The Man with Six Senses

I usually like these radium-era books but this one, while it was off to a pretty good start, ended up being just barely ok for me.

One of the things I enjoy about these types of books is the archaic use of language. While Jaeger displays strong command of the English language of her time, and the story concept is promising, the execution is where it just. falls. flat. The main problem is the narrator; he is such an insufferably self-centered pompous snob, (and the other characters are not much better), that this reader was left wondering with whom to identify. We also don't get to spend much time getting to know the titular character. He is only spoken of in the past tense via the diary entries of the narrator and our only view of him is colored by the narrator's opinion of him. As a result, the central conceit; a man who has an extra sense to perceive the physical world on the molecular level, is relegated to a third-person viewpoint.

In short; I didn't like any of the people in the story and the titular character remained on the periphery throughout. The eloquent writing style was not enough to make up for those two sizable deal-breakers.