As a second novel, this one holds pretty well to what one would expect from a 'young' author'. "Little Saigon" is a decent enough mystery novel, with a plenty of twists and turns. The end-game was predictable, unfortunately.
On the one hand, there were plenty of plot twists and the glimpse into Vietnamese society of the post-war era was riveting. On the other hand, much of the dialogue was kind of forced (maybe even insipid) and the number of characters got to be a bit overwhelming and hard to keep track of. (I wonder if there's a hidden statement in the sheer number of Vietnamese characters in this novel's 'cast'?) Anyway, character development was pretty good even though there were so many of them.
That said, this is a solid read, if somewhat tedious at points - it probably could have been reduced by about 30-40 pages. This is a good second outing for an author who will later develop his craft and win (at least) two Edgars. I would not recommend this book as one that you only read a few pages at a time. Instead, take it to the beach and read it in as few sittings as possible; it will make much more sense that way!
On the one hand, there were plenty of plot twists and the glimpse into Vietnamese society of the post-war era was riveting. On the other hand, much of the dialogue was kind of forced (maybe even insipid) and the number of characters got to be a bit overwhelming and hard to keep track of. (I wonder if there's a hidden statement in the sheer number of Vietnamese characters in this novel's 'cast'?) Anyway, character development was pretty good even though there were so many of them.
That said, this is a solid read, if somewhat tedious at points - it probably could have been reduced by about 30-40 pages. This is a good second outing for an author who will later develop his craft and win (at least) two Edgars. I would not recommend this book as one that you only read a few pages at a time. Instead, take it to the beach and read it in as few sittings as possible; it will make much more sense that way!
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