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Hardcover
Format: Bargain Price
From the author of A DENSITY OF SOULS comes an electrifying new novel of murder and menace set on a snowy university campus. When a professor's wife is found drowned in an icy river, rumours of murder are rife within the walls of Atherton University. But then an older mystery emerges from the shadows as people recall the discovery of a corpse in a frozen creek some twenty years earlier and wonder whether the two might possibly be connected. Three friends find themselves snared in a web of lies surrounding the murders: for each of them college had promised a bright future and a way to disconnect from a dark, haunted past, but - as winter sets in - their secret histories threaten to reveal themselves in nightmarish fashion. Snowbound on the university campus, Kathryn, Randall and Jesse are the unwitting captives of a malevolent force that drives them relentlessly toward the 'snow garden' of the title - a place of horrors that is all too real...and all too near. Christopher Rice has written an unforgettable and powerful thriller that probes the terrible weight of the past on the present and the frighteningly corrosive nature of secrets. A novel not to be missed...
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| Great read! |
| Customer Rating: 4 out of 5 |
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Love Christopher Rice books and wish he would write another. All of his books are worth reading.
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| first book, great, second a flop! |
| Customer Rating: 1 out of 5 |
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This authors first book was phenominal! Absolutely heartbreaking and then redeeming. It seemed to be almost autobiographical. This second book, far below the quality of the first. Really had to imagine it was written by the same author. The characters werent developed well and by the end so many red herrings and unnecessary plot twists were used it was ridiculous. Leaving me with thinking the book was as believable as an old Gilligan's Island rerun. This book keeps me from really being interested in any of his current work. I will re-read the first!
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| A writer on his way... |
| Customer Rating: 3 out of 5 |
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I just finished The Snow Garden and like Density of Souls, I found it interesting but both novels were confusing in many places and a lot of reasons "why" events were happening were never brought to light. We needed to know more about Jesse, whom I feel stole the show. Although some of the plots get twisted up within themselves, I believe that Christopher is on his way to becoming a good writer. He's young and just getting started - he will grow into his stories.
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| Miles ahead of his debut, Chris still has a few bugs to work out... |
| Customer Rating: 3 out of 5 |
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I will admit I'm a little torn here. I liked this book a lot more before I read the horrendous `A Density of Souls' and that experience alone tarnished my view of Christopher Rice in general. That said, `The Snow Garden' is a much better book than his debut, but it still falls into some of the same pitfalls, it just has a few extra redeeming qualities this time around. Again, Rice was able to paint a very eerily detailed picture for the reader, something he also did in `A Density of Souls'. A characters surroundings and atmosphere is the first key to grabbing the attention of the reader and so in that regard this novel excels.
The characters in this novel are also more intriguing and all around more entertaining than those in `A Density of Souls' but once again Christopher falls into stereotypes, the same stereotypes that made his previous work annoying. He also tends to get off subject too much, lacing every characters background with so much tragedy and so many dark secrets that they come off, bluntly put, unreal. I mean, one tragic story is enough...there's no way everyone in that school has suffered their share of trauma. That aside, these sub-plots and or flashbacks still aren't enough to make me despise this book. They are no where near as off-putting as those found in `A Density of Souls'.
The plot here is better crafted as well. Yes, as some have mentioned, it gets a little chaotic, and there were times when I chuckled at the amateurish tendencies Christopher gives some of his characters (I couldn't help but think `Hardy Boys' when Tim and Randall where in the storage locker...or laugh a little to myself at Randall's sudden surge of manliness as he stands up to Eric...I mean where did that come from). That aside, the main storyline involving murder, betrayal, sex and adultery fit a little nicer this time around. Despite all the intertwining sub-plots and character development points Christopher was able to meld them all together in at least a decent and satisfying way.
So, in a nutshell, this is the basic synopsis of the novel. Randall is our main character. He's a gay student who has been carrying on an affair with his married Art Professor Eric behind everyone's back, including his best friend Kathryn. When Eric's wife dies in a horrific car accident that may or may not have been murder Eric quickly finds himself the main suspect, even in the eyes of his beloved Randall. As Randall tries to get to the bottom of things himself, determining whether or not Eric is a cold hearted killer, we are introduced to a cast of characters that in ways add and in others take away from the grit of the novel.
One of the biggest issues I have with this novel was its lack of depth given to the most interesting character, Jesse, Randall's roommate. Jesse stole the entire show with his psychotic ways of using sex and need to destroy everything and everyone he touched, and his sheer magnetism that obviously affected everyone around him also drew me further into the novel only to have any real explanations of his intentions and purpose completely disregarded and glossed over. He was far more interesting than Randall, Kathryn, Tim and maybe even Eric (although I liked his character quite a bit) and deserved to be fully explored.
As many have also mentioned, the editing of this novel is so bad it's embarrassing. There were plenty of times it got so bad I was confused and had to reread sentences before realizing it was the authors mistake and not my eyes. But still, it's not enough for me to really truly hate this novel, for as I mentioned, I actually like it.
And so here we come to the most redeeming quality to book possesses and most likely the main reason why I will recommend and stand by it...and that is the impressive and completely blindsiding ending that just ransacked me in such a good way. When we finally uncover the dark secrets that matter...granted some of them really don't, but at least the dark revelation behind Eric's closeted homosexuality and his wife's untimely death (that whole orgy thing was just a fantastic inclusion)...we are brought to this otherworldly place that makes up for the grammar, the stammering and the overexposure of one too many characters (and the underexposure of the most important).
At times I get the feeling that maybe Christopher somewhat made things up as he went along, starting from chapter one and then every-once-in-a-while just going "I think this character should do this" or "maybe he should have undergone this" and just went with it. That would at least explain why some plot points are never expounded upon and some are over analyzed. He's lucky that it fits together better than his mess of a debut (have you noticed I truly despise `A Density of Souls' yet?) and he's extra lucky that the last third of this book is so engrossing. I recommend giving it a read through for it really is decent in most respects, just don't expect a masterpiece. Oh yeah, and is it just me or is the cover art just brilliant...makes you want to, no need to read this book! Good move.
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| Great Potential but the same problems abound |
| Customer Rating: 3 out of 5 |
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Over the years I've read three of Christopher Rice's novels - all of which have a similar theme - the trials & tribulations of young folks (largely gay) with deep dark secrets. The same problems that plagued the first and second novel also are present in this one:
(1) Too many charaters - Yes, after a few 100 pages they begin to come into focus but the avalanche of names and relationships can cause problems
(2) Too many subplots - ALthough he somewhat manages to tie them together the result is unsatisfactory. Every single character does not need a deeply involved past with numerous branches leading to yet more subterranean veins of action.
(3) Too autobiographical - Sure, all novels are in a sense about the author but this is the third coming of age story of a young gay guy with sordid secrets.
The author has wonderful insights, an almost poetic way with the English language and terrific character development. In THE SNOW GARDEN there is just too much conflicting action between all the characters - a is mad at b who is friends with c who likes d who dated a but wants to date b... One other criticism - there are just too many gay folks for a realistic setting. It seems every other student at this college was/is/wants to be gay. Plus, as in the other novels, the straight dude finally falls for the hero - a not so well-disguised Rice. In this case, Jesse almost stole the show with his sociopathic and intensely creepy agenda of using sex to psychologically destroy a person.
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