Word: fictions
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Dates: during 1980-1989
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...FICTION...
Although he did do research for his essays. Sparks stressed the imaginative aspect of the comment. "It's not science fiction, but science fiction based on technology...
This fascination has infected writers, too, prompting them to produce works of fiction in which the unsavory and licentious invades the lives of outwardly respectable people. Noted travel writer and novelist Paul Theroux uses a variation on this theme of a double life as a launching pad for the two novellas that make up Half Moon Street. What follows, however, can by no means be called a smooth flight...
...major flaw of Half Moon Street is that it falls between two genres. The stories possess neither the sophisticated technique that would make them interesting pieces of fiction nor the right amount of tension that goes into a thriller. The narratives of both pieces progress in a linear fashion with few internal monologues or hints at the characters' motivations. As a result, the figures remain two dimensional. Ordinarily, this could be compensated for with exciting plots and suspense, but these ingredients are nowhere to be found. Here, the surprise endings are rushed and flat and do not allow enough time...
...would have hoped that Theroux would bring the descriptive skills he has demonstrated in books such as The Patagonia Express or The Great Railway Bazaar to this new work of fiction. Unfortunately, because of its insipid plots and shallow characters, Half Moon Street will likely not enjoy the same wide readership Theroux's previous books have...