The Cloud of Unknowing (Otto Penzler Book) (ISBN 0156032805)

The Game of Writer and Reader:
Thomas H. Cook is at the top of his game as he writes The Cloud of Unknowing. A well thought out mystery which ended surprisingly yet somewhat predictably. I guess that when reading a mystery novel, you are playing a game with the writer, a game you would rather lose. In The Cloud of Unknowing, I think I won, or at least tied. It is an amazingly written story that, though I could predict the ending, had a few really good red herrings thrown in just to cast the shadow of doubt on my own sleuthing abilities. T.H. Cook has been my favorite author for a couple years now, and this book is one of the reasons why.

booooorrrrrinnnnng:
What a waste of time. This book used every cliche imaginable and could not have been more predictable. This was my first (and probably last) book by this author and I really don't see what all the fuss is about.

Like Mother, Like Son.:
So much wrong with brilliance combined with schizophrina throughout generations int he Sears family. Diana was the star who pursued the aliens to see why her own son inherited Mark's mental instability and, as a result, had to die. How can humans with disastrous mental conditions become scientiest; Mark was a geneticist while Jeff is into astronomy in a fading position. His father died; like my dad -- after enduring only four months in a nursing home. While visiting Diana's grave site, Mark is beaten badly by her brother, David. This is a riveting story of death in the form of murder when family members begin to unravel and start seeing and hearing things and voices of aliens leading them to destruction. When the charges are dropped, David tells his wife with the sparkling eyes (like Mark's) who'd become freed to show her long-suppressed intelligence, "I'll always take care of you." I want to talk to Mark. When is always, how long? Diana had been sure their son had been drown by Mark and sent her investigative beliefs to her brother, who'd become obsessed with the possibility. After her death, he started hearing voices himself and felt like he was going mad. They were urging him to seek revenge for Diana's and Jason's untimely deaths. Nothing could be proven against the groundless accusations. David is lucky he did not pursue the crazy search for justice, and that Mark had let him off the hook. The cloud of unknowing had finally lifted -- for now. Thomas H. Cook has also written non-fiction crime accounts including 'Early Graves,' 'Blood Echoes,' and 'A Father's Story;' he has also a slew of fiction. "Newsweek" printed "This disturbing exploration of humans' true motives is haunting, and builds to a rapid and unexpected climax about 'Red Leaves.' Same could be said for 'The Cloud of Unknowing.'

Toxic Mushroom Cloud:
I didn't like this book at all and I didn't like any of the characters. Diana and her brother Dave have inherited their late father's psychosis. Diana, the elder dropped out of an Ivy League school her senior year to care for the irate and irrational old man. Diana later marries Mark, a geneticist and they have one child, Jason who has a vague condition. He was labeled as having some incipient psychosis as well as autism, although these conditions are unrelated. The boy is a pale ghost who is not a strong driving force in this story. He is a puff of wind as opposed to a rush or gust. He gets bumped off early by drowning in a nearby pond. Diana unravels. She accuses Mark, who may or may not be guilty of killing their son. Mark wanted him institutionalized, which reinforces Diana's belief that he killed the boy. Very few descriptions of the boy's behavior are given; readers are left wondering what the story was with Jason and why Mark was so eager to have him institutionalized. Diana listens to CDs by an arcane artist whose sick lyrics "Sister/Twister...Father/Daughter/Slaughter" consume her mind and her time. She enlists Dave's daughter Patty in her quest to prove Mark's alleged guilt. Patty, an unappealing and unlikable teen is enthralled with Diana and follows along, although Dave tries to put a stop to this. Dave, too unravels and one wonders if he and his odious daughter have inherited the paternal psychosis. A very dark, dismal book with nothing to recommend it. If you read this, do so at your own risk and check it out of the library so you do not waste your good hard earned money on this drivel.

Smart narrative (+ mystery) with the "cloud of" schizophrenia:
I'll try to keep this relatively short. 1) I'm a fan of the literary mysteries that Thomas Cook writes. They're insightful and draw you in. Intriguingly mellow, but always good. 2) I have a sibling who is paranoid/schizophrenic, so I understand its quirks on a person's personality. 3) This book melds both a good mystery yarn (in an easy-to-follow, to-and-fro, past/present narrative) with the underlying manifestations of paranoid/schizophrenia. 4. I'm buying this book for my sister as a birthday gift. She's NOT the sibling with P/S, but loves mysteries and--like me--finds the P/S sibling in our family an interesting (and at times, trying) challenge.