9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Better than its reputation here...., 2 Jun 2002
By Branden Poole - Published on Amazon.com
I'd like to preface this by saying that this is the first of anything that I've read by Andrew Klavan; thus, I'm not burdened by Klavan's other novels. Hey, "True Crime" may be a masterpiece, and "Animal Hour" could be fantastic, I don't know. I did read this novel, "The Uncanny", however, and I was very pleased with it.
I profess a weakness (like Storm in the novel) for English ghost stories, so perhaps the novel spoke to me more so than my fellow reviewers here. Overall, I found the book to be well-written and very interesting. It wasn't scary, as some of the others have pointed out, but I don't think Klavan was trying to upstage King here. What he's written is an interesting and entertaining thriller, filled with some clever supernatural / occult additives, and the result is entirely pleasing.
Recommended.
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
A Pale Ghost, 13 Aug 2000
By Michael Butts - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Uncanny (Mass Market Paperback)
Andrew Klavan is a talented writer who has given us two really exceptional books: "True Crime" and "The Animal Hour." In those books, Klavan created characters and situations that were complex, puzzling, interesting, and original. With "The Uncanny," Klavan attempts to revamp the traditional ghost story by setting it in modern times and giving us "hip" characters like Richard Storm and Sophia Eberling. Somehow, for me, it just didn't work. The setting at the "Bizarre" magazine was novel, but not all that interesting. The ghost story itself was lame and poorly conceived. Although the book has flashes of brilliance, they are far too few, and overall, you're left with a rather unsatisfying ghost story. Read Peter Straub's "Ghost Story" for better chills!
Michael Butts
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I loved it!, 14 Mar 2001
By Monique - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: The Uncanny (Mass Market Paperback)
I've read the other reviews here. If a book is called " The Uncanny" I guarantee it's of the horror genre. Why everyone expected a "True Crime-ish" novel is beyond me.
Richard Storm, a horror movie producer,leaves Hollywood on a quest to London to see if any of the old ghost stories bare any truth. Is there really life after death? When Richard falls in love with Sophia Endering,an art dealer, he finds more then he was looking for. It's a rollercoaster ride through nazi art theft, ghost stories and "The Devil himself". To much said will give away the surprising twists in the story.
This was a great horror novel!