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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
I haven't felt gut punched by a book in so long. I felt betrayal, love, guilt and just about everything the main character felt. The ending has me wanting so much more but the fact that it's up to the reader to determine if our lead will find any happiness after so long is in its own way kind of sweet
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
On the day he's released from prison, Oliver finds himself telling the real story of how he came to be incarcerated to the one who locked him. The truth plays out just like the productions he used to take part of as a student of Shakespeare. The stage is set, the actors know their parts, the story is clear...until it isn't. What happens when fiction and reality become intertwined? Who is left standing when the actors can't separate themselves from the roles they play?
As someone who has loved Shakespeare from a young age, M L Rio did such a fantastic job using his works to set up a world for these characters to play in. SO good, will definitely reread
As someone who has loved Shakespeare from a young age, M L Rio did such a fantastic job using his works to set up a world for these characters to play in. SO good, will definitely reread
dark
mysterious
reflective
This was a very unique book, I had never read a story like this before. I really enjoyed reading it and, although the passages of Shakespearean prose annoyed me at times, I felt it was still appropriate. I do not particularly enjoy poetry, but the way this book was written and its characters was fascinating. I like the idea that the characters were almost always in character. I read someone say that the group would switch on and off their Shakespearean characters as a way to speak in code.
I usually don’t like books that end in a way that is open to interpretation, but this one I didn’t mind as much. My own interpretation is that James is absolutely alive. The ending of the book was enough proof for me. However, I do believe that Oliver, as the “good” one in the group, is someone we are supposed to feel sorry for. At the end I felt sorry for Meredith, it felt as if after 10 years in prison Oliver was going to “betray” her again. The first time by not admitting his love for James while he was with her, and the second time as he is more than likely to disappear from her life and go after James. And this right after he had returned to her from prison, which she was just seemingly beginning to forgive him for. As much as I would have loved to see Oliver and James admit to themselves and each other their infatuation, I almost wish the story maintained the two as a type of friendship that transcends all and is not considered a “brotherhood” (which I feel is a more common book trope).
Overall this was fun to read and I remained curious throughout how it would end. There were quite a few times that I suspected James, but the way that the story was told was able to distract me enough to the point that the reveal was still enjoyable.
I usually don’t like books that end in a way that is open to interpretation, but this one I didn’t mind as much. My own interpretation is that James is absolutely alive. The ending of the book was enough proof for me. However, I do believe that Oliver, as the “good” one in the group, is someone we are supposed to feel sorry for. At the end I felt sorry for Meredith, it felt as if after 10 years in prison Oliver was going to “betray” her again. The first time by not admitting his love for James while he was with her, and the second time as he is more than likely to disappear from her life and go after James. And this right after he had returned to her from prison, which she was just seemingly beginning to forgive him for. As much as I would have loved to see Oliver and James admit to themselves and each other their infatuation, I almost wish the story maintained the two as a type of friendship that transcends all and is not considered a “brotherhood” (which I feel is a more common book trope).
Overall this was fun to read and I remained curious throughout how it would end. There were quite a few times that I suspected James, but the way that the story was told was able to distract me enough to the point that the reveal was still enjoyable.
slow-paced
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
review du 23/10/2020
“For someone who loved words as much as I did, it was amazing how often they failed me.”
Wow, ce livre... Je ne sais pas vraiment quoi dire à l'exception que cette histoire m'a détruite avec application en mille morceaux avant de me recoller grossièrement et de m'envoyer dans le monde. Je ne m'attendais pas à autant l'aimer, j'avais même peur d'avoir affaire à une pâle copie de The Secret History.
Que nenni. L'histoire d'Oliver, étudiant en quatrième année dans une école d'art élitiste et passionné de Shakespeare, même si assez semblable à celle de Richard (ils sont tous les deux un peu à l'écart, s'estiment moins doués que leurs amis), m'a paru bien plus intrigante et j'ai réussi à m'y identifier avec plus de facilité. Oliver est ce que l'on appelle un unreliable narrator, c'est-à-dire un narrateur à qui l'on ne peut pas faire confiance, qui est passé maître dans l'art de se mentir à lui-même, donc au lecteur par extension.
J'ai bien aimé le format dont l'histoire est narrée, sous forme d'actes et de scènes. Je ne suis guère sensible aux œuvres de Shakespeare, qui n'a jamais eu de signification particulière pour moi, mais j'ai été fascinée par l'importance qu'il a dans la vie des personnages. Ces sept étudiants, ces sept acteurs, sont arrivés à un point où ils sont incapables d'être eux-mêmes sans se cacher sous le masque des personnages qu'ils incarnent sur scène. Je suis certaine qu'un grand nombre de références et d'interprétations m'ont échappées, mais ça ne m'a pas empêché d'adorer ma lecture.
L'intrigue se déroule sur deux plans temporels : d'abord en 1997, l'année des événements, et dix ans plus tard, quand Oliver sort de prison et rencontre Cosborne, le policier qui l'y a envoyé pour lui raconter ce qui s'est vraiment passé. D'ordinaire, je n'aime pas ce genre de dualités, mais Cosborne est un personnage qui se démarque, et auquel je me suis beaucoup identifiée. Comme lui, j'ai mes doutes sur la culpabilité d'Oliver, et le profond désir de découvrir la vérité, si elle existe.
Ce livre a un pouvoir indéniable. Au rythme de ses quatre cents pages, on met tout en sourdine pour suivre ces sept amis, leurs relations, leurs passions, et le sombre secret qui les unit. Si le rythme peut paraître lent, je vous assure que la fin en vaut largement la peine, et qu'elle m'a tiré de magnifiques larmes.
“For someone who loved words as much as I did, it was amazing how often they failed me.”
Wow, ce livre... Je ne sais pas vraiment quoi dire à l'exception que cette histoire m'a détruite avec application en mille morceaux avant de me recoller grossièrement et de m'envoyer dans le monde. Je ne m'attendais pas à autant l'aimer, j'avais même peur d'avoir affaire à une pâle copie de The Secret History.
Que nenni. L'histoire d'Oliver, étudiant en quatrième année dans une école d'art élitiste et passionné de Shakespeare, même si assez semblable à celle de Richard (ils sont tous les deux un peu à l'écart, s'estiment moins doués que leurs amis), m'a paru bien plus intrigante et j'ai réussi à m'y identifier avec plus de facilité. Oliver est ce que l'on appelle un unreliable narrator, c'est-à-dire un narrateur à qui l'on ne peut pas faire confiance, qui est passé maître dans l'art de se mentir à lui-même, donc au lecteur par extension.
J'ai bien aimé le format dont l'histoire est narrée, sous forme d'actes et de scènes. Je ne suis guère sensible aux œuvres de Shakespeare, qui n'a jamais eu de signification particulière pour moi, mais j'ai été fascinée par l'importance qu'il a dans la vie des personnages. Ces sept étudiants, ces sept acteurs, sont arrivés à un point où ils sont incapables d'être eux-mêmes sans se cacher sous le masque des personnages qu'ils incarnent sur scène. Je suis certaine qu'un grand nombre de références et d'interprétations m'ont échappées, mais ça ne m'a pas empêché d'adorer ma lecture.
L'intrigue se déroule sur deux plans temporels : d'abord en 1997, l'année des événements, et dix ans plus tard, quand Oliver sort de prison et rencontre Cosborne, le policier qui l'y a envoyé pour lui raconter ce qui s'est vraiment passé. D'ordinaire, je n'aime pas ce genre de dualités, mais Cosborne est un personnage qui se démarque, et auquel je me suis beaucoup identifiée. Comme lui, j'ai mes doutes sur la culpabilité d'Oliver, et le profond désir de découvrir la vérité, si elle existe.
Ce livre a un pouvoir indéniable. Au rythme de ses quatre cents pages, on met tout en sourdine pour suivre ces sept amis, leurs relations, leurs passions, et le sombre secret qui les unit. Si le rythme peut paraître lent, je vous assure que la fin en vaut largement la peine, et qu'elle m'a tiré de magnifiques larmes.
Really, really enjoyed this book and the academia atmosphere. I really lived with the characters and again it reminded me of the Secret History in the best way possible (I would even say that this book was more easily readible than the SH). The parallels between the Shakespeare stories and the plot were interesting, and it really made me want to read more Shakespeare. Honestly, it was so much better than I expected from the plot summary, and went a lot deeper in several themes than the ‘crime-story’ I expected.
Also, I loved the exploration of Oliver and James’ relationship.
Also, I loved the exploration of Oliver and James’ relationship.
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don't really know why I thought this book would be for me because I have 0 interest in Shakespeare? Also this was very slow paced.
However this wasgay af and the ending was quite depressing.
However this was