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ksturgess's review against another edition
4.0
This is a reworking of the original novel, that I picked up back in 1999, and I was curious about the new introduction and how the setting was moved to a different time period (the original was set around the early 90s; now reworked to the 1930s). It's slightly briefer, the story is therefore a little pacier but the comparisons to The Secret History (also a hit at the time) remain upon revisiting. A slow burn psychological thriller.
julziez's review against another edition
4.0
Everyone alive today will or has already felt the haunt of growing old. We’ll all tremble at the thought of regrets and maybe even fear the sweeping hand of death. When we approach the end we will all look back on our lives, pose ‘what if’s to ourselves and wonder what would, should, could have been. The aging James Farrell is no different from us. He knows his time is coming; His judgement day is dawning. He also knows that what has happened has happened and no amount of urging will make his younger self choose a different path when entering the crossroads of life.
When James was twenty-one years old he was just breaking into life. He was embarking on an existence separate from the one he had shared with his parents for so long and he was finally becoming the man he had been waiting to turn into. There was no way he could have seen how life changing his meeting Ella in the park could be for him. Maybe if he had seen the devastating outcome he wouldn’t have sat down on the bench with her and maybe he wouldn’t have let himself be pulled into her tornado of family politics and hatred spanning generations. Unfortunately, all James saw was a gorgeous woman alone and seemingly distressed and, being the young man that he was, he couldn’t just pass up this opportunity. So began the downward spiral of young James’s life. But how was he to know?
The Drowning People is told from elderly James’s memories of all the events that led to his eventual and fatal punishment of his wife, Sarah. Due to the strange inner workings of the human mind, some of James’s memories are blurry and undefined while others that seem far less important are bizarrely sharp and distinct but what stands above all else is the truth and his firm belief that we will all be punished in the end.
Richard Mason constructs an extraordinary story with resounding themes of family, trust, hatred, justice and the overwhelming influence of love. The characters’ lives intertwine flawlessly and yet their very connections seem to be the cause of their eventual downfalls. At some times told in a voice dripping with regret and others times with a superiority that one could only feel when they’ve reached the end, The Drowning People exhibits Robert Mason’s expertise in the fields of human regret and that urge to reach back in time to just explain to your younger self all the things they should have known before they had to make the decisions of their lives. It’s spectacular writing with a haunting underlying reality.
When James was twenty-one years old he was just breaking into life. He was embarking on an existence separate from the one he had shared with his parents for so long and he was finally becoming the man he had been waiting to turn into. There was no way he could have seen how life changing his meeting Ella in the park could be for him. Maybe if he had seen the devastating outcome he wouldn’t have sat down on the bench with her and maybe he wouldn’t have let himself be pulled into her tornado of family politics and hatred spanning generations. Unfortunately, all James saw was a gorgeous woman alone and seemingly distressed and, being the young man that he was, he couldn’t just pass up this opportunity. So began the downward spiral of young James’s life. But how was he to know?
The Drowning People is told from elderly James’s memories of all the events that led to his eventual and fatal punishment of his wife, Sarah. Due to the strange inner workings of the human mind, some of James’s memories are blurry and undefined while others that seem far less important are bizarrely sharp and distinct but what stands above all else is the truth and his firm belief that we will all be punished in the end.
Richard Mason constructs an extraordinary story with resounding themes of family, trust, hatred, justice and the overwhelming influence of love. The characters’ lives intertwine flawlessly and yet their very connections seem to be the cause of their eventual downfalls. At some times told in a voice dripping with regret and others times with a superiority that one could only feel when they’ve reached the end, The Drowning People exhibits Robert Mason’s expertise in the fields of human regret and that urge to reach back in time to just explain to your younger self all the things they should have known before they had to make the decisions of their lives. It’s spectacular writing with a haunting underlying reality.
karenks's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book very much. Richard Mason's first novel was quite impressive. I was hooked from the first page. His characters jumped off the page, they seem so real to me. I also read The History of a Pleasure Seeker, which I also loved. I had the honor of meeting Richard Mason in April at Booktopia 2012 Vermont. I look forward to reading other novels by Mr. Mason.
karenks's review against another edition
4.0
I enjoyed this book very much. Richard Mason's first novel was quite impressive. I was hooked from the first page. His characters jumped off the page, they seem so real to me. I also read The History of a Pleasure Seeker, which I also loved. I had the honor of meeting Richard Mason in April at Booktopia 2012 Vermont. I look forward to reading other novels by Mr. Mason.
foxgloved's review against another edition
3.0
WHY NO ONE WARN ME THERE IS LGBT+ CHARACTER IN THIS BOOK?
I mean, I was sympathizing with protagonist till the staff he did to the poor boy, afterward, he is dead to me.
I do not care either about him, not about any female he is loving/hating.
And the finale a bit overrated to my taste if I can be perfectly honest.
This book is okay, but I didn't find anything special about it, except for the first sentence.
I mean, I was sympathizing with protagonist till the staff he did to the poor boy, afterward, he is dead to me.
I do not care either about him, not about any female he is loving/hating.
And the finale a bit overrated to my taste if I can be perfectly honest.
This book is okay, but I didn't find anything special about it, except for the first sentence.
booksdogsandjess's review against another edition
2.0
I did not like any of the characters at all. Most of them came off as quite pretentious and it seemed very predictable the outcome that is.
dozylocal's review
4.0
Firstly, I was delighted to discover that the author was born in SA and even started his schooling here. But that's completely irrelevant :)
I really enjoyed this book. Firstly, it was a whodunnit that was actually a whydunnit. The book starts with this guy who has killed his wife of 50-odd years and the entire book is about why he did it - starting with events from when he was in his early 20s.
I also really enjoyed the author's use of language. I'm not one for big and flowery words (usually the more straight-forward, the better, for me) but his words seemed to read in a roll-off-the-tongue kind of way.
Looking forward to reading another one of his books in the future :)
I really enjoyed this book. Firstly, it was a whodunnit that was actually a whydunnit. The book starts with this guy who has killed his wife of 50-odd years and the entire book is about why he did it - starting with events from when he was in his early 20s.
I also really enjoyed the author's use of language. I'm not one for big and flowery words (usually the more straight-forward, the better, for me) but his words seemed to read in a roll-off-the-tongue kind of way.
Looking forward to reading another one of his books in the future :)
sarah42783's review
1.0
Despite the rave reviews, I didn't like this book at all (as is often the case with over-hyped books these days). This is a so-called psychological mystery but I just didn't see the mystery in it. The characters are not likeable at all and very irritating...
bookslayer's review
dark
reflective
slow-paced
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
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