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malagajames's review
4.0
A haunting french story that was hard to put down. Reminded me of Stephen King's Misery
happy_hiker's review against another edition
2.0
I was stuck without a book and was able to check this out from the library and read it on my phone. I had read a good review about the book and it was short, so I gave it a try. I read the first 1/2 of the book on my phone and the remainder on my ipad, as it made for easier reading.
About the book - it was easy to read, and there were some wonderful turns of phrase. I thought the story had a decent build up and I was not as enthralled by the last 1/3 of the book and was a bit disappointed at the end.
About the book - it was easy to read, and there were some wonderful turns of phrase. I thought the story had a decent build up and I was not as enthralled by the last 1/3 of the book and was a bit disappointed at the end.
Spoiler
The last book I read was about a woman being held hostage and as that book was longer, there was a lot more character development - Martine may have been mentally ill because she killed Madeleine and the elderly couple, but I didn't see that coming. And in the end, it just ended with a thud -- Fabien tells authorities that Martine killed some people and held me hostage and Martine agrees to his version of events. The end.debumere's review
4.0
I picked this up at the Airport (I know, I hear you groaning too) and was quite delighted to see it was French. I have been enjoying European writers of late and I'm ashamed to say I had never heard of this author.
The book was paced well and screamed of Stephen King's 'Misery'. I'm hoping that was just coincidental and it does only happen towards the end.
Good read.
The book was paced well and screamed of Stephen King's 'Misery'. I'm hoping that was just coincidental and it does only happen towards the end.
Good read.
raven88's review
5.0
I think that it is probably a given that I am an ardent admirer of the work of the late, lamented Pascal Garnier, with his small, yet perfectly formed, dark slices of fiction that always put the less savoury aspects of the human psyche so succinctly under the microscope. Drawing comparisons to Georges Simenon and Patricia Highsmith, Garnier was a prolific author of more that sixty works, and a true master of the surreal noir thriller. Having previously reviewed The A26, and having also read The Panda Theory, How’s The Pain? and Moon In A Dead Eye, one of my favourite imprints, Gallic Books, have now released The Front Seat Passenger.
As you can see from the synopsis, the premise is simple enough, with a man discovering the infidelity of his wife, and her death occuring in the company of her lover. However, in the spirit of Garnier’s twisted and grimly humorous style, does Fabien merely retreat into a wave of self-pity and grief from the discovery of this affair? No- he seeks retribution by pursuing Martine, the widow of his wife’s lover, and what we bear witness to is a man that is entirely disengaged with the emotions of grief, and hellbent on his own twisted motives for revenge. With his Machiavellian plotting to woo Martine, and extricate her from the overbearing influence of her best friend Madeleine, Garnier produces some singularly absurd moments, that have you laughing and cringing in equal measure. However, this being a trademark example of the grim and disconcerting narratives that Garnier produces, the tables are swiftly turned on the scheming Fabien in a truly surprising fashion.
It is this ability of Garnier to insert the ridiculous and the horrific in fairly normal aspects of life and turns of events that set him so far apart from his contemporaries. His books are slim, but contain an expansive scope of the deepest and most dislikeable characteristics of his protagonists, but not so far removed that they do not strike some sort of chord or recognition from his readers. By focusing on the essential and most destructive aspects of human emotions and employing his style of writing, the familiar is made familiar, where we can recognise our own emotions, but also unfamilliar in the way that his protagonists deal with, and react to, these emotions. Thus, the absurd situations that arise are merely an extension of how some people would react in situations like these, but taken to a whole new existential level, in an effort to resonate with the natural wit and intelligence of his readers. The ordinary is made extraordinary, and our reading pleasure is amplified because of this, punctuated as it is by moments of dark humour, and moral revulsion.
Alluding to the writing style of Garnier himself, these are slim works of genius and little more needs to be said. Fin.
As you can see from the synopsis, the premise is simple enough, with a man discovering the infidelity of his wife, and her death occuring in the company of her lover. However, in the spirit of Garnier’s twisted and grimly humorous style, does Fabien merely retreat into a wave of self-pity and grief from the discovery of this affair? No- he seeks retribution by pursuing Martine, the widow of his wife’s lover, and what we bear witness to is a man that is entirely disengaged with the emotions of grief, and hellbent on his own twisted motives for revenge. With his Machiavellian plotting to woo Martine, and extricate her from the overbearing influence of her best friend Madeleine, Garnier produces some singularly absurd moments, that have you laughing and cringing in equal measure. However, this being a trademark example of the grim and disconcerting narratives that Garnier produces, the tables are swiftly turned on the scheming Fabien in a truly surprising fashion.
It is this ability of Garnier to insert the ridiculous and the horrific in fairly normal aspects of life and turns of events that set him so far apart from his contemporaries. His books are slim, but contain an expansive scope of the deepest and most dislikeable characteristics of his protagonists, but not so far removed that they do not strike some sort of chord or recognition from his readers. By focusing on the essential and most destructive aspects of human emotions and employing his style of writing, the familiar is made familiar, where we can recognise our own emotions, but also unfamilliar in the way that his protagonists deal with, and react to, these emotions. Thus, the absurd situations that arise are merely an extension of how some people would react in situations like these, but taken to a whole new existential level, in an effort to resonate with the natural wit and intelligence of his readers. The ordinary is made extraordinary, and our reading pleasure is amplified because of this, punctuated as it is by moments of dark humour, and moral revulsion.
Alluding to the writing style of Garnier himself, these are slim works of genius and little more needs to be said. Fin.
han_cat's review
4.0
Dark, sinister & twisted - recommended for lovers of Simenon, Spark and Highsmith. Unique voice throughout with quirky descriptions that woked very well, also strong sense of place. If you enjoy unlikeable characters and the macabre then pick this up!
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