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megs_k's review
4.0
That's the whole thing----the distance between desire and action, between what you want and what you do. ~ Alexander Maksik
meghan111's review
3.0
Only the French could take the sordid story of a high school teacher's affair with his student and make it mostly about the essential meaninglessness of life. It made me want to read some Camus; the teacher's senior seminar on existentialism was integrated well into the rest of the tale. Told from three different perspectives, this novel is engaging, exotically Parisian, and a fast read about an international high school and the relationship between a teacher and student.
hellomei's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
3.75
really enjoyed the writing though i feel like it was engaging but not fulfilling. all the setup and great details of the start kind of fizzled out by the end — like the author just wanted to finish writing the story. lol. anyway it was fun, and i’m surprised i liked it despite usually being a Multiple POV Hater. it didn’t feel annoying at all, and was in fact a page turner and an easy read! and i liked the characters, even though i couldn’t really get a read on will. marie was fine, gilad was the most relatable/likeable of the narrators. my favorite side characters were mia and hala, and i ended up having a soft spot for colin. i also watched itsv in between reading this so i ended up picturing gwen as marie and peter B as will. i don’t ship it but it just happened
sonia_reppe's review
3.0
This is told in three alternating voices. I liked Gilad's voice the best; there was good writing in Gilad's parts.
Marie's voice was kind of annoying.
Will, the teacher, was developed slowly; what I came to understand from him is that he thought life was meaningless, so I didn't really care for him; yet I was glad at the end when he didn't apologize. Of course I would've preferred the love affair to be more passionate (and for him to actually be in love) but what we have here is realistic, so OK.
Marie's voice was kind of annoying.
Will, the teacher, was developed slowly; what I came to understand from him is that he thought life was meaningless, so I didn't really care for him; yet I was glad at the end when he didn't apologize. Of course I would've preferred the love affair to be more passionate (and for him to actually be in love) but what we have here is realistic, so OK.
mclinc's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
naridhi's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
lola425's review
3.0
Grim book. The main characters seemed to float through the narrative, everything they did lacked passion, in a story that should have at least been a little bit about passion. I didn't even get any feeling of lust from Silver regarding Marie. I did like the alternating points of view, really illustrates how an event can be perceived completely differently by different people at the same time. Still, a little grim.
mikchara's review
3.0
3.5.
Interesting plot, nice character development, decently written. I enjoyed it, but it was missing something. I should also start remembering that the ending of every student-teacher affair story line is always the same, and save myself that little nugget of disappointment.
Interesting plot, nice character development, decently written. I enjoyed it, but it was missing something. I should also start remembering that the ending of every student-teacher affair story line is always the same, and save myself that little nugget of disappointment.