Reviews

The Possession of Mr. Cave by Matt Haig

catly's review against another edition

3.0

Working my way through Matt Haig's novels, I wanted to read this book although it doesn't come with great ratings. I think this is because it is a story filled with relentless darkness. There is no relief, no humor. The narrator is unreliable; we can't be sure what is really happening. The narrative is a jumble of disordered imagery, disconnected memories, paranoia, suspicion, rage, and fear. In terms of the writing itself, it reminds me of Edgar Allan Poe: brooding, pounding, aching, grim. Which is to say the craftsmanship is good, but the effect is a big bummer. I don't usually choose to read horror, although I found this to be compelling. I appreciate the way Haig captures the pain of trauma although I did not enjoy the experience. Cover to cover, I read it in about three days.

leclerc's review against another edition

4.0

This is definitely one of the few books that I have read so far that left me distributed.

As a child who lost a sibling and whose parents were very overprotective, I was able to sympathize a lot with Bryony — thankfully my parents weren't as bad as Mr. Cave is.

I can't say the same for Mr. Cave but, the book is a real insight into how grief is not always isolation and sadness. And, I think he was the perfect example for that.

Either way I was left fighting with my own emotions with this one. I think what distributed me the most in this book was the writing. The author always used 'you', and it was like Mr. Cave was talking to me and not to his daughter which made the whole experience even more scary and uncomfortable.

For me 'The Midnight Library' was a whole letdown, so I'm glad to like this one more.

timmi_prvt's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

fayegrosveld's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

_beccareads's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a truly disturbing and chaotic book, reading it was uncomfortable but… I want to read it again.

Antique dealer Mr Cave has lost almost everyone he loves - his mother took her own life, his wife murdered and his son died in a tragic accident, which only leaves him with his teenage daughter Bryony. Bryony is the golden child, the one he’s always obsessed over, but the recent loss of his son has taken his protectiveness to the next extreme, especially as he realises she’s not so little anymore and boys start to show an interest in her.

I am completely in love with Matts writing style - as I got further and further into the book, and it became more chaotic, it was clear that this was a reflection of Mr Caves reality slowly unraveling, making reading the book a completely immersive experience. 

Honestly, this book was incredible, Matt Haig really knows how to write a dark story. I truly felt uncomfortable at points, with my heart racing wondering what on earth Mr Cave was going to do next. The twists throughout were so well thought out and I really didn’t see them coming, but there’s a couple of reasons why this didn’t get 5 stars for me.

1. There’s a few things that were left unanswered/weren’t delved into enough for my liking
2. The story really is up for interpretation and I don’t feel strongly enough about any potential route

Overall, this was an incredible read and a complete page turner. I loved how the style of writing completely immersed me into Mr Caves point of view, I felt every emotion he did and my anxiety was through the roof! I just wish we got a few more answers.

homieloverfriendx's review against another edition

3.0

In „Der fürsorgliche Mr Cave“ erzählt uns Matt Haig die Story eines von seiner eigenen Biographie geprägten Vaters und seiner Tochter Bryony, die er unter dem Deckmantel der Fürsorge überwacht und kontrolliert. Er lässt sich im Verlauf des Buches immer mehr von seinem Wahn leiten, bis er überhaupt keinen Draht mehr zu seiner Tochter hat. Die fehlende Beziehung treibt ihn aber nur noch mehr an, sie vor den Gefahren, die ihr seiner Meinung nach ständig und überall drohen, schützen zu wollen. Sehr offensichtlich leidet Mr Cave an einer (nicht explizit benannten) psychischen Krankheit, die ihn dazu verleitet, wilde und aggressive Dinge zu tun, die er teilweise selbst nicht versteht und auch nur teilweise bereut. Das macht es einem sehr schwierig, ihn zu mögen.

Ich liebe den Schreibstil von Matt Haig und die Themen, denen er seine Bücher widmet sowieso. Ich mag, wenn man sich ab der ersten Seite eines Buches direkt mitten im Geschehen befindet. Auch dieses Buch konnte ich also kaum aus der Hand legen und habe es fast in einem Schwung durchgelesen - teilweise lag das aber auch daran, dass ich das Buch als sehr verstörend wahrgenommen habe. Es ist in Briefform geschrieben und spricht die Leser:innen direkt an, sodass man sich fast auch schon wie ein Besitztum von ihm fühlt.

Gefehlt hat mir eine andere Perspektive auf die verschiedenen Situationen. Man erfährt viel über Bryony’s Leben, aber nie bekommen wir Einblick in ihre Gedanken und Gefühle. Meiner Meinung nach, hätte das das Buch um einen wichtigen Punkt erweitern können: Wie fühlt es sich an, von seinem eigenen Vater terrorisiert zu werden? Keinen Ausweg zu haben, seinem Peiniger nicht entfliehen zu können und sich ihm unterordnen zu müssen? Wie geht es Bryony eigentlich mit dem Verlust der Mutter, dem Zwillingsbruder und den immer extremer werdenden Regeln und Verboten? Natürlich kann man sich seinen Teil denken, aber ich hätte mir diese gegensätzlichen Storylines gewünscht. Tatsächlich hätte es mir, glaube ich, auch gereicht, wenn Bryony einen „Abschlusskommentar“ o.Ä. bekommen hätte. Einige Kommentare und Gedanken von Mr Cave klingen schon seeeehr nach emotionaler Inzest, was mich absolut angeekelt hat.

„Traurigkeit verlangsamt alles, presst dich ins Sofa und dehnt den Tag endlos in die Länge. Beim Leid ist das anders. Das Leid schleudert dich aus einem Flugzeug. Leid ist Schrecken in seiner konzentriertesten Form.“

„Dieses Mal würde ich dir zuhören, und du würdest mir alles anvertrauen, was du mir schon damals anvertraut hättest, wenn ich statt eines Tyrannen ein Vater gewesen wäre und dich auf die richtige Art und Weise geliebt hätte.“

3/5

jollybrain's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-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

3.25

isisvanharen03's review against another edition

4.0

Damn this was a good book. In the beginning I thought the point of view was so interesting and I thought I would know where the story would go but I was totally wrong. I hated Terence so much but I also couldn’t forget his trauma. I felt like I was going insane reading this story and I think that was the point because I felt like he was going insane too. I would definitely recommend this and I won’t stop talking about this book for at least the coming month.

mahry's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

saskia16's review against another edition

1.0

Wenn ich könnte würde ich null Sterne geben.
Scheiß Story, noch beschissenere Erzählperspektive, komplett irre Charaktere.