A Drink Before the War vs The Color of Death: 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 Color of Death
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From the number-one New York Times bestselling author and FOX News host Trey Gowdy comes a dark mystery debut about a murder in a small South Carolina town. Assistant DA Colm Truesdale must pick up the pieces of his own…
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate The Color of Death highest: The Color of Death 4.5 · A Drink Before the War 3.9.
- A Drink Before the War has the widest readership — 47863 ratings behind its score.
- A Drink Before the War runs the darker storyline; The Color of Death stays the lighter read.
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How to choose
Scores by source
| A Drink Before the War | The Color of Death | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 3.9 (47863) | — |
| Hardcover | 3.8 (96) | 3.2 (2) |
| Google Books | 4.0 (1) | — |
| Apple Books | 4.0 (547) | 4.5 (418) |
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Reception
| A Drink Before the War | The Color of Death | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 47863 | 418 |
| Editions | — | 5 |
| Citations | 1 | — |
| Film adaptations | 1 | — |
| Want to read | 29407 | — |
| Reading it now | 2884 | — |
| Written reviews | 2798 | — |
| Wikipedia attention | 1278 | 213 |
| Pages | 324 | 288 |
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Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: A Drink Before the War or The Color of Death?
The Color of Death has the higher combined reader rating across sources (The Color of Death 4.5/5, A Drink Before the War 3.9/5).
Which is shorter to read: A Drink Before the War or The Color of Death?
The Color of Death is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: The Color of Death (288 pages, ≈ 5 h 20 m); A Drink Before the War (324 pages, ≈ 6 h 00 m).
Which is harder to read: A Drink Before the War or The Color of Death?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — A Drink Before the War: Moderate; The Color of Death: Moderate.