I was excited to watch this series after finishing the book. It's to be expected that any adaptation will take creative liberties, so I won't criticize the show too much for that.
Viewed purely as its own piece of work, this show is just okay. As in the book, the best parts come after the murders have started and the characters have a chance to bounce off each other. Unfortunately, this doesn't really happen until about halfway through the series, and even then the interactions are too sparse. The show aims for mood and style over substance, with a slow, quiet tone, and characters who spend more time brooding than talking. Not inherently a bad change from the book, but it falls flat in this case.
There is one unforgivable alteration made from the source material: Philip Lombard. In the book, Lombard is a cheeky, quick-talking, clever man who never has a dull line of dialogue. He's the highlight of the book. In the show, Lombard is dark, quiet, and sullen. It's a baffling character choice when the book provides so much great material to work with.
Viewed purely as its own piece of work, this show is just okay. As in the book, the best parts come after the murders have started and the characters have a chance to bounce off each other. Unfortunately, this doesn't really happen until about halfway through the series, and even then the interactions are too sparse. The show aims for mood and style over substance, with a slow, quiet tone, and characters who spend more time brooding than talking. Not inherently a bad change from the book, but it falls flat in this case.
There is one unforgivable alteration made from the source material: Philip Lombard. In the book, Lombard is a cheeky, quick-talking, clever man who never has a dull line of dialogue. He's the highlight of the book. In the show, Lombard is dark, quiet, and sullen. It's a baffling character choice when the book provides so much great material to work with.