Ordinary Thunderstorms

A Novel

By: William Boyd

Narrated by: Gideon Emery

One May evening in London, Adam Kindred, a young climatologist in town for a job interview, is feeling good about the future as he sits down for a meal at a little Italian bistro. He strikes up a conversation with a solitary diner at the next table, who leaves soon afterward. With horrifying speed, this chance encounter leads to a series of malign accidents, through which Adam loses everything—home, family, friends, job, reputation, passport, credit cards, cell phone—never to get them back.

The police are searching for him. There is a reward for his capture. A hired killer is stalking him. He is alone and anonymous in a huge, pitiless modern city. Adam has nowhere to go but down—underground. He decides to join that vast army of the disappeared and the missing who throng London’s lowest levels as he tries to figure out what to do with his life and struggles to understand the forces that have made it unravel so spectacularly. Adam’s quest will take him all along the river Thames, from affluent Chelsea to the gritty East End, and on the way he will encounter all manner of London’s denizens—aristocrats, prostitutes, evangelists, and policewomen—and version after new version of himself.

Ordinary Thunderstorms, William Boyd’s electric follow-up to his award-winning Restless, is a profound and gripping novel about the fragility of social identity, the corruption at the heart of big business, and the secrets that lie hidden in the filthy underbelly of every city.

©2010 William Boyd (P)2010 HarperCollins Publishers

Ordinary Thunderstorms

This is a very well written novel. I enjoyed learning about the characters and following the story. I did have a problem with the ending. Unlike Stieg Larsson's Millennium Trilogy, virtually every plot twist is left unresolved at the conclusion of the book. Stieg Larsson resolved the plot issues for each book; although, there were still larger problems that could be addressed in a sequel. I never felt he had simply set me up to buy another book.

Mr. Boyd, while an excellent author, left me feeling disappointed.

Agreed, Not as Good as Restless

As others have mentioned this book is a departure from from Boyd’s novel Restless. Ordinary Thunderstorms, is a novel that meanders, which plays with the tension of a man being hunted, a mistaken killer who calmly seems to launch into survival mode while a hit man is on his tail. I agree with previous reviewers that some plot lines are unresolved and some that are resolved seem to be skimmed over with very little explanation for the particular outcome. The author has left room for a sequel. The narrator, Mr.Emery is effective, though a few times I was confused as it seemed the accents were switched, other than that, he portrayed the characters convincingly.

Extra-ordinary Exploration of Identity

This was a terrific read, the writing superb. The characters were detailed and defined, with the city of London and the Thames River a primary player. The details were well documented and the nuanced narrative kept me interested at the expense of other tasks and projects, as I have heard said by other audible.com reviewers talking about other audible books. I think it's this kind of development of minutiae that sustains my attention and separates the excellent novels from the mediocre.

The ending is a giant "maybe" however, and makes the reader want to invent alternate endings, like on some DVDs. As a reader I am not that invested in how a book ends, as I am more interested in character development and the individual experiences of the major figures in a novel. I just don't like abrupt stoppage, and this ending has that "cut off" quality, as though the editors thought the original manuscript was too long.

There were a lot of occasions for suspension of disbelief - in order for the protagonist to accomplish his objectives there had to be certain conditions in place, i.e. (and I don't want to spoil) he needed to be pretty seriously unattached. But novels are part literature and part entertainment, amongst other things, and this one certainly achieves both qualities. I really wanted to keep a notebook with me so that I could record some of the author's phrases which were so articulate, mellifluous, and compelling.

engrossing, but.......

Its hard not to compare with his other books...Restless was amazing. This story was well told, mostly compelling characters, however our hero made some unbelievable decisions in order to get into the mess around which the story evolves. And all his lies...to everyone. Wish the ending was more conclusive...it could have played out in so many interesting ways.

a good listen

Chose this book entirely because I'd listened to "Restless" by William Boyd. Wasn't sure what to expect, some of the reviews were pretty bland. But, I thoroughly enjoyed the story. The author is very creative. Set in London, a murder mystery, it grew on me as it progressed. I found myself wanting to get back to the book to find out what had happened, always a good sign. I recommend it.

Amazing Story Teller

Any additional comments?

William Boyd is an amazing story teller. I found "Restless" a few months ago and read it on my Kindle. I wondered why I had never really run into Mr. Boyd in my reading travels. I tried a sample of "Ordinary Thunderstorms," but because of my crazy schedule (I run a part time art craft business in addition to working full time) I could not carve out time to read this on the Kindle. I hesitated downloading this Audible addition because the overall rating was only 3.6 stars, and so I vacillated for several months. All I can say is DON'T HESITATE.

This is so well plotted and cleverly told. It is a great suspense novel. It is not formulaic. I also enjoyed it because while it does include some violent illusions, it is not overbearing or gratuitous, the plot moves along swiftly and neatly, almost like a puzzle falling into place. It is also, as other reviewers have pointed out, a fascinating study on the nature of identity. The characters are all fleshed out and Mr. Boyd had imbued all of the primary characters, even the bad guys, with sympathetic human features, no one is a cardboard cutout.

I disagree with those who feel the ending is abrupt. This book allows the reader to savor the experience and continue to think about the possibilities. I highly recommend this book - I will now download Restless and his other offerings. I hope Audible will record all of his books!

The narrator was superb! His voice was perfect and his character delineation is subtle and never overbearing or grating. All in all - a fantastic use of a credit and perfect Audible experience!

Modern Novel by Boyd

Unlike previous novels like the Powellesque 'Any Human Heart' or the female-narrated 'Restless' and 'Sweet Caress,' (these last two surely making Boyd the Caitlyn Jenner of English or perhaps Scottish letters) 'Ordinary Thunderstorms' is a thoroughly modern novel. Although at times it reads like a erie amalgamation of the style Boyd's countryman John Buchan and his English contemporary, Martin Amis, it is thoroughly entertaining as a thriller and with a sense of humor not as conspicuous in the other novels by this author. Female characters are few but, for once, original, quirky and well-developed. The story line is strong and there is no doubt that a screen adaptation would be successful with a good director. Most issues are resolved by the end of the book except one. Spoiler alert: John Jo is still out there and with an ax to grind!

Doesn't Disappoint!

Very much enjoyed this novel, about a man who is forced to give up his identity and go underground when he witnesses a murder and himself becomes the next target for the killer. A pharma company is about to launch a new cure for asthma, but something is amiss—might they go as far as murder to cover up their tracks? An interesting exploration of the underbelly of London, where the dispossessed and nameless manage to eke out a living. I became a fan of Boyd after my first book by him; he did not disappoint this time either and delivers an interesting suspense filled with intriguing characters.

Will look for more books narrated by Gideon Emery, who delivers a flawless performance.

A good read

This was my second book by this author. The story was very different from Restless which I really liked. While I would have liked another book similar to Restless, I liked this book. It's not as strong a story as Restless but well written. I would recommend this book.

If you like Restless, you will like this one

Although they are much different in plot - the writing is great, and really kept me on the edge with excellent character development - except I did prefer Restless to this book. I think its just that my preference is for WWII and espionage- so you might find this an interesting read. Im glad I read it though, and would definitely recommend it. After this, I read "The Burning Air" - by Erin Kelly -

If you have been listening to mysteries like me since they were cassettes, Im cautious about choosing books, (I dont know why - its only time and a little bit of money wasted when a book is a stinker. And yet, its just disappointing when you get one - and its hard to know until you are already 1/2 mile away from the house and kind of stuck with it.)

So, I liked it - its like the Burning AIr in that there are some things that are far fetched and its hard to imagine this story really playing out. WHich of course is why I liked Restless so much - the characters seem very real, and the whole plot is of course entirely possible (and probable).