Eat_Read_Knit reviewed Dogs and goddesses by Jennifer Crusie (St. Martin's Paperbacks novel)
Review of 'Dogs and goddesses' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Review from first reading in 2009:
This book wasn't bad. It wasn't as good as I expected a book from these writers to be, but it wasn't bad. It zipped along merrily like all good frivolous entertainment should, and it had some good comic moments. I liked the characters, even if they were a bit two-dimensional. I read the book in an afternoon, and forewent half of my evening meal because I didn't have time to cook and finish the book before I had to go out. I enjoyed it, especially the second half.
But...
It didn't hang together well. It didn't come together as a collaboration, didn't have a single, consistent voice. In places, you could almost see the joins. The plot also seemed to have whacking big holes; suddenly days or weeks had gone by without a mention, which was disconcerting, and it was hard to keep track …
Review from first reading in 2009:
This book wasn't bad. It wasn't as good as I expected a book from these writers to be, but it wasn't bad. It zipped along merrily like all good frivolous entertainment should, and it had some good comic moments. I liked the characters, even if they were a bit two-dimensional. I read the book in an afternoon, and forewent half of my evening meal because I didn't have time to cook and finish the book before I had to go out. I enjoyed it, especially the second half.
But...
It didn't hang together well. It didn't come together as a collaboration, didn't have a single, consistent voice. In places, you could almost see the joins. The plot also seemed to have whacking big holes; suddenly days or weeks had gone by without a mention, which was disconcerting, and it was hard to keep track of what was currently happening in the villain's plans for world domination.
And there were too many main characters and too many dogs. I don't mind the dogs, but if I have to keep track of three heroines, three heroes, three (grand)mothers, several different sets of mystical powers, two or three ancient and warring deities, an evil minion and several acolytes, I can't keep track of seven dogs as well. It's too much.
In addition, too many of these main characters had prominent roles right from the beginning. It was a good hundred pages before I could get each goddess matched up to her hero, her (grand)mother and her dog in my mind without having to stop and think, 'wait, who is this one again?' By page 200, I had the hang of most of the acolytes and mystical powers, too. The second half of the book was a lot easier to read than the first, and I think that a lot of the confusing stuff will become clearer if I give it a second read-through. Giving it a second read-through will not be a hardship - but it shouldn't be necessary
In summary - a decent read, but not as good as it ought to have been.
UPDATE - Additional comments after re-reading in 2015:
It was indeed easier to keep track of everyone the second time around, even with nearly six years between readings. But while I enjoyed reading it again, my previous criticisms still stand.