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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
Beautiful prose, and a welcome relief from the isolation of the Corona virus! The novel deals with Ireland 1919-1921 and the stuggle for Irish independence. But we see it all from the viewpoints of a small number of affluent Anglo-Irish people living in a quickly declining luxury hotel.
The declining hotel, dependent on Irish labor and non-Irish guests, is an excellent metaphor for pre-independence Ireland as a whole. A good mix of funny, shocking, and sad.
The declining hotel, dependent on Irish labor and non-Irish guests, is an excellent metaphor for pre-independence Ireland as a whole. A good mix of funny, shocking, and sad.
funny
lighthearted
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Masterful tragi-comic novel, like reading Evelyn Waugh but written by a human being. Events at the Majestic Hotel play out the Irish context of 1919-21 in perfect absurd microcosm, but never crowd out the affecting romance and pathos of the characters stuck in or escaping from its ridiculous eddy.
funny
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
This was SO FRUSTRATING.
It's hard to appreciate all the symbolism here--which is heavy, man--because, taken at face value, everyone and everything is just so irritating. A protagonist who won't use his words or take meaningful action! A crumbling hotel no one is fixing, or even cleaning! People who could skip a lifetime of agony if they just had a simple, straightforward conversation! AUGH. (There are a few instances of violence against animals, too. And that's BEFORE the dreadful, violent climax.)
I still gave this 2 stars because I kept reading it. I can't explain why--it wasn't merely a sunk-cost fallacy thing. I wanted better for (some of) these characters, even though I knew I wouldn't get it. But I finished it and I can move on with my life, even though I know I'll never forget the Majestic. Sigh.
It's hard to appreciate all the symbolism here--which is heavy, man--because, taken at face value, everyone and everything is just so irritating. A protagonist who won't use his words or take meaningful action! A crumbling hotel no one is fixing, or even cleaning! People who could skip a lifetime of agony if they just had a simple, straightforward conversation! AUGH. (There are a few instances of violence against animals, too. And that's BEFORE the dreadful, violent climax.)
I still gave this 2 stars because I kept reading it. I can't explain why--it wasn't merely a sunk-cost fallacy thing. I wanted better for (some of) these characters, even though I knew I wouldn't get it. But I finished it and I can move on with my life, even though I know I'll never forget the Majestic. Sigh.
Major Archer wanders over to Ireland in search of the young woman who seems to think they got engaged during the war. He finds Angela and her family living in the gently deteriorating Majestic Hotel, perched on the Irish coast and inhabited by elderly gentlewomen and a growing population of cats. The major is our note of sanity, while Edward, the hotel's owner and Angela's father, is the eccentric, angry, volatile, fascinating character who rages against the "Shinners" and loves the piglets he is raising in the hotel's abandoned squash court. Very funny, occasionally shocking, and could have inspired Wes Anderson's eccentric characters and settings. Five stars not because it changed my life but because it is so vividly written and evokes the decline of the Anglo-Irish aristocracy and the consequences of the Easter uprising so well. First in the Empire trilogy and I do want to read the others.
dark
funny
informative
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
funny
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
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
In the fictional Irish town of Kilnalough is a hotel far past its prime, the Majestic. It is here Major Brendan Archer comes after WWI, determined to sort out whether or not he’s engaged to Angela Spencer, daughter of the proprietor. Set during the Irish War of Independence and published in 1970 as the Troubles were kicking off, Troubles is a darkly comic novel about Protestants in Ireland, played out in a declining hotel with a cast of bizarre characters.
Troubles is absurd and also a very good extended metaphor. The Irish War of Independence is spoken about in dispatches and in passing; the action of the novel is the crumbling Majestic and the Major’s inability to extricate himself from such a rundown, miserable place. It’s full of the humdrum, regular life amidst a conflict, and the self-righteous indignation of the British, who think the Irish ought to be grateful for being fought for in the war. Lots of great commentary and genuinely absurd scenes.
Troubles is absurd and also a very good extended metaphor. The Irish War of Independence is spoken about in dispatches and in passing; the action of the novel is the crumbling Majestic and the Major’s inability to extricate himself from such a rundown, miserable place. It’s full of the humdrum, regular life amidst a conflict, and the self-righteous indignation of the British, who think the Irish ought to be grateful for being fought for in the war. Lots of great commentary and genuinely absurd scenes.
adventurous
dark
funny
informative
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
A funny, easy-to-read old-hotel novel that sneaks in some Irish history. Sagged in last 100 pages though!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Rape, Sexual assault