Reviews

The Liar by Stephen Fry

tonytharakan's review against another edition

3.0

I wish I hadn't read Fry's autobiography first. In his best-selling first novel, the British actor begins with "not one word of the following is true," but the irreverent schoolboy that he conjures up is unmistakably Fry himself. True, the disjointed narrative and the spy angle also spoilt "The Liar" for me. But if you haven't read anything by Fry yet, you might find this a breezy read.

0rph3us's review against another edition

3.0

I don't really need to summarize this book, as it has been done by people far more capable who are actually able to tell you what was going on in The Liar.
Meanwhile, I did not fully grasp it. I read a review on here that stated that The Liar did not fully understood in what genre it belonged. I do beg to differ and think that the book was very aware of all the genres it was, but that sometimes it was trying to do too much, which has held it back in the end.
I did thoroughly enjoy it and the story left me speechless on multiple occasions. But the choppy skips through time and the spy subplot often confused and left me turned around. This did made the final reveal all the more satisfactory when all the little details forgotten about came together.
I would recommend The Liar, if you are looking for a quick-ish, classically tinted read (I would read the book again in one sitting, because forgetting what happened in between chapters does not help the sometimes confusing structure). The story is extremely funny and incredibly British. Stephen Fry is, in my opinion, a linguistic genius and one of the funniest people to grace this earth.

meganstreb's review against another edition

4.0

Really enjoyed it, although a bit hard to follow at times.
Twists were a bit irritating, but overall would recommend to people who want a fairly heavy mystery.

wesleyrose's review against another edition

2.0

A friend gave me this book and wanted to see what I thought of it. I’m beginning to think my friend was pranking me because this book was not good. It follows Adrian Healey through his escapades at school, where he weaves intricate stories, gets himself into trouble and makes friends with Professor Trefusis. Adrien witnesses a murder, and suddenly his life seems to be one misadventure after another.

I recently read [b:The Catcher in the Rye|5107|The Catcher in the Rye|J.D. Salinger|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1398034300l/5107._SY75_.jpg|3036731] and The Liar felt like a worse version of that. The plot was hard t follow and disorganized. I hate-read about a third of this novel so that it would be done. There were a few parts I liked. There is a pretty good twist in the book that was expected but still played out well. The dialogue was quick and funny, which I appreciated. And professor Trefusis often spouted some fantastic monologues. But overall, the word choice and vibe of the book were very pretentious.

I’m so happy it’s over, and I can read better things.

macnchz's review against another edition

2.0

I wanted to like this a lot, because I really like Stephen Fry. However, it took a long time to get to any parts that interested me. And then those parts were short. There were pieces of this book I liked, but overall I was just not that interested.

letsreadmorebooks's review against another edition

2.0

stephen fry is a national treasure in britain and rightfully so. his delightful (and naughty) dry wit comes through in his book. he's got a brilliant command of the english language and shows it off in his writing. (by which i mean, he uses lots of fancy words. i'm assuming he uses them correctly because he's stephen fry.) however, i had a hard time getting into the story and found the nonlinear narrative confusing. i really wanted to like this book, but, meh.

yoav's review against another edition

4.0

זהו סיפורו של אדריאן, בחור שמעביר את חייו בפנימיה, בקיימבריגד' ובעולם בכלל באמצעות חן אישי ושקרים, הוא פוגש בשלב כלשהו פרופ' מתוחכם לאנגלית ויחד הם נוגעים לא נוגעים באיזו פרשת ריגול וזה בערך מה שניתן לספר. פריי, כמו בספרים מאוחרים שלו, משחק בין הזמנים קווי העלילה, מסווה את הדמויות עד הרגע האחרון ומפציץ ברפרנסים לתרבות גבוהה ונמוכה.
אז הספר משעשע, סוחף, מעניין וגם מרגיז כי כולו שקר על שקר על שקר.
זה לא הספר הכי טוב שלו. "עושים היסטוריה" הוא למעשה שכלול של הספר הזה, אבל "לא הכי טוב" של פריי זה עדיין נהדר.

chloecc15's review against another edition

medium-paced

3.25

imposterwalrus's review against another edition

mysterious medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

monicatdwyer's review against another edition

5.0

Oh man, this was 100-100 the whole time