Dirt (Stone Barrington) by Stuart Woods


Man oh man! Is this the same guy that wrote "Chiefs"?


Originally published in 1996.

I ask the question because Chiefs was an absolutely fantastic novel. One of my favorites. This story is easy to read, quick-moving and entertaining but, for me, ultimately it is disappointing because I know that he could do sooooooo much better. If you've never read Stuart Woods, read Chiefs and maybe you'd be better off just walking away.

So, why am I irritated? The characters are two-dimensional cutouts of what we might suspect the rich and the famous are really like. They reminded me of unpleasant parodies of the Howells from Gilligan's Island. Woods can do so much more.

To be fair, I guess I'm really irritated to see a man who showed so much early promise resort to being a hack writer, pounding out the same story time after time. I tolerate, in fact, I revel in it when it comes to Robert B. Parker. But in the case of Stuart Woods - what an incredible waste of writing talent!

I rate this book 3 stars out of 5.

This book can be found on Amazon.com here: Dirt by Stuart Woods.

Reviewed on October 14, 2004.

Comments

Popular posts over the last 30 days

BRIAN EPSTEIN: A LIFE from BEGINNING to END (kindle) by Hourly History

VICKSBURG, 1863 by Winston Groom

JOHN DENVER: A LIFE from BEGINNING to END (kindle) by Hourly History

BEAT the REAPER (audiobook) by Josh Bazell

SLAUGHTERHOUSE-FIVE: THE GRAPHIC NOVEL by Kurt Vonnegut and Ryan North.

THE BIG EMPTY (Elvis Cole/Joe Pike #20) (audiobook) by Robert Crais

NPR AMERICAN CHRONICLES: WORLD WAR I (audiobook) by NPR

The Vision of the Anointed: Self-Congratulation as a Basis for Social Policy by Thomas Sowell

Lights Out: Islam, Free Speech and the Twilight of the West by Mark Steyn

Darwin's Plantation: Evolution's Racist Roots by Ken Ham and A. Charles Ware