Review by Carsh_Lohal -- The Vanishing Chemist
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Carsh_Lohal
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Review by Carsh_Lohal -- The Vanishing Chemist
[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Vanishing Chemist" by Peter Alpert.]
2 out of 4 stars
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The Vanishing Chemist by Peter Alpert is the almost true story of Maddy, an unlikable and smarmy scientist whom employs Mark the lawyer to attempt to save him from his poorly thought out business ventures when they inevitably go wrong. Mark is difficult to relate to as he attempts to keep Maddy out of trouble and somewhat inexplicably follows him around on his adventures.
I managed to read this book in a day, and thankfully it was a very easy read. Otherwise I would likely have abandoned it after getting about a quarter way through and realizing that the story doesn't really pick up at all. Despite being a suspense novel, it is rather predictable. Maddy makes a poor decision, Mark helps him out of it, and this process repeats numerous times while getting more and more dramatic in scale. Maddy doesn’t seem to have much of an understanding of business, and has difficulty envisioning the possible outcomes of his actions. He also seems to struggle to interpret other people's words and behaviors, and these misinterpretations lead to him struggling to understand when things go so wrong. Ever the optimist, Maddy continues on to what he views as bigger and better opportunities, while in reality his situation becomes increasingly dire.
The author has stated that the book is based on a true story, with only names and locations changed. This did make me a little sad, knowing that Maddy, with all of his education and knowledge, made so many mistakes over and over again without seeming to learn any sort of lesson through it all. To Mark’s credit, he maintains the patience of a saint and continues to guide Maddy in what he believes to be his best interest (of course, Mark is usually spot on). Mark manages to be kind and honest at the same time, a skill that I imagine would be a struggle when working with a guy like Maddy. Its likely that many lawyers would have thrown their hands in the air and thrown Maddy out the door after the first few events, however Mark manages to stay loyal and level headed throughout.
The author is very obviously a lawyer. This book reads like a carefully crafted statement, as if Alpert was asked to write out the series of events for a police investigation. It was dry and generally humorless, with limited descriptions, and definitely no flourish or poetry about the writing. I had difficulty envisioning the characters and locations, and Maddy’s “Cheshire cat” smile is commented on so frequently that it was all I could picture on his face by the end. Alpert did manage to include the word “scuttlebutt” in all seriousness not once, but twice. I think it was the only time he managed to make me laugh, although I’m sure that wasn’t the intention. Occasionally he uses words or phrases where its difficulty to ascertain if he was being sarcastic or not. For example, “the receptionist had just finished making the coffee, one of her most important job functions, so it was very hot.” I do hope that this was sarcasm, otherwise Alpert really should have a chat with his secretary and apologize for viewing her as nothing more than a low quality barista.
The writing was occasionally repetitive; the author sums up and re-words his previous explanations and thoughts regularly through the book. Although this type of regular summary can be helpful for clarifying things during a discussion in real life, it can be irritating when reading a novel. If readers are taking the book one chapter at a time or stepping away from it for a while, then the reminders of what had occurred may be helpful.
The editing was a redeeming quality with only one obvious error, “The wild good chase had come to an end”. The pace of the story was generally consistent and had a defined climax, along with tying up any loose ends nicely in the last couple chapters. There were a few lessons to be learned that the author provides a summary for towards the end. I rate this book as a 2 out of 4. At one point during a discussion, Mark thinks that Maddy “Wanted to be able to impress me with what I assumed would be a long winded explanation about a subject that was foreign to me”. I found this statement amusing, purely because it perfectly describes the entirety of this book. It is indeed a long winded explanation about how a lawyer does his job, along with a reminder that sometimes you can't save people from themselves. I presume that there are individuals out there who are interested enough in the behind the scenes of a law office to find the book a good read.
******
The Vanishing Chemist
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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2 out of 4 stars
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The Vanishing Chemist by Peter Alpert is the almost true story of Maddy, an unlikable and smarmy scientist whom employs Mark the lawyer to attempt to save him from his poorly thought out business ventures when they inevitably go wrong. Mark is difficult to relate to as he attempts to keep Maddy out of trouble and somewhat inexplicably follows him around on his adventures.
I managed to read this book in a day, and thankfully it was a very easy read. Otherwise I would likely have abandoned it after getting about a quarter way through and realizing that the story doesn't really pick up at all. Despite being a suspense novel, it is rather predictable. Maddy makes a poor decision, Mark helps him out of it, and this process repeats numerous times while getting more and more dramatic in scale. Maddy doesn’t seem to have much of an understanding of business, and has difficulty envisioning the possible outcomes of his actions. He also seems to struggle to interpret other people's words and behaviors, and these misinterpretations lead to him struggling to understand when things go so wrong. Ever the optimist, Maddy continues on to what he views as bigger and better opportunities, while in reality his situation becomes increasingly dire.
The author has stated that the book is based on a true story, with only names and locations changed. This did make me a little sad, knowing that Maddy, with all of his education and knowledge, made so many mistakes over and over again without seeming to learn any sort of lesson through it all. To Mark’s credit, he maintains the patience of a saint and continues to guide Maddy in what he believes to be his best interest (of course, Mark is usually spot on). Mark manages to be kind and honest at the same time, a skill that I imagine would be a struggle when working with a guy like Maddy. Its likely that many lawyers would have thrown their hands in the air and thrown Maddy out the door after the first few events, however Mark manages to stay loyal and level headed throughout.
The author is very obviously a lawyer. This book reads like a carefully crafted statement, as if Alpert was asked to write out the series of events for a police investigation. It was dry and generally humorless, with limited descriptions, and definitely no flourish or poetry about the writing. I had difficulty envisioning the characters and locations, and Maddy’s “Cheshire cat” smile is commented on so frequently that it was all I could picture on his face by the end. Alpert did manage to include the word “scuttlebutt” in all seriousness not once, but twice. I think it was the only time he managed to make me laugh, although I’m sure that wasn’t the intention. Occasionally he uses words or phrases where its difficulty to ascertain if he was being sarcastic or not. For example, “the receptionist had just finished making the coffee, one of her most important job functions, so it was very hot.” I do hope that this was sarcasm, otherwise Alpert really should have a chat with his secretary and apologize for viewing her as nothing more than a low quality barista.
The writing was occasionally repetitive; the author sums up and re-words his previous explanations and thoughts regularly through the book. Although this type of regular summary can be helpful for clarifying things during a discussion in real life, it can be irritating when reading a novel. If readers are taking the book one chapter at a time or stepping away from it for a while, then the reminders of what had occurred may be helpful.
The editing was a redeeming quality with only one obvious error, “The wild good chase had come to an end”. The pace of the story was generally consistent and had a defined climax, along with tying up any loose ends nicely in the last couple chapters. There were a few lessons to be learned that the author provides a summary for towards the end. I rate this book as a 2 out of 4. At one point during a discussion, Mark thinks that Maddy “Wanted to be able to impress me with what I assumed would be a long winded explanation about a subject that was foreign to me”. I found this statement amusing, purely because it perfectly describes the entirety of this book. It is indeed a long winded explanation about how a lawyer does his job, along with a reminder that sometimes you can't save people from themselves. I presume that there are individuals out there who are interested enough in the behind the scenes of a law office to find the book a good read.
******
The Vanishing Chemist
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
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Latest Review: "Crossing in Time" by D.L. Orton
