers have not lost their feel for the story and are impressed by the phrasing. Nice. 2) Odd pacing & direction. Ascribing this to a debut author, it often is a deal-killer for a recommendation. In this case, it actually helps the story by keeping it unpredictable. Annoying to some, but I’ll take unpredictable any day.
What we readers love about mystery-thrillers is the guessing game. Whodunnit? If we call the bad-guy correctly, but are only 60% sure by the time we get to the author’s revealing, we gloat and beat our chests (provided we are alone). My wife and I are somewhat competitive about it, writing down page numbers and names and gloating over the other for days. Erasures are not allowed (anymore). I got to gloat for this one. I saw it very early due to me knowledge of cult survivors. I believe everyone else in the world will be in my wife’s camp, thrilled to the bitter end.
Definitely put this one in your “must read” pile. And put the author on your “keep an eye out for her” list.
Vanessa Michael Munroe is the Informationist. I’m a bit thick. I never got the ‘Michael’ part despite it being explained. It never really came into play and could easily have been left out. The Informationist part was also explained and also could have been left out. What would remain is a compelling central character: Munroe, an ass-kicking heroine first class. The author has given her an appropriately tragic background from which she freed herself. The background also gives us some richly drawn characters who have become loyal friends and aides in times of need.
Vanessa/Michael is asked to find the missing daughter of a wealthy businessman. She gets a babysitter in the form of Miles Bradford. She tolerates the well intentioned lug, while we readers suspect him of treachery. They tangle with authorities, nasty people, impossible situations, spies following them, etc. etc. This may sound like a typical mystery/thriller, but there are two things that separate it: 1) Excellent writing. Taylor Stevens has a literary bend in her somewhere that gives us great some great scenery. Descriptive passages are rarely found in thrillers because they slow down the action. She gets into and out of several passages with the right balance. Readers have not lost their feel for the story and are impressed by the phrasing. Nice. 2) Odd pacing & direction. Ascribing this to a debut author, it often is a deal-killer for a recommendation. In this case, it actually helps the story by keeping it unpredictable. Annoying to some, but I’ll take unpredictable any day.
What we readers love about mystery-thrillers is the guessing game. Whodunnit? If we call the bad-guy correctly, but are only 60% sure by the time we get to the author’s revealing, we gloat and beat our chests (provided we are alone). My wife and I are somewhat competitive about it, writing down page numbers and names and gloating over the other for days. Erasures are not allowed (anymore). I got to gloat for this one. I saw it very early due to me knowledge of cult survivors. I believe everyone else in the world will be in my wife’s camp, thrilled to the bitter end.
Definitely put this one in your “must read” pile. And put the author on your “keep an eye out for her” list.
November 21, 2011
When Taylor Stevens' debut novel The Infomationist came out last year, I was aware of the buzz, but never got around to picking it up. Well, this New York Times bestseller is newly released in trade paperback, so I picked it up - and had a hard time putting it down. Wow - what a non stop thriller!
Vanessa Michael Munroe grew up in Africa, rebelling against the upbringing her missionary parents envisioned for her. Instead she made her own way, creating her own niche as an 'informationist'. Her 'unique' set of skills make her sought after by corporations and private clients. But her latest client is looking for more than information. He wants Vanessa to look for his stepdaughter, who vanished four years ago while travelling through Africa. Although it's not really her kind of case, he's offering a lot of money, so she says yes.
What made it hard to put down? I loved the character. Her past is alluded to in the beginning and only really fleshed out as the book progresses. I wanted to know more about her. It was fantastic to have such a kick a** female protagonist, one who can hold her own in almost any situation. Over the top? Maybe - but a delicious piece of escapist reading.
What I also enjoyed was having a setting outside of North America. I was initially surprised by Stevens' choice until I learned a bit more about the author herself. She has lived in many of the countries she writes about and more. Stevens was born into the infamous Children of God cult and went where she was sent until she escaped when she was 28. Much of the Moore's emotions and conflicts seem to be pulled from Stevens' reality. What makes The Informationist even more impressive is that Stevens has a formal education level of grade six.
When reading The Informationist, I started to picture Vanessa Michael Moore as Angelina Jolie. If you enjoyed Jolie in the roles she played in Tomb Raider and Salt , you would really enjoy this character. Or if you're looking for a female Jack Reacher character. The next book in this series The Innocent is due out Dec 27th. Stevens will be drawing on her own past again - Vanessa is on the hunt for a child being hidden by a cult. This reader will be definitely picking it up! Read an excerpt of The Informationist.
Vanessa Michael Munroe grew up in Africa, rebelling against the upbringing her missionary parents envisioned for her. Instead she made her own way, creating her own niche as an 'informationist'. Her 'unique' set of skills make her sought after by corporations and private clients. But her latest client is looking for more than information. He wants Vanessa to look for his stepdaughter, who vanished four years ago while travelling through Africa. Although it's not really her kind of case, he's offering a lot of money, so she says yes.
What made it hard to put down? I loved the character. Her past is alluded to in the beginning and only really fleshed out as the book progresses. I wanted to know more about her. It was fantastic to have such a kick a** female protagonist, one who can hold her own in almost any situation. Over the top? Maybe - but a delicious piece of escapist reading.
What I also enjoyed was having a setting outside of North America. I was initially surprised by Stevens' choice until I learned a bit more about the author herself. She has lived in many of the countries she writes about and more. Stevens was born into the infamous Children of God cult and went where she was sent until she escaped when she was 28. Much of the Moore's emotions and conflicts seem to be pulled from Stevens' reality. What makes The Informationist even more impressive is that Stevens has a formal education level of grade six.
When reading The Informationist, I started to picture Vanessa Michael Moore as Angelina Jolie. If you enjoyed Jolie in the roles she played in Tomb Raider and Salt , you would really enjoy this character. Or if you're looking for a female Jack Reacher character. The next book in this series The Innocent is due out Dec 27th. Stevens will be drawing on her own past again - Vanessa is on the hunt for a child being hidden by a cult. This reader will be definitely picking it up! Read an excerpt of The Informationist.
February 19, 2011
Every reader who craves action and adventure will love this book. It is nonstop from cover to cover. The heroine, Vanessa, who goes by as many names as she has personae, is a kick-ass force of nature. She can be as fierce and deadly as a black mamba snake or as elegant and smooth as a high paid call girl on the make. She is multilingual, highly intelligent and lethal. Her preferred job is collecting highly sensitive, often obscure, yet very valuable information, which she sells to high paying clients around the world. She receives an unusual request to attempt to find an industrialist's daughter who has been missing in Africa for four years. All attempts to find her so far have come up short. The girl's father believes Vanessa is his last hope to find his daughter. Vanessa hasn't been back to her homeland of central Africa for years because of the memories of the people, alive and dead, which she left there long ago. Those memories will revive in her the rage and darkness which have been her hell and her salvation through numerous life threatening forays. Although preferring to work alone, her employer saddles her with a companion, who while highly skilled in his own right, is hardly a match for Vanessa's savage world. All the juju that she can call up will be needed to fight her enemies both past and present as she cuts her way deeper and deeper into the mystery that is awaiting in Africa. This book provided for review by the well read folks of Crown Publishers.
March 20, 2011
I enjoyed this book at first, and the problems I had might not bother other readers at all. I found the setting and characters compelling for the first half. But it slows down 2/3 of the way through, and it was at that point when the writing finally got to me. To be honest, I don't often judge thrillers based on the writing itself. I'm not looking for flowery prose or beautiful descriptions. I just want to know what's happening and who the characters are. But there were parts of the book where the writing was just wrong. Not clunky, or awkward, but just nonsensical. Still, even that is usually okay in a thriller. You can get a sense of what they mean, and move on. What really killed the book for me were the attempts to have every chapter end on a "deep" note. I found I was rolling my eyes every other chapter. It just didn't match the rest of the book. And when the hard-ass heroine ended a chapter talking about sex as opening her soul, well, it was one eye-roll too many.
But like I said, the action is good, and the African setting was interesting. If you enjoyed the setting here, you should check out the graphic novel series "Unknown Soldier" by Joshua Dysart. The Unknown Soldier series is set during the Lord's Resistance Army insurgency of Uganda in 2002 and is amazing.
But like I said, the action is good, and the African setting was interesting. If you enjoyed the setting here, you should check out the graphic novel series "Unknown Soldier" by Joshua Dysart. The Unknown Soldier series is set during the Lord's Resistance Army insurgency of Uganda in 2002 and is amazing.
November 24, 2010
It can be hard to know where to turn after the final pages of the Stieg Larsson trilogy. I say leave chilly Scandinavia behind and embrace the oppressive African heat presented in The Informationist. Stevens’ protagonist, Vanessa Munroe, incorporates the physical acuity of Jason Bourne with the analytical mind and deceptively petite frame of Lisbeth Salander. Who could ask for more in a heart pounding thriller?
May 2, 2011
Okay, it was a real page-turner, and it kept me entertained in fine style from Santa Rosa to Denver. And, it depicted darkest Africa in an intense way that leads me to have no desire to set foot in the more dangerous countries. But other than that, not that great.
The complaint I have is the protagonist is too much super-hero. I'm getting a little tired of this already - Joe Pike (Robert Crais), Jack Reacher (Lee Child), John Rain (Barry Eisler), do they think everybody's got to be unrealistically talented and bulletproof for us to want to read a story ... give me somebody semi-realistic and a good plot instead (e.g. Lincoln Lawyer). I mean, take our heroine here: androgynous enough to pass as a man or woman (i.e. disguise expert); can seduce any guy she wants to; speaks something like 22 languages; martial arts and jungle guerilla warfare expert; expert and highly-paid researcher, ace heist/crime planner; gets shot, swims to shore, hides out in the jungle overnight, and hitch-hikes into town. And her body doesn't go into shock. Oh - mentally unstable, but able to keep a lid on it when the stress is on. And that last is maybe the author's attempt to balance out her super-hero tendencies, along with a history of rape (victim) and a lack of close friends, but this effort seems obvious and as false as the god-like side of her.
The complaint I have is the protagonist is too much super-hero. I'm getting a little tired of this already - Joe Pike (Robert Crais), Jack Reacher (Lee Child), John Rain (Barry Eisler), do they think everybody's got to be unrealistically talented and bulletproof for us to want to read a story ... give me somebody semi-realistic and a good plot instead (e.g. Lincoln Lawyer). I mean, take our heroine here: androgynous enough to pass as a man or woman (i.e. disguise expert); can seduce any guy she wants to; speaks something like 22 languages; martial arts and jungle guerilla warfare expert; expert and highly-paid researcher, ace heist/crime planner; gets shot, swims to shore, hides out in the jungle overnight, and hitch-hikes into town. And her body doesn't go into shock. Oh - mentally unstable, but able to keep a lid on it when the stress is on. And that last is maybe the author's attempt to balance out her super-hero tendencies, along with a history of rape (victim) and a lack of close friends, but this effort seems obvious and as false as the god-like side of her.
July 22, 2019
Tare încântată sunt de faptul că am descoperit o nouă serie, unde protagonista este o femeie bad ass. Ce-mi plac cărțile astea. Stiuuu, ca sunt ficțiune, dar nu ma pot abtine sa nu ma lipesc de carte precum timbrul de scrisoare. Femeia cameleon este Vannessa Monroe sau Michael, sau Essa sau oricum vrea ea sa se numească pentru ca poate, da?
Nu serios acum, lăsând orice gluma la o parte spun ca povestea este una scrisa destul de binisor, antrenanta si plina de suspans.
Vanessa este angajată de un mahar al petrolului, sa caute o tânără dispărută in Africa... Si de aici... o întreagă încrengătură de situații care mai de care mai periculoase si dure, dar din care personajul principal scapa aproape de fiecare dată.
Două lucruri deranjante (pt mine, nu stiu pt altii) : primul a fost faptul că numele personajelor era asemănător si astfel tot timpul ii încurcam pe Kate cu Miles. Mi ar fi placut sa le foloseasca mai mult prenumele. Ar fi fost mai usor; si al doilea este faptul că povestea de viata a Vanesei, deși i a provocat traume, a fost narata usor superficial... dar am inteles ca nu asta era acțiunea principală asa ca am trecut peste.
Abia astept sa citesc si următoarea carte din serie. Sper sa fie la fel de drăguță. 4 * meritate, zic eu.
Nu serios acum, lăsând orice gluma la o parte spun ca povestea este una scrisa destul de binisor, antrenanta si plina de suspans.
Vanessa este angajată de un mahar al petrolului, sa caute o tânără dispărută in Africa... Si de aici... o întreagă încrengătură de situații care mai de care mai periculoase si dure, dar din care personajul principal scapa aproape de fiecare dată.
Două lucruri deranjante (pt mine, nu stiu pt altii) : primul a fost faptul că numele personajelor era asemănător si astfel tot timpul ii încurcam pe Kate cu Miles. Mi ar fi placut sa le foloseasca mai mult prenumele. Ar fi fost mai usor; si al doilea este faptul că povestea de viata a Vanesei, deși i a provocat traume, a fost narata usor superficial... dar am inteles ca nu asta era acțiunea principală asa ca am trecut peste.
Abia astept sa citesc si următoarea carte din serie. Sper sa fie la fel de drăguță. 4 * meritate, zic eu.
December 14, 2011
The Informationist: the title grabs me like Noah Wylie's The Librarian, promising adventures of a someone like me. Nothing could be further from the truth of Michael (Vanessa, Essa) Munroe. She's the epitome of an informationist, researching a region or country, boots on the ground, sniffing out unwritten data, a super observer and synthesizer. A young girl who went missing while a tourist in Africa lures Munroe from usual assignments to a hunt for information on a trail, four years cold.
This is Taylor Stevens' first published book, although clearly not her first writing. I could quibble with the quick changes in her behavior during the hunt, but I'd rather tell you how quickly you will be pulled into her adventure, how much you will learn about the darker sides of central Africa, and how surprised you will likely be as Munroe unravels the plot.
I bought this in Book People, downtown Austin on recommendation of staff. Stevens lives in Texas now, but has traveled the world as part of a cult she was born into. Maybe some day she'll write about herself. Until them, I'll watch for the next Vanessa Munroe adventure.
This is Taylor Stevens' first published book, although clearly not her first writing. I could quibble with the quick changes in her behavior during the hunt, but I'd rather tell you how quickly you will be pulled into her adventure, how much you will learn about the darker sides of central Africa, and how surprised you will likely be as Munroe unravels the plot.
I bought this in Book People, downtown Austin on recommendation of staff. Stevens lives in Texas now, but has traveled the world as part of a cult she was born into. Maybe some day she'll write about herself. Until them, I'll watch for the next Vanessa Munroe adventure.
April 24, 2012
I gave this book 4 stars because I am quite intrigued by Vanessa/Michael's character. She is seriously screwed up but somehow manages to live with herself...some of the time.
There have been comparisons made to Lisbeth Salander but having read all of Lisbeth's books and only the first book about Michael, I would venture the following early assessment:
I do believe that these two characters are very different. Their similarities are their childhoods were somewhat messed up. However, I find Lisbeth more damaged of the two, maybe because her childhood was more traumatic at a younger age. I also find her to be at the same time more controlled...she holds her silence and her actions until she is ready to act.
On the other hand, Michael had more of a say in her own childhood and chose to become a wild child. True, her teens were somewhat traumatic as well but in a very different way than Lisbeth's. Michael was forced to fight to survive. Lisbeth didn't have a chance to fight back until later. Michael now has to work at holding her control and isn't always successful.
Hess, when you read this I would love to discuss these characters with you.
There have been comparisons made to Lisbeth Salander but having read all of Lisbeth's books and only the first book about Michael, I would venture the following early assessment:
I do believe that these two characters are very different. Their similarities are their childhoods were somewhat messed up. However, I find Lisbeth more damaged of the two, maybe because her childhood was more traumatic at a younger age. I also find her to be at the same time more controlled...she holds her silence and her actions until she is ready to act.
On the other hand, Michael had more of a say in her own childhood and chose to become a wild child. True, her teens were somewhat traumatic as well but in a very different way than Lisbeth's. Michael was forced to fight to survive. Lisbeth didn't have a chance to fight back until later. Michael now has to work at holding her control and isn't always successful.
Hess, when you read this I would love to discuss these characters with you.
May 28, 2015
A Informacionista, Vanessa Munroe, é contratada como último recurso para encontrar a filha de um bilionário , desaparecida em África sob condições misteriosas. Depressa se torna óbvio que alguém está disposto a tudo para sabotar o trabalho de Vanessa, colocando em risco a sua vida … e quanto mais investiga, mais indícios surgem de que há muito mais nesta história do que lhe foi dito inicialmente.
Cheio de acção, os acontecimentos decorrem em locais do Globo muito provavelmente desconhecidos para o leitor, locais onde as coisas acontecem de forma perigosamente diferente e à margem da lei, tornando a leitura exótica e ainda mais intrigante. A protagonista é sem dúvida uma enorme mais-valia para este livro; uma mulher inteligente e arrojada, marcada, no entanto, por um passado conturbado que se reflecte na sua personalidade e escolhas.
Com uma heroína incomum, cenários inusitados e uma história em constante mudança, o livro adquire um rumo imprevisível e intrigante - não me surpreende nada que esteja em processo de adaptação em filme.
Cheio de acção, os acontecimentos decorrem em locais do Globo muito provavelmente desconhecidos para o leitor, locais onde as coisas acontecem de forma perigosamente diferente e à margem da lei, tornando a leitura exótica e ainda mais intrigante. A protagonista é sem dúvida uma enorme mais-valia para este livro; uma mulher inteligente e arrojada, marcada, no entanto, por um passado conturbado que se reflecte na sua personalidade e escolhas.
Com uma heroína incomum, cenários inusitados e uma história em constante mudança, o livro adquire um rumo imprevisível e intrigante - não me surpreende nada que esteja em processo de adaptação em filme.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,600 reviews