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angelmuse's review against another edition
challenging
funny
mysterious
slow-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
4.0
kumipaul's review against another edition
3.0
No big surprises here, which is a bit disappointing for a book about plotting and committing a murder. The buildup was a bit slow, but the action sequence and escape was at least interesting. I was entertained by the author's prose and his breaking the fourth wall to talk to the "dear reader". Not time wasted in reading this at all, but not a thrill ride either.
organelle's review against another edition
4.0
a comedic semi tribute to crime and punishment, very fun!
batbones's review against another edition
3.0
Protagonist chances upon who he thinks of as his miraculous uncanny double, and commits a crime that leads him slowly into a funnel of utter paranoia and near-madness. This reader cannot help thinking, hasn't she seen this before? A clever use of tropes and metafictionality (the story is told in the same time-span that it is being written; references to other Russian writers and Russian lit plot conventions, the cinema) but what pleasure that can be felt is confined to the cerebral, the entertainment of paradoxes and potential, the realm of ideas that does not quite stir the heart. For a novel titled Despair, it is the character alone who feels it.
debonairsaltydog's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
mrears0_0's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
rachel_the_managing_editor's review against another edition
4.0
3.9 stars
Why don't I read more Nabokov? Why don't we all?
John Updike said this: "Nabokov writes prose the only way it should be written, that is, ecstatically."
Yes.
There aren't many authors who possess the ability to write a murder scene that can accurately be described as "great fun" (to borrow Nabokov's words from the intro).
Do not let the title of this book scare you. Despair is a delight. A bit slow moving at times, but the puns and non sequiturs make up for the lag. I had my worries about how he'd wrap it up, but he delivered.
Why don't I read more Nabokov? Why don't we all?
John Updike said this: "Nabokov writes prose the only way it should be written, that is, ecstatically."
Yes.
There aren't many authors who possess the ability to write a murder scene that can accurately be described as "great fun" (to borrow Nabokov's words from the intro).
Do not let the title of this book scare you. Despair is a delight. A bit slow moving at times, but the puns and non sequiturs make up for the lag. I had my worries about how he'd wrap it up, but he delivered.
jessieroses's review against another edition
5.0
Nabokov's writing style thrives in this, it feels like being inside his brain and reading his personal thoughts.