Blood and Ice
by Robert Masello
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert MaselloEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2009-02-24
ISBN: 0553807285
Number of pages: 512
Publisher: Bantam
Product features:
- ISBN13: 9780553807288
- Condition: USED - Very Good
- Notes: 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Blood and Ice
Book Review: "Supernatural"? Yes... "Thriller"? No
Summary: 2 Stars
Touted in the product review as being a "supernatural thriller", Masello's "Blood and Ice" explores territory Stephen King covered much more effectively and spookily in "'Salem's Lot" among other novels.
Sinclair Copley and Eleanor Ames - lovers in 19th Century England - are hurled into the icy seas from a sailing ship in Antarctic waters. Michael Wilde is a 21st Century journalist visiting a research station near the South Pole to write an article for an ecology publication. Michael discovers the bodies in a block of ice, and the tale moves forward from there. You can read the Amazon product description for a fuller synopsis.
Where, oh where, to begin?
First and foremost, as mentioned earlier, this book just never manages to build up any dramatic tension at all. None. Maybe, given Masello's background as a screenwriter, he heard dramatic background music in his head while writing this, and thought it would convey itself in the pages of the story. It doesn't (though it's badly needed).
Compounding this problem is the way the 19th Century story of the lovers is intertwined with the 21st Century story of Michael. The 19th Century story is given WAY too much space, and reads more like a Harlequin Romance bodice-ripper than anything else. The 21st Century story was somewhat interesting, though not compelling in any way; more as an insight into life in the frozen wastes.
After plodding through over 2/3 of this tome, we finally reach the point where the conflict between the lovers and the Antarctic scientists starts evidencing itself, and again there's no real sense of danger, because by this time we've established that in spite of their "affliction" Sinclair and Eleanor are pretty sympathetic characters. Yes, a couple of people end up dying, but these events are portrayed as being more on the level of unfortunate accidents than anything else; the unavoidable byproduct of their "condition".
It's kinda like Rhett and Scarlet accidentally causing a traffic pileup and a couple of people dying. Gee, that's sad, but what are you gonna do? Bummer.
For this kind of book to be successful, there has to be some malevolent evil somewhere. Again, think of King's "The Shining". The central characters were all good people who were overcome, through no fault of their own, by a malevolent supernatural force. Now THAT'S a "thriller"!
Two stars, for the somewhat interesting look at Antarctic life. I think that's generous.
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