Kaleidoscope (Madame Karitska)

Having read 'The Claivoyant Countess', I was eager for more. The delight of finding 'Kaleidoscope' was a follow on was not disappointed by the story. I loved it. I wonder if there is any hope of a third?
A really good read.

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Kaleidoscope is a most unusual novel in several senses. First, the style is quite unlike the author's most famous work, the stories about Mrs. Pollifax. Second, Kaleidoscope creates a series based a book first written 25 years ago -- The Clairvoyant Countess. Third, the book doesn't exactly fit any genre I can remember. Fourth, the main appeal of the book is the way that the heroine cares about her neighbors and seeks to help them, far beyond the call of duty or the requests of solving crimes (the traditional focus of crime and mystery books). Fifth, the book is filled with story threads, many of which are linked together in a way that almost defies description. Sixth, although there is nothing really humorous in the book, you will come away feeling remarkably light-hearted. Seventh, the heroine makes progress through psychic powers of the sort that police are reputed to use in many kidnapping cases, yet the stories use this to advance the plot rather than to rest solutions upon it.
So come to this book with an open mind, and expect to be surprised. If you do, I think you will be pleased.
I liked Madame Karistka very much as a character, and would be delighted if Ms. Gilman were to write a long series of books about her. She has a heart as big as her mind is sharp, which is an unusual combination in a novel these days.
The basic story line is that Madame Karitska has psychic powers that primarily manifest themselves as psychometry ("devination of facts concerning an object or its owner through contact with or to the object") or clairvoyance ("to perceive matter beyond the range of normal perception"). She has fallen on hard times economically and lives in a poor neighborhood where crime is a problem. Through her friendship with Detective Lieutenant Pruden, she is called into cases and able to draw upon the police as allies to solve problems that she uncovers. She prefers to use her powers to add information about the past and the present, rather then the future. She wants people to make their own futures. Her occupation is giving "readings" for whatever the client is willing or able to pay. These readings introduce her to unusual mysteries and strange characters, which add spice and intrigue to the novel.
Does your neighborhood have someone like Madame Karitska who tries to help people solve their problems? If not, what could you do to fill that role?
Help build positive connections wherever you see the potential for them!

This world we live in is altogether spiralling down the tubes. This book was able to lift my spirits for the few evenings I was able to read. Our world needs more Dorothy Gilmans and real Madame Karitskas. Well done.

I found this sequel to the Clairvoyant Countess rather grim and lacking in the charm of the original. Although set in present-day, the novel is written as though the events of the older book happened within the past year or so. The characters are much less engaging than in the original, pale imitations of themselves, and although most of the original cast appear, there are also new characters who are seem significant but are lacking depth or explanation--Mme. Karitska appears to have some history with Daniel but he hadn't been mentioned at all in the first book, set just a year or so earlier.
What I miss most in this book is Mme. Karitska's spiritual perspective. She seems too much of this world, too grounded in the reality of the daily grind, with a background of cults and terrorism. Where is the Mme. Karitska who said a lost kitten can have cosmic significance?
I assume the title is taken from a comment she made to Pruden in the original novel, about how your perspective would change like a kaleidoscope picture if only you would let it. I didn't like the perspective this kaleidoscope offers.

Psychic Madame Karitska uses her psychometry (ability to learn about a person by touching something that they owned or held) to help the police and her clients. A wide range of people from all walks of life find their way into her storefront office and Karitska gives them all coffee, tea, or chocolate, then deals with their problems as best she can. Although not all results are positive, Karitska manages to help her clients avoid a wide range of far worse fates.
Author Dorothy Gilman offers a kaleidoscope of human life as a wide range of clients bring their problems to Karitska. Through Karitska, most learn about themselves rather than about their supposed questions--and that, of course, is the point.
Gilman's writing is simplistic. KALEIDOSCOPE is approachable by young readers and may seem somewhat too simple for adult readers. Still, the novel has its rewards and, in many ways, Karitska is a charming character.

I loved Clairvoyant Countess, but in this sequel, Ms. Gilman isn't even trying to tell a good story. It's a jumble of quick pyschic fixes, with no emotion or even characterization. Consider this exchange:
Madame Karitska: "His letter has made me very sad for him, it touched me deeply."
Detective Lieutenent Pruden: "It affected me as well, and if this is true, and I feel it true, there will be two people who don't think ill of him."
Is that the way you'd expect a detective to talk? Ugh. Everybody speaks in the same voice.
And supsense? Forget it. Everything is cut and dried. Even in a climactic scene where a bad guy pulls his gun, there is no suspense whatsoever. Madame Karitska just "sighed," and promptly bonked him on the head.
The biggest events happen behind-the-scenes and are only mentioned vaguely and without any excitement. The novel includes big things - evil scientist plots, brainwashing cults, long-held secrets, love and romance, and somehow manages to paint them all as dull as dull and to solve them all as easy as pie.
I am a big fan of Ms. Gilman's earlier work - the original Pollifax novels, Clairvoyant Countess, the Nun in the Closet, the Tightrope Walker (she should reread this to remember how she used to write suspense and emotion), but at this point she's barely trying.

I rated this book four stars but thought about giving it only three as I read it in about 2 hours one rainy Sunday. This is the second appearance of Madame Karitska, her first being in "The Clairvoyant Countess."
It is more of a series of very short stories with psychic Karitska being the tie that binds them together. Most of the stories are told without a lot of characterization, but that did not distract me too much. For some reason, maybe having read every fiction book that Ms. Gilman has written helped, I was able to color the characters myself and they did not seem so one-dimensional.
I would recommend this book to those fans of Gilman's, especially if they enjoyed the first book from years ago that featured Karitska.

Fun and undemanding, this sequel to the Clarivoyant Countess is definitely "lite" reading, but enjoyable if you disengage your sense of disbelief before starting. Some inconsistencies with the first story annoyed me, (in Kaleidoscope Madam Karitska explains why she does not have and will not get a phone, yet in the first book she does have a phone. And how does one make appointments in this day and age without one?)
Don't expect a great literary experience, but it's not an unpleasant way to spend some time. I recommend it for "waiting reading": suitable for airports, doctors' offices, etc.

Don't be put off that the main character, Countess Karitska, is a clairvoyant. Her character is delightful - strong and sensitive and thoughtful. Oh and a strong dash of humour. Gilman's other creation, Mrs Pollifax, has always appealed to me - a kind of gentle fish out of water. And in a way Countess Karitska is the same. Nothing too grim, although there are references to current issues. Highly recommended.

When we sadly finished with the Mrs Pollifax series we still needed some of the fun that Dorithy Gilman brought to her stories. The characters are very like able and it's an easy read. My only regret .... Ms Gilman is no longer with us to write her delightful novels.

Sequel to "The Clairvoyant Countess" Gilman's protagonist, Madam Karitska touches the lives of a wide variety of people including that of Detective-Lieutenant Pruden again.

The book is once more a connected series of short stories about her clients and several aquaintances. Some story lines touch only briefly on Madam Karitska before progressing to their conclusions but she has her effect on the outcome.

I liked the book and its predecessor, but then, I haven't yet read anything by this author that failed to entertain me. 4 stars because I don't want to go over the top in my recommendations.

I actually bought this book new in a hardcover. Dorothy Gilman is one of my favorite authors. Aside from the fact that it just wasn't long enough, I enjoyed dipping into the life of Countess Karitska again. I loved the format of many little stories tucked into the main tale.
I had written to Dorothy Gilman years ago asking for another countess story. She replied that she had been working on one. The wait (25 years) was almost worth it. My preference would have been 25 stories about the countess but it was a delightful story. I devoured it in one sitting. I've loaned it out already but will read it again when it is returned.

This is a well-written book, with a fascinating theme. Many people like to speculate on the ability to see into the future; Dorothy Gilman deals with this theme by telling the adventures of a woman who is a medium.

I had to keep reading to find what was happening next.

Other reviewers have already elaborated on why it is disappointing. It's probably the weakest Gilman book I have read. If you approach it without any expectations, however, it still can be an entertaining and (very) light reading.

Other reviewers have already elaborated on why it is disappointing. It's probably the weakest Gilman book I have read. If you approach it without any expectations, however, it still can be an entertaining and (very) light reading.