A Drink Before the War vs The Blue Ice: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Thriller
A Drink Before the War
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The mesmerizing, darklyoriginal novel that heralded the arrival of now New York Timesbestselling author Dennis Lehane, the master of the new noir—and introducedPatrick Kenzie and Angela Gennaro, his smart and tough…
The Blue Ice
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Ten years after George Farnell's disappearance, two lines of poetry and a lump of mineral ore are found. It's enough to send mineral expert Bill Gansert to Norway. But word of his findings has leaked out and Gansert…
Side by side
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- A Drink Before the War has the widest readership — 47863 ratings behind its score.
- A Drink Before the War runs the darker storyline; The Blue Ice stays the lighter read.
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How to choose
Scores by source
| A Drink Before the War | The Blue Ice | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 3.9 (47863) | 3.8 (449) |
| Hardcover | 3.8 (96) | 4.0 (3) |
| Google Books | 4.0 (1) | — |
| Apple Books | 4.0 (547) | — |
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Reception
| A Drink Before the War | The Blue Ice | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 47863 | 449 |
| Editions | — | 30 |
| Citations | 1 | — |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 29407 | 179 |
| Reading it now | 2884 | 59 |
| Written reviews | 2798 | 31 |
| Wikipedia attention | 1278 | 46 |
| Pages | 324 | 246 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: A Drink Before the War or The Blue Ice?
A Drink Before the War has the higher combined reader rating across sources (A Drink Before the War 3.9/5, The Blue Ice 3.8/5).
Which is shorter to read: A Drink Before the War or The Blue Ice?
The Blue Ice is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Blue Ice (246 pages, ≈ 4 h 33 m); A Drink Before the War (324 pages, ≈ 6 h 00 m).
Which is harder to read: A Drink Before the War or The Blue Ice?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — A Drink Before the War: Moderate; The Blue Ice: Challenging.