Reviews

Trust by Hernán Díaz

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pdasgupt's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

anle's review against another edition

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challenging medium-paced

4.0

jv_diez's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

The story within a story is a resource I always take with great pleasure. The puzzle comes up slowly, but then picks up momentum until it comes together at the end

tumblehawk's review against another edition

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4.0

This was a journey. The book consists of four different fictional texts that are all in dialogue with one another. I found the first section mutedly enjoyable, almost fell asleep during the second, riveted during the third, and the fourth felt transcendental. I imagine many people start this book and never finish it or get past the first two sections, but it’s kinda the point. So much here about who gets to tell whose story, how wealth and power are used to shape narratives, about the mystique of ‘great men.’ In the end I rather loved it.

ruibao's review against another edition

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mysterious slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

pineconek's review against another edition

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challenging emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.75

This book was far out of my comfort zone. Finances/business largely disinterest me, and I doubted I'd sit through a book focused on rich people's experiences of the financial crash of 1929.

This book is structured to tell the story 4 times, through 4 difference lenses and with 4 different sets of motivations. I won't spoil the experience beyond that, because finding out the details of who is narrating the story and why is half the fun. I did however take a long break when reading this book, pausing after the first section and not reading the other three until a month later. This unintended pause (caused by my mismanagement of library loans) accentuated the experience, and I would highly recommend taking breaks between sections to let them percolate.

Trust touches on some great themes that kept me engaged: family secrecy, hidden talent, ambition, mental illness, loss, anticipatory grief, betrayal (in family and in love), a belief in one's own righteousness, and a fight for controlling the narrative.

Recommended if you're interested in a slow paced story exploring the above and are willing to emotionally invest in a book that ultimately leaves things somewhat ambiguous. The audiobook cast did a wonderful job bringing this story to life. 3.75 stars on SG rounded up to 4 on GR.