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The Resurrectionist | 
 enlarge | Author: James Bradley
Publisher: Faber and Faber
Category: Book
List Price: £7.99
Buy Used: £0.01
You Save: £7.98 (100%)
New (46) Used (51) Collectible (1) from £0.01
Rating:  48 reviews
Sales Rank: 2864
Media: Paperback
Pages: 352
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 7.6 x 5 x 1
ISBN: 0571232760
EAN: 9780571232765
ASIN: 0571232760
Publication Date: June 19, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: USED BOOK, NORMAL SHELF / READING WEAR, SUPER FAST DELIVERY, DISPATCHED WITHIN 24 HOURS FROM UK!!!
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| Customer Reviews: Read 43 more reviews...
 Wonderful Book Club fodder! October 5, 2008
It was my turn to select a book for our book club, running out of time I grabbed the first interesting looking jacket from the shelves,pausing just long enough to register the R&J sticker. Bound to be at least passable then. I read the book in two three hour sittings and found the only thing that was true from the cover was 'philosophical'. I think that the whole 'story line', of which there was indeed very little, was unimportant. The characters were deliberately undeveloped, the change of setting towards the end deliberately unsubtle. I think the author wanted us to see Gabriel (angel of resurrection and hope) as representation of the ease with which mankind can fall into evil and by lucky chance be delivered from that evil. The Gabriel of this story is alone and unloved,falls into bad company, turns to drugs,indulges in an unfulfilling relationship, craves acceptance,has a lucky escape, tries to reinvent himself, touches base again briefly with his past, falls in love, but knows that untimately he can never be truly free of his demons. It could be anyone's story. Do give this book a chance. Yes it's short, yes it could give us more in terms of characterisation, yes the central character is flawed. It could be set in any century, any town, with any wrongdoing as its theme. The fact that it's grave robbing and murder in this case, is incidental. Give this book a chance and I promise you plenty of lively discussion!
Doesn't live up to expectations October 4, 2008
I loved the first page of this book and it would be fair to say it is well written. For two pages I thought I had fallen upon a gem of a novel but it just fades away. The characters were too quickly introduced and too many had confusingly similar names for me to be able to keep up with the pacy plot which dipped and dived from place to place and day to day. I know I am tired when I read at the end of the day but this book could not sustain my interest and I am sad to say I have given up half way through. The main character is Gabriel Swift, who wishes to train as a pathologist, and he sees the bodies brought by the body snatchers. There are some interesting musings on the nature of life and death but they were a smoke screen for a plot with little clear sense of direction. Bradley could be a great writer; he has style, but this isn't the one.
 Perplexing and utimately boring read. September 29, 2008
As a surgeon I approached this book with interest, as it deals with one of the less glorious chapters in my profession's history. I finished it as I cannot bear to leave any book unread but it really was hard going. After a reasonable start the whole thing deteriorated. The worst thing is that I had absolutely no empathy with the main character nor can I understand why he rapidly descends from promising beginnings to opium addict and murderer. Most perplexing!
Possiblity of a brilliant book ruined September 23, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
As a fan of Victorian Britain and anything that can be described as macabre, I thought this book would be right up my street. However it was boring, lacked little reality and wasn't sure where it was going (especially toward the end which I have to say was very strange). In sum, the possiblity of a brilliant book was ruined.
What a shame. September 23, 2008
There is not much to add to the other 43 reviews, frankly.
I have offered 2 stars because the book is very well written. But it is badly constructed, it lacks depth and, as has been noted, the chance to create several excellent characters within the book has been lost completely. Fortunately, I didn't read any review before reading this book. Maybe I wouldn't have finished it if I had. However, I persevered to the bitter end and still I wonder just why the aspiring hero suddenly became a drug addict. Oh for a story about Lucan. Maybe he could have turned out to become a Lord; who knows but he had a lot more going for him in terms of characterization? We shall never know.
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