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ipreferquiet's review against another edition
A set of murder mysteries solved by a lazy genius (a.k.a. the man who knew too much). It's almost as if Chesterton tried to copy Sherlock Holmes, but didn't succeed. Horne Fisher's personality never comes alive, he's just a guy who knows a lot and can make connections between the things he sees and the things he knows. The mysteries are solved by him before we (the readers) are stumped by the mystery. This book was not interesting enough to finish, I made it to 48% and decided to quit.
thecesspit's review against another edition
4.0
A series of eight short stories about Horne Fisher, the man who knew too much. There's a lot unsaid in these detective stories - a back drop of alternative British history, politics that never existed and an uncertain time period.
izzauropod's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Minor: Antisemitism
irongold's review against another edition
4.0
One of my favorite Chesterton books. The semi-main character, Fisher, is an intellectual genius who solves several crimes.
greenrain's review against another edition
2.0
I felt like I was wading through a bog while reading this. Lots of heavy descriptions that seemed to lead nowhere. Some of the later stories were a bit confusing in terms of plot (and I wasn't the only one in book club with this opinion). The anti-semitism and anti-foreigner bits were probably more accepted at the time of publication, but today feel very off-putting, making me really dislike the characters. And the fact that nothing really gets resolved and nothing changes was frustrating. Felt like reading the memoirs of a corrupt old-boys political club. Only book club made me finish it.
edarcys's review against another edition
4.0
If you believe in coincidences, it seems to be one that I am reading this while working my way through the TV series 'Monk'. If Horne Fisher were OCD and afraid of heights, milk, snakes, elevators and germs (not in that order), and if Harold March were a woman or a policeman, I'd think I was reading British 'Monk' fan fiction. That is praise for both.
roxanamalinachirila's review against another edition
3.0
Very quotable, but the prose is a bit dense - dense enough, I'm afraid, that it lost me a few times. Other people don't seem to have the same issue, so maybe it's just me, reading it when I was too tired and noticing the quips rather than keeping up with the plot.
"The Man Who Knew Too Much" is a collection of short stories about a man who hangs out with politicians (and is part of a family of politicians himself) and a journalist. They solve all sorts of crimes which turn out to have political implications and must therefore never be revealed to the general public, or the consequences would be terrible.
"The Man Who Knew Too Much" is a collection of short stories about a man who hangs out with politicians (and is part of a family of politicians himself) and a journalist. They solve all sorts of crimes which turn out to have political implications and must therefore never be revealed to the general public, or the consequences would be terrible.
franklinreads's review against another edition
3.0
A collection of stories featuring Chesterton's detective character, Horne Fisher. It was a good read with all the usual aspects you would expect from Chesterton.