Company of Liars by Karen Maitland Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Company of Liars
Book Review: Interesting Concept -- Look for to Maitland's Next Book
Summary: 3 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
I wanted to like this book. Having more than a passing interest in things Medieval, I thought "Company of Liars" might be a great diversion from my customary reading as it combined plague-ridden Britain with a mystery.
However the book failed to draw me in. Though the characters were well enough drawn, and the action --when it took place-- was well enough described, I was always cognizant of being a reader with a book in their hands, one with no 'skin' at stake in the story.
What I read about was a company of characters that gradually came together, and then gradually dispersed, each to their own end. The narrator is a heavily traveled man who bears the many scars of his travels and travails. The setting is medieval England during the time of plague and famine which I think we can agree is pretty scary and threatening in and of itself -- and yet, somehow, the drama just fell flat for me.
Part of the problem was that the narrative was too verbose -- and not in a productive Moby Dick or Cormac McCarthy way. The words got in the way of pacing. So much so that ultimately I put the book down one evening and failed to pick it up the next.
The other problem I had was that everyone was 'too nice'. Out of character nice. For example, when they caught some bandits that threatened one of their party with death... they chastised them only and let them go.
3.5 Stars. Some people will adore this book. I ended up not finishing it, though I wouldn't swear that I won't in the future.
Despite the flaws, I would certainly consider another book by this author. She has imagination and intelligence and the minor faults could easily be overcome on the next project.
Note: boo! to the publisher/publicist that misrepresented this book as having anything to do with Chaucer's work. You did your client a injustice as your summary turned some readers against her, very unfairly.
Pam T~
Book Review: Interesting, but somewhat unbalanced tale
Summary: 3 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
The key thing to consider is that the back cover says "reinterpretation" of The Canterbury Tales; there is almost no, if little, connection between the two tales. Set during the outbreak of the Black Plague in England, Company of Liars builds its story on the journey of nine strangers attempting to make their way away from the terrible pestilence. Many of them hold a secret or have a story to tell about some type of dark secret, and as they travel onward, much of their past histories are revealed. The main character Camelot and an assembly of other interesting characters go along on this journey, including a man who is half-swan, a pair of musicians, a couple expecting a child, an overzealous magician, and a rather odd girl with a knack for predicting the future.
Although the story is interesting in some respects, and the author has an ability to tell a story, it seemed as though it took awhile for the story to get going, and it seemed unbalanced. The first two thirds of the book were pretty fair, but the latter part of the book, especially the final fifty pages or so relied too much on "hocus pocus" to create suspense and arrive at its outcome. While up to the final scene there was a little supernatural thrown in to the story, the ending relies solely on this. This gave the story an unbalanced feel, and made some of the details, particularly of the character's pasts, irrelevant and pointless to the story's ending. Character's motives seemed to be explained away briefly, and before we know it, we arrive at an unexpected conclusion, yet unsatisfying ending.
There was also a bit too much time spend on the character's squabbles with one another. Zophiel is constantly arguing about this and that with many of the characters; you wonder why they even have him along.
While Company of Liars does have some engrossing moments that will hold your interest, in the end it is mainly a light read, only scratching the surface of what it could have been.
Book Review: Intruiging dark ages mystery!
Summary: 4 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Company of Liars succeeds in several ways: it has a tightly wound mystery plot, a likable first person narrator and it evokes the feel of an ancient time. This novel is set during the onset of the plague in ancient England, and the difficulty of life in that time is clearly outlined along with the psychological mindset of the plague years. Maitland is a more than competent writer who I will watch for future enthralling reads.Book Review: It is rare...
Summary: 5 Stars
...that a book is good enough to have you really look forward to getting back to read it. (At least for me). But the superb characterization, the plot, but especially the setting all contribute to making this the best book that I've read in a long time You care about the characters, each well-developed. and you try to solve the mystery,
but the sights and smells and sounds of rural England during the Plague in 1348 is what really draws you into the plot. If six stars were possible, this book would have gotten it from me !
Book Review: It's a grim world....
Summary: 3 Stars
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Karen Maitland weaves a well-wrought but grim tale of duplicity and magic in `The Company of Liars.' Set in the plague year 1348, it is the story of nine random travelers banded together in an attempt to outrun the plague. The story is told in large part by Camelot, a scar-faced seller of bogus religious artifacts. Joining in his travels are a treacherous magician, an Italian musician and his feckless apprentice, a young crippled story-teller, a pregnant girl and her lover who are obviously fleeing their past, a midwife, and the scariest child this side of Henry James. Each of the travelers is hiding a secret. And in the tradition of such travellers' tales, each also tells a rather grim folk tale [more Andersen's Fairy Tales than Walt Disney].
`The Company of Liars' has been compared to `The Canterbury Tales,' but although the form is similar, they are quite different. Chaucer's characters came to life - to be loved or laughed at, at least to be understood. Maitland's approach is much more cerebral; she leads with her head and not her heart. We hear each traveler tell their lies, we learn a bit about their past and sins, then we see them meet their fates, but in a world torn apart by starvation, flood, and plague, it's hard to care too much.
It's a grim world indeed.