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balancinghistorybooks's review against another edition
2.0
I read this some years ago and wasn't overly enamoured with it, but I think it could certainly be time to pick it back up and challenge my younger self.
mangmangmang's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
lnatal's review against another edition
2.0
Returning to his University life, Mike Engleby becomes captivated by fellow student Jennifer Arkland. Read by Douglas Hodge.
NEXT ON:
Monday, 15:30 on BBC Radio 7
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00pbp0y
NEXT ON:
Monday, 15:30 on BBC Radio 7
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00pbp0y
tashachowdory's review against another edition
5.0
Faulks has a way of writing that leaves the darker side of human nature laid bare on its pages and you are intimately exposed to it. Whether this is a good or bad thing, I don't know. But what it does show that Faulks is an exemplary writer. Before this, I'd only ever read Birdsong (which was disturbing and sad on a whole other level). So I had a vague idea of what to expect with this one (ish).
On a basic level, Mike is a thirty-something writing retrospectively but for some reason there are a few blanks in the story - some of which are explained and some are not. But that's ok because we go on Mike's journey with him, with sympathize with him, in fact we become him (such is the strength of Faulks' writing) to the point where when the inevitable happens you're sat there in shock.
Most of all...it's just really really sad. And watching a character fall apart and put himself back together again is very difficult to read but you keep doing it anyway because you get sucked in, through layers of stark prose that are still poetic. Most of all I'm in awe as to how Faulk's manages to have about 3-4 different writing styles in the space on 1 book and manage to write those voices convincingly.
Absolutely brilliant!
On a basic level, Mike is a thirty-something writing retrospectively but for some reason there are a few blanks in the story - some of which are explained and some are not. But that's ok because we go on Mike's journey with him, with sympathize with him, in fact we become him (such is the strength of Faulks' writing) to the point where when the inevitable happens you're sat there in shock.
Most of all...it's just really really sad. And watching a character fall apart and put himself back together again is very difficult to read but you keep doing it anyway because you get sucked in, through layers of stark prose that are still poetic. Most of all I'm in awe as to how Faulk's manages to have about 3-4 different writing styles in the space on 1 book and manage to write those voices convincingly.
Absolutely brilliant!
apolasky's review against another edition
5.0
What a distressingly gripping psychological thriller with a Woolfian stream-of-conciousness narrative and a highly unreliable narrator!
Engleby is an uncomfortably relatable character. He’s the type of person with whom you wouldn’t want to have thoughts in common, but some of his deep and dark feelings hit a close to home.
Faulks’ amazing writing style manages to make the reader understand where the protagonist is coming from and why he feels the way he does.
You can’t help wanting to turn the page to know what’s going to happen next, or what has really happened in the past.
Highly recommended to readers looking for Gone Girl, You and Fight Club vibes.
Engleby is an uncomfortably relatable character. He’s the type of person with whom you wouldn’t want to have thoughts in common, but some of his deep and dark feelings hit a close to home.
Faulks’ amazing writing style manages to make the reader understand where the protagonist is coming from and why he feels the way he does.
You can’t help wanting to turn the page to know what’s going to happen next, or what has really happened in the past.
Highly recommended to readers looking for Gone Girl, You and Fight Club vibes.
ibeforem's review against another edition
4.0
Slight spoiler warning! This is one of those books that is difficult to discuss unless you give *some* indication of what’s going on.
When you meet Engleby, it doesn’t take long to realize that something is "off" about him. To me, he appears more "Asperger’s Syndrome" (especially because of his memorization skills) than "sociopath", but since you never get a definitive answer to the question, I suppose it could be either/or/both/somethingelse. And since Engleby is your narrator, you also aren’t sure what you should or shouldn’t believe. What isn’t said is sometimes more important than what is.
This was a decent read if you’re willing to make the investment. Sometimes Engleby’s train of thought is a little random, and I have to admit I found myself skimming several parts. And while I liked seeing the professionals’ assessments of Engleby (especially when followed up by his own narcissistic reactions to them), I could have done without "the journal of Engleby after 18 years of treatment". I think I would have rather left that to my imagination, though a sardonic wink to the reader at the end would have made it all worth it.
When you meet Engleby, it doesn’t take long to realize that something is "off" about him. To me, he appears more "Asperger’s Syndrome" (especially because of his memorization skills) than "sociopath", but since you never get a definitive answer to the question, I suppose it could be either/or/both/somethingelse. And since Engleby is your narrator, you also aren’t sure what you should or shouldn’t believe. What isn’t said is sometimes more important than what is.
This was a decent read if you’re willing to make the investment. Sometimes Engleby’s train of thought is a little random, and I have to admit I found myself skimming several parts. And while I liked seeing the professionals’ assessments of Engleby (especially when followed up by his own narcissistic reactions to them), I could have done without "the journal of Engleby after 18 years of treatment". I think I would have rather left that to my imagination, though a sardonic wink to the reader at the end would have made it all worth it.
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