6.82k reviews for:

Atonement

Ian McEwan

3.92 AVERAGE


I enjoyed this book a lot. Especially the Robbie-parts. They were the best. What ruined it a little for me was that McEwan describes waay too much. I do not need to know what every book on Robbie's desk is called, man!

The way the writing switches between narration and contemplation, plot and thought, almost seamlessly, exactly the way thoughts shift in a person's mind, the way Ian McEwan's written this book, is BRILLIANT. I had watched (and liked) the movie before I read this, but I can now see it was just a shade of this wonderful book. I LOVE this book.
emotional reflective sad slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
reflective sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Well it's not a mystery, that's for sure. There's no element of suspense in the least. The different parts are a little jumpy, and that makes it difficult to understand what's going on right away. But the imagery is fascinating.
sad tense medium-paced
challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
reflective sad medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

i tricked myself into thinking what was gonna happen wasn’t going to. so the last chapter hit like a ton of bricks even though i knew :( mcewan has such control over his use of language it’s truly mesmerising 
emotional reflective tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Extremely descriptive to the point where it’s gets a bit slow to read, otherwise good