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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
This book was for me very hard to get in to. The first hundred or so pages see the narrator, Charles Arrowby, reminisce on his life and former relationships in a way that is quite misogynistic and rarely compelling. A retired actor, Charles writes from a house on the coast which he has recently moved to, and aside from a few odd incidents involving visions of sea creatures and ghostly goings on in the night, nothing much is happening in his life.
However, this section proves to be an assembling of characters which are to appear later in the novel when the real drama begins. By some freak coincidence, Charles comes across his long lost childhood love living in the same village as him, and immediately begins a kind of mission to win her back.
Although the first section of the book took me weeks to complete, once I'd reached this part I finished it in a couple of days. There is something comic about the way the characters from Charles' past call up at his house one after another and something fantastically entertaining about how they all become involved in his latest saga. With spying, breaking and entering, kidnap and attempted murder mixed in with tea parties and sunbathing, there is certainly a lot going on by the end of the book. Though Charles never becomes likeable, his life at least becomes engaging.
If I was judging the book by the later part, I'd give it a higher rating, but the long winded introduction and a little noise around the end leave it on three stars.
However, this section proves to be an assembling of characters which are to appear later in the novel when the real drama begins. By some freak coincidence, Charles comes across his long lost childhood love living in the same village as him, and immediately begins a kind of mission to win her back.
Although the first section of the book took me weeks to complete, once I'd reached this part I finished it in a couple of days. There is something comic about the way the characters from Charles' past call up at his house one after another and something fantastically entertaining about how they all become involved in his latest saga. With spying, breaking and entering, kidnap and attempted murder mixed in with tea parties and sunbathing, there is certainly a lot going on by the end of the book. Though Charles never becomes likeable, his life at least becomes engaging.
If I was judging the book by the later part, I'd give it a higher rating, but the long winded introduction and a little noise around the end leave it on three stars.
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
funny
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
If you ask me, there is only one good thing that can be done with food - eat it. I can never understand people talking about food, cooking it or even writing books about it. So Charles rambling for several pages about food was one big put down. And seriously the whole book seems a collection of big rambles. The plot seemed too forced. The coincidences are one too many and, apart from a few rare and scattered quotes, I seriously can't understand what got this book Man Booker prize.
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I enjoyed it, I had to time when I read it as I felt the suspense and I didn't want it close to bed time! The characters are interesting but unknowable really. Although it's quite psychological. I wanted the main (bad) character to 'win'.
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes