So how bad does it have to be before you give up? Here is the opening paragraph of a thriller I picked up today: “The archbishop’s men fled into the shadows of the lower valley. Behind them, atop the winter pass, horses screamed, arrow-bit and cleaved. Men shouted, cried, and roared. The clash of steel rang as silvery as a chapel’s bells.” Can it possibly get worse? Atop the Cite de l’Ecrit I too could be arrow-bit and cleaved for suggesting that this is truly terrible. Admittedly it is from a book that sounds from the blurb as if it is another Dan Brown type yawn. Personally I blame Umberto Eco who’s Name of the Rose started the whole thing off – but he could at least write and the rest really are pale imitations.
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4 replies on “Perfect prose”
That is terrible! How do bells ring in a silvery fashion? Pray tell what it’s from?
Ah ha, Google is my friend! It’s from Map of Bones, James Rollins. You can run, James, but you can’t hide. I think I’m right in saying that Rollins has just won a multi-million dollar deal …. yes, Google again; http://www.nytimes.com/2014/07/14/business/media/james-rollins-receives-a-15-million-multibook-deal.html
I thought I was being kind by not mentioning the author or title but you, young man, have told the world. Why am I not surprised at a multi-million dollar deal for bad prose
I know, I know … but with that dosh coming in he can afford a couple of brickbats thrown his way. You have to roll with the punches.