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meganraison's review against another edition
2.0
The story line was disjointed. I read the whole book thinking that the author would pull it together into a cohesive whole but that never happened. Great potential but poor follow through.
richard212's review against another edition
adventurous
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
twopints's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
mikewa14's review against another edition
2.0
A bit dull and rambling - review here
http://0651frombrighton.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/waiting-for-sunrise-william-boyd.html
http://0651frombrighton.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/waiting-for-sunrise-william-boyd.html
algae429's review against another edition
3.0
This was not what I expected, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. It started out pretty existential, but when the mystery state coming together at the end, I found myself enjoying it.
jacki_f's review against another edition
4.0
This is an intriguing spy novel set in Vienna, London and Geneva between 1913-1915. The hero, Lysander Rief, is an English actor who travels to pre-war Austria for the purpose of undertaking the fledging business of psychotherapy. Despite having a fiancee at home in London, he embarks on an affair in Vienna. The fallout from this will have long-lasting repercussions in his life. I'm not going to describe any more of the plot than that, because it's the kind of book that you'll enjoy more if you don't know where it's taking you.
Lysander is an interesting character. He doesn't control much of what happens to him over the course of the book, but he meets challenges with an actor's flair for improvisation. At one point he comments that he feels like "invisible strings were being pulled by a person or persons unknown and that (he) was attached to their ends". The title of the book, "Waiting for Sunrise", refers both to literally waiting for the arrival of a new day (as he does on several occasions), but also to waiting for the clarity that comes when light is shone on things. Somewhat ironically, Lysander turns to psychotherapy in a bid to understand his problems but the solution will come from obfuscating real events. Later, when he needs to identify someone who is betraying their country, he must also do so through deception. Towards the end of the book Lysander believes that he has learned to live with uncertainty, but whether he actually has is in question. To add to the general theme of confusion, there is a huge amount of betrayal that takes place over the novel - both by Lysander and to Lysander. Only a couple of key characters maintain true to themselves for the entire book.
As always, Boyd's writing is rich in detail, bringing this time in history to life. As in Any Human Heart, he integrates some real life individuals into the story. It's a fascinating, twisting story that I liked very much.
Lysander is an interesting character. He doesn't control much of what happens to him over the course of the book, but he meets challenges with an actor's flair for improvisation. At one point he comments that he feels like "invisible strings were being pulled by a person or persons unknown and that (he) was attached to their ends". The title of the book, "Waiting for Sunrise", refers both to literally waiting for the arrival of a new day (as he does on several occasions), but also to waiting for the clarity that comes when light is shone on things. Somewhat ironically, Lysander turns to psychotherapy in a bid to understand his problems but the solution will come from obfuscating real events. Later, when he needs to identify someone who is betraying their country, he must also do so through deception. Towards the end of the book Lysander believes that he has learned to live with uncertainty, but whether he actually has is in question. To add to the general theme of confusion, there is a huge amount of betrayal that takes place over the novel - both by Lysander and to Lysander. Only a couple of key characters maintain true to themselves for the entire book.
As always, Boyd's writing is rich in detail, bringing this time in history to life. As in Any Human Heart, he integrates some real life individuals into the story. It's a fascinating, twisting story that I liked very much.
notizhefte's review against another edition
4.0
Flüssig und elegant geschrieben, mit einer guten Prise Humor. Die in der Tradition des Schelmenromans angelegten Episoden haben erkennbar nicht die Intention, jede Wendung auszuerzählen. Fragen bleiben unbeantwortet, manche Antworten sind brüchig. Der Roman spielt im Ersten Weltkrieg und die Moderne hat begonnen.
Mehr auf meinem Blog "Notizhefte": http://notizhefte.com/2021/01/08/eine-grose-zeit/
Mehr auf meinem Blog "Notizhefte": http://notizhefte.com/2021/01/08/eine-grose-zeit/
jdintr's review against another edition
4.0
A clever spy story that takes begins in Vienna on the eve of the First World War. Lysander Rief travels from London to seek help from the new therapy of psychoanalysis, but what he finds in fin de siecle Vienna is a "river of sex" that promises to do far more than cure his mama issues.
Just outside his therapist's office, Rief meets Hetty Bull, a seductive sculptor who casts him under her spell until dramatic events: a false rape charge, the death of the crown prince, send Rief back home to London and plunge Europe into a great war.
I read this book in advance of a trip to Vienna, and I really enjoyed the Viennese scenes and the peek into the pre-war era that it provides. Once the action moves to Britain, Rief's acting skills are put to the test as he is forced to uncover a spy embedded high in the British armed forces.
Waiting for Sunrise is more than a spy novel, more than a novel of place. It is a well-written, tightly paced, often surprising tale.
Just outside his therapist's office, Rief meets Hetty Bull, a seductive sculptor who casts him under her spell until dramatic events: a false rape charge, the death of the crown prince, send Rief back home to London and plunge Europe into a great war.
I read this book in advance of a trip to Vienna, and I really enjoyed the Viennese scenes and the peek into the pre-war era that it provides. Once the action moves to Britain, Rief's acting skills are put to the test as he is forced to uncover a spy embedded high in the British armed forces.
Waiting for Sunrise is more than a spy novel, more than a novel of place. It is a well-written, tightly paced, often surprising tale.
60degreesn's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyed early 19th century novel from Boyd. I found it quite comparable to Restless, better than Ordinary Thunderstorms, but slighter and without the weight of Any Human Heart, Brazzaville Beach , or New Confessions.
margaret21's review against another edition
4.0
Lysander Rief is an actor taking time in Vienna to sort out his sexual problems. Betrayed after a tempestuous love affair, he gets drawn into the First World War as an intelliegence officer in quest of a traitor. Though the morally ambiguous Rief is not an entirely attractive character, Boyd's sense of time and place and his weaving of a complex pacey and plausible plot makes for a compulsive page-turner. I got a bit lost at the end: I'm obviously not cut out for a career as any kind of intelligence officer. But who cares? I had a very good read.