Finished
The Hunchback of Notre Dame. It was very well-written, and the dramatic parts were enjoyable, but the second half was just tragedy porn. I also found it increasingly difficult to sympathise with Esmeralda, and by the end I almost did not care if she got hanged. I know she's only 14, but she doesn't need to be that colossal a clothhead. Apparently Victor Hugo's works are known for being depressing and miserable, I didn't know this before, I don't think I'll read any of his books again, though I did enjoy this one (except for the ending).
Also finished
Did She Fall? by Thorne Smith. The first chapter is just fraught with foreshadowing. The narrator no less than a dozen times tells us that Emily Jane is to die, and we're given access to the private thoughts of every single person who wants to see her dead. I found it overbearing at first, so I dropped the book. Later my curiosity got the better of me and I picked it up again to see how would the story develop. I am glad I did.
Unlike most detective stories, the reader is actually shown the scene of the victim's death. There seems to be no mystery about it. But the detective's reluctant but relentless journey towards discovering the solution is nevertheless engrossing.
The book does have its weak parts. Most of the characters sound exactly like each other, even though they're supposed to have different character traits. Even Aunt Matty sounds exactly like one of the Bright Young Things, even though she's a generation older. Also very oddly two characters – Aunt Matty and Sue – are barely focused on, despite being affected very profoundly by the murder. Every other character's movements and/or thoughts are dwelled upon except these two (and except for a shady friend of the victim, but he doesn't count). What are they thinking? How does Aunt Matty feel about one of her nephew's fiancée getting killed on the night of the announcement and her other nephew being suspected of her murder? How does Sue feel about her husband getting all jumpy and paranoid, and also being one of the suspects in the case? We're never told. They have the occasional line or two. In one part Sue makes an uncharacteristically long speech, and it seems we may get to see more of her, have her character fleshed out. We never do.
Also a non-fatal stabbing occurs in the first few chapters. Everyone just brushes it off? One of the nephews gets hold of Aunt Matty, informs her other nephew getting stabbed, and tells her to play along with the story that she – Aunt Matty – stabbed him (accidentally, of course). Aunt Matty is completely unfazed, both by the news of her nephew's stabbing, and by the ridiculous story, and even cracks a joke or two. (Also not to give away a spoiler, but this scene makes no sense in light of later events in the book and is never explained).
Another grating gag were the interactions between the prime suspect and the detective. Now the detective, Scott Munson, is friends with Dan – with everyone, in fact, except for Emily Jane and her pal. So Munson has the detestable duty of collecting evidence against his chum and making a case against him. They don't stop being more or less friendly with each other, with a latent tension beneath the surface, but they just never stop behaving in this psuedo-chummy manner, and it wears off pretty quickly.
There is also one very odd scene that is simply incredible. Munson's temporary assistants – a slapstick comedy duo made up of the two of the dumbest cops in America – are ordered to prevent reporters from approaching the house and messing with the investigation. They end up shooting in the general direction of a preacher to force him to leave the premises. Munson then remembers that Aunt Matty was expecting him to appear. Like this:
“Did this man happen to mention any name?” he asked.
“Sure,” said Red promptly. “He called himself the Reverend Williams. Horace Williams in full.”
Horace seemed to strike some responsive chord in both of the officers, for at the very mention of the name they started in laughing, and continued for some time with ever-increasing volume.
The Rev. Mr. Horace Williams. That was the name of the particular man of God Aunt Matty had been hoping would call. Munson remembered it distinctly. She had been expecting him to tell her just what the world was coming to, and now, no doubt, the Rev. Mr. Williams was wondering about that himself.
So what's so incredible? Just this: the Rev. Mr. Williams had never been mentioned before. There is no scene in which Aunt Matty talks about expecting a preacher to visit her. And even more incredibly, once he is chased away, he is never seen nor ever referred to again. His intrusion has no effect on the plot either.
But despite all that I still rated it a 4/5 (rounding off 3.5). The witty banter may get stale at times, but it certainly is witty. The contrast between the moody and tortured detective and his feckless assistants is a great touch. The drama is great, if rather overplayed. All in all was a very enjoyable book. And I rate books based on their enjoyability. That is the ultimate test of a good book.