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alicihonest's review against another edition
3.0
I chose to read this because I love the 'dark secrets of rich private school kids' genre, and was delighted to find that their dark secrets were hypnotism related, one of my other Favourite Things. But oh, this book was a struggle. It's hard to put my finger on it exactly, but I think my problem with The Belwether Revivals was in the 'show, don't tell' philosophy of storytelling. Benjamin Wood tried to tell one thing, but what he was showing was something else entirely, and thus I realised I was rooting for the character I wasn't supposed to and absolutely sick of the character who was meant to be the protagonist. Oscar is boring, selfish, and arrogant. We're supposed to think the last two adjectives apply to Eden, but I don't think they do in as harmful of a way. I thought this book was going to be a lot smarter than it was. I though there would be a twist that would justify why Oscar was so unlikeble, only concerned with hooking up with Iris and not with the fact that Eden needed help. He didn't need to be poked with a stick, he didn't need to be treated like he was a jerk, he needed help. Oscar was so inexplicably preoccupied with himself and his own frame of experience. He tried to make it seem like Eden was arrogant because he made himself at home in his own home? He tried to make it seem like Eden was arrogant because he talked about what he was passionate about to his friends even though they didn't share the passion? That's how friendships work. You are supposed to like hearing what your friends are passionate about, what is important to them. This book was supposed to be sinister, but it wasn't, because Eden was only ever trying to help people. Though misguided means, sure, but help them. Oscar was just tying to do whatever he had to to keep Iris interested in him. And thus the ending made no sense, and thus although this book had engaging prose and pacing, the story was a disappointment and Eden deserved better.
caitlinxmartin's review against another edition
5.0
I've had the great pleasure of reading some wonderful debut novels this year. I got two of them around the same time and they came out within a month of each other. One was The Starboard Sea by Amber Dermont, the other was The Bellwether Revivals by Benjamin Wood. Both are school stories, although the school setting is different. In Dermont's book it's American prep school in the 1980's - in Wood's it is Cambridge and its environs. Both are about a young man's journey through the worlds of privilege and elite and the way their encounters change who they are and, ultimately, help them grow up.
I was immediately attracted to The Bellwether Revivals because it was described as similar to The Secret History by Donna Tartt and Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh. Since those are both favorites of mine, reading this was a no-brainer, although my expectations weren't terribly high. Most books compared to these two don't stand a snowball's chance in hell - it's sort of unfair to put those labels on a book.
I loved The Bellwether Revivals. It does, indeed, contain elements that make it similar to either book, but its voice is its own and it's a wonderful voice. Where The Secret History is all religious ecstasy disguised under a great deal of chilliness, The Bellwether Revivals is more about belief in and about others. Eden Bellwether, like Henry Winter before him, is a narcissist. His world is Edencentric - even in the healing games he plays it's really all about his own glory. I know some people found him ambiguous, found the suspense in the novel to be whether or not Eden could heal, but for me it was about what would happen when he was inevitably exposed for who he was. How far off the rails could things go?
Juxtaposing the Bellwethers is Oscar, a working class man who is taken up by and falls in love with Iris, Eden's sister. The tension in the novel between the worlds the characters inhabit, particularly given the strangeness of Oscar's Cambridge friends, holds the story together. Oscar's sheer likeability and strong sense of self carry the tale along through all its improbabilities.
This is the kind of book that makes it difficult to find something to read after it. It's difficult to measure up. Did I mention that I loved this book? Another favorite for this year and a wonderful debut of an author I look forward to reading in the future. Highly recommended.
I was immediately attracted to The Bellwether Revivals because it was described as similar to The Secret History by Donna Tartt and Brideshead Revisited by Evelyn Waugh. Since those are both favorites of mine, reading this was a no-brainer, although my expectations weren't terribly high. Most books compared to these two don't stand a snowball's chance in hell - it's sort of unfair to put those labels on a book.
I loved The Bellwether Revivals. It does, indeed, contain elements that make it similar to either book, but its voice is its own and it's a wonderful voice. Where The Secret History is all religious ecstasy disguised under a great deal of chilliness, The Bellwether Revivals is more about belief in and about others. Eden Bellwether, like Henry Winter before him, is a narcissist. His world is Edencentric - even in the healing games he plays it's really all about his own glory. I know some people found him ambiguous, found the suspense in the novel to be whether or not Eden could heal, but for me it was about what would happen when he was inevitably exposed for who he was. How far off the rails could things go?
Juxtaposing the Bellwethers is Oscar, a working class man who is taken up by and falls in love with Iris, Eden's sister. The tension in the novel between the worlds the characters inhabit, particularly given the strangeness of Oscar's Cambridge friends, holds the story together. Oscar's sheer likeability and strong sense of self carry the tale along through all its improbabilities.
This is the kind of book that makes it difficult to find something to read after it. It's difficult to measure up. Did I mention that I loved this book? Another favorite for this year and a wonderful debut of an author I look forward to reading in the future. Highly recommended.
frogggirl2's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I picked up this book because I very much enjoyed the author's subsequent books. Unfortunately, this book reads very much like an author's first attempt. This svengali class examination is dull and reads like so many other British, interclass romance, college age stories. The first paragraph starts with a mass murder and even that doesn't make the book interesting. I never did care who was gonna end up dead.
pollyhayes's review against another edition
dark
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
3.5
Not a bad book but fundamentally boring
montagves's review against another edition
3.0
I don't really know what to gather from this book other than I'm glad I'm not a wealthy Cambridge student with a loony brother.
charlottej's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
romaverse's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
etherealacademia's review against another edition
2.0
the characters were pretty one-dimensional. I felt like it was a rushed rip-off of The Secret History.
There were definitely some major parallels.
Henry Winter wanted to experience a bacchanal --> got the idea from his studies
Eden Bellwether wanted to heal people with music--> got the idea from his studies
-BOTH rope their classmates/best friends into participating
-both end up killing people
However, Eden is such an underdeveloped character. The book had so much potential but nothing really happened until the end, and even then, it was lackluster.
there are so many more comparisons i could make to the secret history, but henry winter doesn't deservE to be associated with this book. There was such an air of faux-pretentiousness in the story, and I really got tired of following oscar's perspective. Iris Bellwether talked like a 40 year old woman from the 1920's, but this book is set in the early noughties and she is around 20 years old. I don't care if she's a cambridge student, no 20 year old constantly calls people sweetheart.
so cringe. Also, her boring ass behaviour didn't suit the personality she seemed to have when she was introduced.
There is poor continuity in this book, period. And a couple of spelling mistakes. yikes
There were definitely some major parallels.
Henry Winter wanted to experience a bacchanal --> got the idea from his studies
Eden Bellwether wanted to heal people with music--> got the idea from his studies
-BOTH rope their classmates/best friends into participating
-both end up killing people
However, Eden is such an underdeveloped character. The book had so much potential but nothing really happened until the end, and even then, it was lackluster.
there are so many more comparisons i could make to the secret history, but henry winter doesn't deservE to be associated with this book. There was such an air of faux-pretentiousness in the story, and I really got tired of following oscar's perspective. Iris Bellwether talked like a 40 year old woman from the 1920's, but this book is set in the early noughties and she is around 20 years old. I don't care if she's a cambridge student, no 20 year old constantly calls people sweetheart.
so cringe. Also, her boring ass behaviour didn't suit the personality she seemed to have when she was introduced.
There is poor continuity in this book, period. And a couple of spelling mistakes. yikes
abhiramigopal's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
tanisharaina's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0