Thriller Novels

Fleming is the epitomé of the classy thriller. [[[~P~]]] ... What is "The Art of Tea"? ... (www.pepsoid.wordpress.com - latest... "Idling Through Complexity")

"Who do you prefer Michael Crichton or John Grisham, and why?" Crichton seems narrowly better because he does fantastical concepts. "You you like James Patterson and Dan Brown?" No. "Have you ever read either John Buchan's Thirty Nine Steps, or seen the film?" Yep. Well, one of the films. "Do the typos, and ungrammatical phrases in many mass produced, American action thrillers put you off reading them, or can you ignore the rushed production techniques and enjoy the books regardless?" Those things would put me off but, as it is, what puts me off firstly is that I find the books implausible, badly written and decidedly unthrilling. I also dislike the way they're packaged, and how the blurbs always make them sound like some dull early 90's action flick. ~ I'll Show You Tyrants * Fuselit * The Prowl Log * Woe's Woe

Patmac: "I'm constantly on the lookout for urbane and capable thriller writers who don't dwell endlessly on US domestic or political issues, but view the entire globe as a fitting subject. And I'd be pleased to know of any of these which you've read and enjoyed." Fleming! Venice, France, Russia, The Seychelles, England... etc, etc, etc. :-) [[[~P~]]] ... What is "The Art of Tea"? ... (www.pepsoid.wordpress.com - latest... "Disappearing Robots")

I used to read Freddie Forsyth thrillers when I was younger - far better than Fleming... (pepsoid's just going through one of his fads - best to ignore him really!) Clancy isn't bad but all his stuff is very American based (i.e. the US saves the world - along with the SAS in his later novels) but he does cover world politics. Ludlum's early stuff is quite good but, like Grisham, he became a bit samey after a while (although his Road To Gandolfo is pretty funny). You could try James Clavell - not strictly a thriller writer, more historical fiction really - I found his novels (and I've read all of them) to be better than most thrillers. Lately, I've been into Patrick O'Brian - again, historical fiction (with a thrill) rather than thriller. I think it is perhaps an age thing (my being into historical fiction) or maybe I've read so many thrillers that I can usually guess where the plot is going and get bored nowadays. Dan Brown can't write. Well, he can write a page-turner but he leaves the reader with a feeling of dissatisfaction and of being cheated. Pretty much like how you feel after reading a Pepsoid post. :-)

What! EVAH!! ... Not a fad... started about a year or so ago working my way through the Bonds (here and there), and now soon to start no.9 out of 14 - Thunderball. Don't know about Forsyth, but my little Fleming-esque crusade is based upon the premise that one cannot overestimate just what different animals the books are to the films. So much more insightful into Bond's character, his human-ness, and into the quirks and nuances of the Secret Service (coming, as it does, from a place of personal experience on the part of Fleming)... and hardly a mention of gadgets and vodka martinis! [[[~P~]]] ... What is "The Art of Tea"? ... (www.pepsoid.wordpress.com - latest... "Disappearing Robots")