Whodunit August 29, 2012

The Whodunit group met on August 29 after a two-month break. Eighteen  members showed up to discuss The Ghost by Robert Harris (and to comment on how beautiful the summer had been, despite the welcome rain that was falling outside.) 

The Ghost, a political thriller, tells the story of a man hired to write the autobiography of charismatic former British Prime Minister, Adam Lang, a fictional character with a strong resemblance to the real-life Tony Blair. A former political aide to Lang has made a draft of his leader’s memoirs but apparently drowns by falling from a ferry. The ghostwriter, who narrates the story, is hired to complete the project and re-locates from London to Martha’s Vineyard. There he quickly begins to suspect that his predecessor’s death was no accident and comes across evidence that Lang, who has had to leave politics because of his close association with the US and its unpopular war on terror, has secrets in his past that have implications for international security.    

Before going around the circle to give our individual assessments Pam filled us in on a few facts about The Ghost and its author, Robert Harris, a former political journalist and BBC reporter.  The book was published in the UK as The Ghostwriter and a number of group members felt this was a more appropriate title. The book was made into a movie, also entitled The Ghostwriter, directed by Roman Polanski, screenplay by Polanski and Harris. The ghostwriter in the movie was excellently portrayed by Ewan McGregor. Pam asked us to suggest actors we would like to see portray the Ghost and/ or Adam Lang. Trying to “visualize” the Ghost brought home how little Harris had revealed about his narrator, in fact we didn’t even know his name. We discussed the many “ghosts” in the book.

The average of the scores was 8.06/10, almost identical to June’s book, The Redbreast by Jo Nesbo.  Almost all commented on the quality of the writing and, although a few did not find the story compelling, most liked the use of setting, especially Martha’s Vineyard in winter, which evoked a bleak and sinister feeling, the mix of characters, and the suspenseful writing with its surprise ending.  

Thanks to Marlene who was this month's 'reporter'.

Four lucky Whodunit members won books this month: Judy, Nancy, Marlene, and Brian.

We meet again on Sept. 25 to discuss  Blacklands by Belinda Bauer.