Thursday, 24 February 2011

Book Review: Hector and the Secrets of Love by Francois Lelord

Genre:  Contemporary Fiction
Published by:  Gallic Books  (January 2011)
Pages:  276  (Paperback)


My Rating:  7/10


About the Book:

What is the secret formula for love?
Hector, our intrepid psychiatrist, sets off on a new globe-trotting mission – and this time he's looking for LOVE.
One of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies has employed him to track down their brilliant scientist, Professor Cormorant, who has disappeared abroad with the secret of a modern-day love potion.
Leaving behind his troubled relationship with girlfriend Clara, Hector's adventure takes him to the Far East and into the arms of beautiful Vayla, forcing our hero to think deeply about what love really is/means.

This is the second book about the adventures of Hector, the psychiatrist, following on from Hector and the Search for Happiness which I reviewed here

The style of writing is in the same childlike manner which is so easy and quick to read that I just skipped along the short paragraphs.


Hector travels to Asia to look for his friend, the professor who has disappeared with samples of a drug for falling in love, or for staying in love when we want to. But, before he sets off his girlfriend Clara tells him that they should stop seeing each other for a while so he has to question his own feelings for her and tries to discover the secrets of love along the way.


As in the first book Hector makes notes of his discoveries, some of which include



  • Love and jealousy go hand in hand

  • Love is, smiling the moment you see one another


While searching, he meets a young girl who speaks no English, possibly falling in love with her, is used in one of the professor's experiments, makes new friends, meets and then loses the professor.


I like Hector, he is simple, uncomplicated, friendly and intelligent.  He easily makes friends with people no matter who they are or where they're from.


But, about half way through I started to get bored with the story, the pace was going a little too slowly for me, and there was quite a lot of information to absorb. I didn't feel that I knew the other characters very well so couldn't really empathise with them or care too much about what happened to them.


This wasn't a page turner, though it did pick up pace gradually as the plot unfolded and I liked the few twists and turns.


Overall, I didn't enjoy it as much as Hector and the Search for Happiness.


At the back of the book there is an excerpt from the next Hector book -- Hector Finds Time -- which is to be published in April 2012.


For more information see the GallicBooks website

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