| The Ghost | 
 enlarge | Author: Robert Harris
Publisher: Hutchinson
Category: Book
List Price: £12.99
Buy Used: £1.10
You Save: £11.89 (92%)
New (6) Used (11) from £1.10
Avg. Customer Rating:  102 reviews
Sales Rank: 106914
Media: Paperback
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 9 x 6 x 1.2
ISBN: 0091796245
EAN: 9780091796242
ASIN: 0091796245
Publication Date: March 6, 2008
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 Tony and Cherie get knifed by a former friend... August 6, 2008
2 out of 5 found this review helpful
One star for attempting to satirise Tony and Cherie Blair; his real life Downing Street "assistant" Anji Hunter; and a hilarious Robin Cook. But we already know that what Tony and Cherie were like after 10 years, didn't we? So not anything new except for some genuinely funny lines (especially by "Robin Cook").
And one more star for giving us some interesting insights into the world of ghostwriting and the process of creating celebrity/political memoirs (and to think that I thought Jordan, Wayne Rooney et al wrote every word themselves...)
But as a political conspiracy thriller? Oh dear. Robert Harris might have fallen out with Tony over Iraq but his critique really doesn't work as a fictional thriller. It's rather weak and underwritten. With one of the stupidest, cliched, twist endings I've read. Maybe he should have read the manual on thriller writing instead of the ghost writing one that he quotes.
If he wants to stick the knife into his former friends with some wishful fantasies, then fine...I'm all for some tabloid celebrity falling out...but don't bother if you want some real satire. Just watch an old rerun of one of Rory Bremner's spoofs on Iraq which really do hit the mark.
So don't be taken in by the hype that the literary/political classes have given to this book - for ultimately, will this stand the test of time? No. It's already dated and showing its age as a political satire. And it's just lousy as a thriller.
 a shoddy political whodunnit August 2, 2008
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
Don't waste your money on this poor excuse for a political whodunnit.The plot is poor and the ending is even worse. Harris has written some good novels,however, this is not one of them.
 You will enjoy this: not classic literature, but a fantastic page turner August 1, 2008
Once I'd started reading this book, I was glued to it until I finished it. The former British prime minister, discontent at the lack of adrenaline, is holed up in Martha's Vineyard, driving himself and his ropey wife stir crazy while trying to get his memoirs done to meet this publisher's deadline and to cash in on a $10 million advance. The publisher wants to make sure the book is finished on time, to take advantage of current public outrage at the unfolding story of bad deeds during the US led War on Terror. Only problem is that the dead body of the original ghostwriter, a long time ally of the PM, has just washed up on the coast nearby. The parallels to Tony Blair and Cherie Blair are easily identified, but the fictional overlay is very well done, and there is a great twist at the end that'll invite you to re-think everything you have seen and heard about Britain's ex-premier family. Not as deep or as heavy as other Robert Harris works, but most enjoyable all the same.
 Holiday reading July 29, 2008
Ghost is a very nicely written novel, it takes no effort to glide through the pages which shows the writing quality of the author. The book is a pretty good read and you cannot help but see the references to the government under Tony Blair. With a few twists and turns the story unfolds - not edge of your seat stuff but a good read.
Dull! July 28, 2008
0 out of 3 found this review helpful
I'm sure I wasn't the only person suckered into buying by the publicity it received on publication - Tony Blair tried for war crimes! Well, a thinly veiled TB! It sounded like it was going to be a real hum-dinger! Sadly, it was something of a damp squib. And a not particularly well written damp squib either.
Dull, dull, dull ..... and I bet most of us will have guessed the villian of the piece way before the end. Is this really the man who wrote "Fatherland"???
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