Midwestern Writers Really Can Write W/O: Brain Storm
Written: Nov 23 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Interesting concepts.
Cons: Too wordy, technical and dull.
The Bottom Line: Go for Crichton or Grisham instead.
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| goldmoon's Full Review: Richard Dooling - Brainstorm |
Getting involved with LoisLane05's Midwestern Writers Really Can Write Write-off was an educational experience for me. Although I'm a voracious reader, I've never really taken the time to research authors who come from my home state (maybe because I didn't really believe there were any). When I joined the write-off, I took a look around and found an author from a city a mere hour away from me (Omaha, NE) who had written several novels that had not only gotten praise, but which were on subjects I was interested in. The author is Richard Dooling and the book I chose was Brain Storm. After completing the book, it's obvious that Mr. Dooling knows how to write, but it remains to be seen whether I'll ever pick up another of his books or not. But before we get into that, let's take a deeper look at Brain Storm.
Joe Watson is living the American Dream. He has a successful career with a high-end law firm, lives in a nice house and has a supportive wife and two young children. His perfect world is challenged when he is appointed to take a pro bono case defending an indigent man accused of killing a deaf black man who was found in bed with his wife. Joe is a corporate lawyer and has no experience in the criminal arena, but attempts to get out of the case are to no avail. As Joe gets deeper into the case, he begins noticing that more is going on than what he first suspected. First, the accused (James Whitlow) has a history of seizures and may have a neurological disorder. Second, James' wife, Mary, told more than one version of what happened on the day of the killings and can't seem to settle on one story. Finally, there seems to be a militia group behind the scenes that doesn't want the truth coming out. When Joe finds himself devoting all of his time to the pro bono case, he is fired from his paying job, his wife takes the kids and moves out and Joe must take refuge with a criminal lawyer friend of his while he attempts to untangle James' case.
The title of the book comes from the work Joe does with a Rachel Palmquist, a knockout of a brain scientist who will not only help Joe with his defense, but will also tempt him to commit adultery.
Sounds like one of your typical John Grisham books, doesn't it? Well let me tell you right now, it isn't! The first difference is that this book is about as far from a page-turner as you can get. The nice way to label this book is 'intellectual', however, I think 'wordy' is more accurate. And boy is this book wordy! There is quite a bit of exposition on subjects such as the law and on the workings of the brain that are not only a bit unneccessary, but they're also a bit dull. Conversations are extremely drawn out and I found myself skimming to find the relevant points. The book also got incredibly technical (think Michael Crichton, only worse) which may be interesting to someone who really wants to know everything about how the brain works, but which I thought just made the book an excruciatingly slow read.
As well as being slow-moving, overly technical and wordy, the book features few, if any, likeable characters. As a main character, Joe is a flawed man who never really won me over or made me care about him. The rest of the characters were equally unimpressive and James Whitlow was a downright scumbag.
Finally, the book introduces a variety of plot lines that are never followed through. Actually, very few of the plot lines are followed through and the ending of the book feels incomplete.
To get back to the thoughts at the beginning of my review, Richard Dooling can certainly write...he just doesn't write in a way that really interests me or makes me want to run out and find another of his books. It's nice to know that a capable novelist came out of my home state, however, I wouldn't recommend this book unless you're looking for some really technical writing about the law or the brain.
Thank you to LoisLane05 for hosting this write-off! Please check out the other reviews: http://www.epinions.com/content_3534332036
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
goldmoon
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Member: Angie
Location: The Land of Corn and Cows
Reviews written: 166
Trusted by: 72 members
About Me:
Busy at work and being a mommy...will hopefully return some day soon!
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