Thursday, April 23, 2020

Book Review - The Red Lotus; Chris Bohjalian



TITLE:  The Red Lotus
AUTHOR:  Chris Bohjalian
PUBLISHER:  Doubleday
PUB. YEAR: 2020
SETTING: NYC and Vietnam
FORMAT: eGalley/audio combo
RATING: - 4/5


The Red Lotus shows readers the dark side of a relationship, one built on lies and evil.

Alexis is an Emergency Room doctor in NYC. One night in walks Austin, an avid cyclist, with a gunshot wound to his arm. The two hit it off and after dating several months he asks her to accompany him to Vietnam for a bike tour.  He says he'd also like to visit the area where is father and uncle had served during the war.  After checking out the sights together, Austin heads off for a bike ride while Alexis returns to the hotel. When Austin doesn't return, authorities get involved and a search for him begins.  

Alexis is not satisfied with what she has been told and her strong personality makes her desperate for answers. Why did Austin really bring her to Vietnam? What was he involved in?

This book started out a bit slow but once Austin disappeared the pace accelerated.  Alexis was an interesting character, a strong character with some baggage of her own. The story definitely has a dark side to it and, getting to the truth of it all made for some interesting fiction.  The audio was read by Rebecca Lowman who did a great job. I've read most every book written by this author and, although this wasn't my favorite, it was an entertaining read given our stay-at-home order.

31 comments:

  1. I was curious about this so thanks for sharing your thoughts

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  2. I liked this one, too, and thought it was timely.

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  3. It sounds pretty interesting and I'm glad the pace picked up!

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  4. I don't know if I've ever read anything by this author, but see his books in so many blogs that I think I should.

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    1. I do love his books plus, he's a Vermonter - a state I love.

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  5. I've not read this author but the plot of the book sounds intriguing.

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    1. The Double Bind was one of my favorites by this author. Her has a couple historical but, those were not faves.

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  6. I think this one sounds quite good and I'll keep the audio in mind.

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  7. I find this author to be very reliable. I'm glad you liked this one.

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  8. Someone told me this book was about a pandemic. It doesn't sound like that's the case.

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    1. Yes, that is the evil part - I didn't want to say too much.

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  9. I'm surprised how many readers have never tried this author as he has written 20 books.

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  10. I've enjoyed this author's earlier novels, but not so much his more recent works. I may give it a try on audio since I'm leaning toward that format during these difficult days when my concentration is off.

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  11. Timely reading. I didn't know about this one.

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    1. Yes, timely but, one where your mood has to be able to handle it.

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  12. This is one I would definitely be interested in reading. I haven't read anything by this author yet so many of his books are on my TBR, with some of them waiting in my own stacks.

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    1. I keep thinking that I need to read from my shelf but, it just doesn't happen.

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  13. I like the sound of this one. I've read a couple of his books and have enjoyed them so I hope to check this one out.

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  14. I really want to read this, but may wait until our current situation has passed. I am glad you enjoyed this one, Diane.

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  15. I have not always gotten along with this author but my interest in all things Vietnamese makes me want to try it.

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  16. LOL - well the setting fits the bill, Vietnam and New York city.

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