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3.02 AVERAGE
3.02 AVERAGE
3.5-4 stars.
Je termine mon premier roman de Mme De Rosnay; j'avais déjà lu une collection d'histoires courtes d'elle que j'avais bien apprécié, et cette auteure m'attire de plus en plus pour une raison inconnue.
Quand j'ai lu le résumé, j'ai été tout de suite intriguée; le genre d'histoire que j'aime.
Il semblerait également que Clarissa soit fortement inspirée de Mme De Rosnay elle-même; les deux parfaitement bilingues, franco-anglaises, l'attirance envers les lieux et les ressentis qui en découlent.. j'ai beaucoup apprécié cet aspect, et Clarissa elle-même, originale et attachante.
L'histoire est très originale également, et se passe dans un futur vague, beaucoup de choses ont changé, mais cela reste flou; est apporté à l'histoire uniquement les éléments nécessaires, sans développement inutile selon moi. Il y a eu des attentats, la reconstruction de Paris, l'énorme progression de l'IA.. une vraie dystopie qui sonne vraie.
Les personnages sont tous très forts, très vivants; que ce soit le chat Chablis (tellement chou), Andy, Jordan, le père de Clarissa,.. absolument aucun personnage, même les plus secondaires, ne paraît irréel ou cliché.
Et tout cela en 330 pages.
Ce qui m'a moins plu, c'est cette fin, qui m'a un peu frustrée; j'aurais voulu en découvrir plus sur CASA et si ce que Clarissa suppose est vrai ou non.
On reste dans le flou, et c'est purement parce que j'ai apprécié l'histoire que j'en voulais plus.
Un solide roman, je me réjouis des prochains de cette auteure intriguante.
Je termine mon premier roman de Mme De Rosnay; j'avais déjà lu une collection d'histoires courtes d'elle que j'avais bien apprécié, et cette auteure m'attire de plus en plus pour une raison inconnue.
Quand j'ai lu le résumé, j'ai été tout de suite intriguée; le genre d'histoire que j'aime.
Il semblerait également que Clarissa soit fortement inspirée de Mme De Rosnay elle-même; les deux parfaitement bilingues, franco-anglaises, l'attirance envers les lieux et les ressentis qui en découlent.. j'ai beaucoup apprécié cet aspect, et Clarissa elle-même, originale et attachante.
L'histoire est très originale également, et se passe dans un futur vague, beaucoup de choses ont changé, mais cela reste flou; est apporté à l'histoire uniquement les éléments nécessaires, sans développement inutile selon moi. Il y a eu des attentats, la reconstruction de Paris, l'énorme progression de l'IA.. une vraie dystopie qui sonne vraie.
Les personnages sont tous très forts, très vivants; que ce soit le chat Chablis (tellement chou), Andy, Jordan, le père de Clarissa,.. absolument aucun personnage, même les plus secondaires, ne paraît irréel ou cliché.
Et tout cela en 330 pages.
Ce qui m'a moins plu, c'est cette fin, qui m'a un peu frustrée; j'aurais voulu en découvrir plus sur CASA et si ce que Clarissa suppose est vrai ou non.
On reste dans le flou, et c'est purement parce que j'ai apprécié l'histoire que j'en voulais plus.
Un solide roman, je me réjouis des prochains de cette auteure intriguante.
What an odd and disconcerting story. This is essentially a Black Mirror episode, set in near future Paris. It’s mildly dystopian but sadly probably accurate - bees have gone extinct, the Eiffel Tower was attacked, and technology is uncomfortably advanced. The literary prose is a little hard to stick with - but the plot kept me intrigued, and the last third of the book sped by. Literary fiction meets sci fi meets philosophical, existential musings.
Flowers of Darkness by Tatiana de Rosnay
Rating 3/ 5 Stars
Published By St Martin’s Press
Published On 23 February 2021
Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press, and of course, Tatiana de Rosnay, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is an interesting book for me to review. I have loved Tatiana’s books in the past and I figured I would enjoy this one as well considering the description etc. To a point - that did stay true - but I found by the end of the book to be over how unrealistic and bizarre the plot became. We follow Clarissa and her new virtual assistant - Mrs. Dalloway - a nod to her love for Virginia Woolfe. The first third of this book gives us the vibe that Clarissa is being watched. Her picture-perfect penthouse has cameras in every room but the bathroom - so it could make sense if they were hacked. This is unsettling for Clarissa - but is she just paranoid?
Honestly, I was kind of exhausted with this book towards the end. I found it to be a bit too much in the far fetch style, but I did also enjoy it. It was a hard rating for me, but I think 3 is a solid number.
Rating 3/ 5 Stars
Published By St Martin’s Press
Published On 23 February 2021
Thank you to Netgalley, St. Martin’s Press, and of course, Tatiana de Rosnay, for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
This is an interesting book for me to review. I have loved Tatiana’s books in the past and I figured I would enjoy this one as well considering the description etc. To a point - that did stay true - but I found by the end of the book to be over how unrealistic and bizarre the plot became. We follow Clarissa and her new virtual assistant - Mrs. Dalloway - a nod to her love for Virginia Woolfe. The first third of this book gives us the vibe that Clarissa is being watched. Her picture-perfect penthouse has cameras in every room but the bathroom - so it could make sense if they were hacked. This is unsettling for Clarissa - but is she just paranoid?
Honestly, I was kind of exhausted with this book towards the end. I found it to be a bit too much in the far fetch style, but I did also enjoy it. It was a hard rating for me, but I think 3 is a solid number.
Clarissa is a successful author who has just left her second husband and is looking for a place to stay. By accident, she gets selected for a spot in a new apartment complex destined for artists. This apartment is built in the new neighbourhood that has risen from the ashes of a terrorist attack on the Eiffel Tower. After a few weeks, Clarissa notices some strange things in her new home. There are cameras everywhere (except on the toilet), her personalized virtual assistant seems to know her deepest fears and at night her dreams are haunted with a strangely familiar voice. Together with her granddaughter Andy they start an investigation. Are they really being watched? And by who?
Tatiana De Rosnay is my favorite novelist. I always pick up her books, regardless of the topic. The premise of ‘Flowers of darkness‘ didn’t grab my attention at first as artificial intelligence isn’t a topic I’m used to reading about. But once I started, I discovered all the familiar De Rosnay elements are there. A mother recovering from a loss, a small family with their problems and secrets, a bilingual main character who’s also a writer, Paris…
Yes this is a story about the near future where Europe is recovering from a range of awful terrorist attacks, from the Brexit (not so science fiction), from the bee extinction and a sea level rise. It’s an awful future, where people are competing with robots. But not everything is so different in this story. There is love and there is loss. I loved the side characters from her first husband Toby, over her English father to the heartwarming neighbour who befriends Clarissa. And of course, there’s Andy, Clarissa’s angel.
A part of the story is also about Clarissa’s research into the lives of the writers Virginia Woolf and Romain Gary. And the parallels with her own struggles. The mystery element of the apartment is build up but open for interpretation at the end. I had no problem with that. You constantly wonder if Clarissa really sees and hears those things or if it’s just her imagination working.
I finished this book in two sittings. That’s very rare. And it’s just because I enjoy her writing so much. Reading De Rosnay is like wrapping myself in my favourite blanket. This might not be her best, but it still has much to like. I highly recommend to read one of her books.
Dutch review:
Clarissa verlaat haar tweede echtgenoot na diens bedrog. Als schrijfster komt ze in aanmerking voor een appartementsgebouw bedoeld voor kunstenaars in de nieuwe wijk die is gebouwd na de aanslag op de Eiffeltoren. Naast een virtuele assistent die alles over haar lijkt te weten, hangen er overal camera's en lijkt er iemand 's nachts woorden in te fluisteren die haar slecht doen slapen. Samen met haar kleindochter Andy gaat ze op onderzoek uit.
De Rosnay is mijn favoriete romanschrijfster en ik lees dus alles van haar. Ook in dit boek zijn de typische De Rosnay elementen weer aanwezig: een moeder die een verlies te verwerken heeft, verschillende generaties, een tweetalig hoofdpersonage, Parijs en Londen...
Alleen speelt het verhaal zich deze keer af in een nabije toekomst. Na de Brexit, na een reeks van aanslagen, na het uitsterven van de bijen en een stijging van de zeespiegel. Wanneer robotten ingeburgd zijn en artificiële intelligentie ze verdomd echt doen lijken.
Net als in haar andere boeken is de setting echter maar één kant van het verhaal. Het gaat om de onderlinge familierelaties en de onderlinge geheimen en trauma's.
Op het einde primeert dat element en niet het mysterie van het appartement en ik vind dat eigenlijk best ok. Niet alles moet exact uitgeklaard zijn. Is er echt iets aan de hand of is Clarissa depressief?
Ook in dit boek zitten verwijzingen naar bekende schrijvers (Woolf en Gary) en krijgen we een inkijk in het bestaan als auteur.
Ik las dit boek uit in twee sessies, dat gebeurt zelden. Maar De Rosnay is vaak een uitzondering. Ik kijk al uit naar haar volgende roman.
Tatiana De Rosnay is my favorite novelist. I always pick up her books, regardless of the topic. The premise of ‘Flowers of darkness‘ didn’t grab my attention at first as artificial intelligence isn’t a topic I’m used to reading about. But once I started, I discovered all the familiar De Rosnay elements are there. A mother recovering from a loss, a small family with their problems and secrets, a bilingual main character who’s also a writer, Paris…
Yes this is a story about the near future where Europe is recovering from a range of awful terrorist attacks, from the Brexit (not so science fiction), from the bee extinction and a sea level rise. It’s an awful future, where people are competing with robots. But not everything is so different in this story. There is love and there is loss. I loved the side characters from her first husband Toby, over her English father to the heartwarming neighbour who befriends Clarissa. And of course, there’s Andy, Clarissa’s angel.
A part of the story is also about Clarissa’s research into the lives of the writers Virginia Woolf and Romain Gary. And the parallels with her own struggles. The mystery element of the apartment is build up but open for interpretation at the end. I had no problem with that. You constantly wonder if Clarissa really sees and hears those things or if it’s just her imagination working.
I finished this book in two sittings. That’s very rare. And it’s just because I enjoy her writing so much. Reading De Rosnay is like wrapping myself in my favourite blanket. This might not be her best, but it still has much to like. I highly recommend to read one of her books.
Dutch review:
Clarissa verlaat haar tweede echtgenoot na diens bedrog. Als schrijfster komt ze in aanmerking voor een appartementsgebouw bedoeld voor kunstenaars in de nieuwe wijk die is gebouwd na de aanslag op de Eiffeltoren. Naast een virtuele assistent die alles over haar lijkt te weten, hangen er overal camera's en lijkt er iemand 's nachts woorden in te fluisteren die haar slecht doen slapen. Samen met haar kleindochter Andy gaat ze op onderzoek uit.
De Rosnay is mijn favoriete romanschrijfster en ik lees dus alles van haar. Ook in dit boek zijn de typische De Rosnay elementen weer aanwezig: een moeder die een verlies te verwerken heeft, verschillende generaties, een tweetalig hoofdpersonage, Parijs en Londen...
Alleen speelt het verhaal zich deze keer af in een nabije toekomst. Na de Brexit, na een reeks van aanslagen, na het uitsterven van de bijen en een stijging van de zeespiegel. Wanneer robotten ingeburgd zijn en artificiële intelligentie ze verdomd echt doen lijken.
Net als in haar andere boeken is de setting echter maar één kant van het verhaal. Het gaat om de onderlinge familierelaties en de onderlinge geheimen en trauma's.
Op het einde primeert dat element en niet het mysterie van het appartement en ik vind dat eigenlijk best ok. Niet alles moet exact uitgeklaard zijn. Is er echt iets aan de hand of is Clarissa depressief?
Ook in dit boek zitten verwijzingen naar bekende schrijvers (Woolf en Gary) en krijgen we een inkijk in het bestaan als auteur.
Ik las dit boek uit in twee sessies, dat gebeurt zelden. Maar De Rosnay is vaak een uitzondering. Ik kijk al uit naar haar volgende roman.
Flowers of Darkness is set in a not-so-distant-future Paris, a city which had seen, years before, the destruction of the Eiffel Tower and the whole neighborhood around it, and is feeling the effects of climate change (bees have died, with devastating consequences for gardens, for example). In the middle of this, Clarissa Katsef, a writer in her 60s, leaves her husband because of a very disturbing betrayal, and finds an apartment in a new building devoted especially to artists, run by a mysterious organization abbreviated as CASA. The problem is that Clarissa feels she’s being constantly spied on. CASA provides very advanced AI (artificial intelligence) to its artists, from the super-customized virtual assistant that Clarissa names Mrs. Dalloway (she’s a huge Virginia Woolf fan) to retinal scans instead of keys, to cameras everywhere - and I mean everywhere. Clarissa’s cat seems to pick up on the weirdness even before Clarissa does. The story bounces between Clarissa’s growing unease with her new surroundings, Clarissa’s backstory and a gradual revelation of why she left her husband.
It kept my interest but somehow didn’t move me very much, unlike her earlier book, Sarah’s Key. The ending - well, it was a letdown. This book felt much longer than approximately 250 pages.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
It kept my interest but somehow didn’t move me very much, unlike her earlier book, Sarah’s Key. The ending - well, it was a letdown. This book felt much longer than approximately 250 pages.
Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the opportunity to read an advance readers copy of this book. All opinions are my own.
dark
reflective
sad
I loved de Rosnay's previous book Sarah's Key so I was thrilled to receive a copy of this book. I started it right after I received it, but then had a highly stressful family emergency that required time off work for my own anxiety. My mind wasn't in a great place to concentrate on anything so I set it aside. Unfortunately when I tried to pick it back up, it gave me flashbacks of that stress. I decided to try again and I'm so glad I did. Though it's a completely different story than I expected, I found myself drawn in. Though the ending was disappointing, overall I did enjoy the story.
Thank you to Tatiana de Rosnay and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to review this book. I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The views and opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
Thank you to Tatiana de Rosnay and St. Martin's Press for the opportunity to review this book. I received a complimentary copy of this book through NetGalley. The views and opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own.
I received an ARC from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
De Rosnay has a history of creating emotion in her writing and atmospheric settings that suck you into her stories. This book was no different. The mystery and paranoia Clarissa felt were palpable on the other side of the page and I was engrossed from the start to see how it would end. I didn’t love it as much as her other works but I did enjoy the book and would recommend it to friends. I look forward to more from her..
De Rosnay has a history of creating emotion in her writing and atmospheric settings that suck you into her stories. This book was no different. The mystery and paranoia Clarissa felt were palpable on the other side of the page and I was engrossed from the start to see how it would end. I didn’t love it as much as her other works but I did enjoy the book and would recommend it to friends. I look forward to more from her..
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Thank you St. Martin's Press for the advance digital copy.
Clarissa moves into a state of the art apartment in Paris set in the near future. She begins to feel like she is being watched by someone in her new residence. A residence that is equipped with cameras in every room and unique requirements for its residents.
Although the plot is a bit weak, the storytelling pulled through enough to make this a worthwhile read. I really enjoyed following Clarissa as she finds her new apartment, tries to get over her husband's recent betrayal, and deals with the demons from her past. It was interesting to be witness to her journey of paranoia as she becomes more and more convinced that something sinister is underway in her new home.
Clarissa is a well written character and I was invested in her story.
I wanted more. I felt like as the reader, I was left hanging on some of the major plot points of the story and it left me frustrated. Even if it was the purpose of the author to leave questions unanswered, it made the plot points that were left unfinished feel pointless.
There is a twist in the story that felt too strange. For me, it didn't co exist well with the rest of the book. I understand that it is supposed to be the reason for Clarissa's uncertainty in her new home, but it just felt too strange when set along the rest of the book.
I was happy with the ending and with Clarissa's growth as as character.
Overall, it was a unique read that kept me interested but left me a bit unsatisfied and a little weirded out.
Clarissa moves into a state of the art apartment in Paris set in the near future. She begins to feel like she is being watched by someone in her new residence. A residence that is equipped with cameras in every room and unique requirements for its residents.
Although the plot is a bit weak, the storytelling pulled through enough to make this a worthwhile read. I really enjoyed following Clarissa as she finds her new apartment, tries to get over her husband's recent betrayal, and deals with the demons from her past. It was interesting to be witness to her journey of paranoia as she becomes more and more convinced that something sinister is underway in her new home.
Clarissa is a well written character and I was invested in her story.
I wanted more. I felt like as the reader, I was left hanging on some of the major plot points of the story and it left me frustrated. Even if it was the purpose of the author to leave questions unanswered, it made the plot points that were left unfinished feel pointless.
There is a twist in the story that felt too strange. For me, it didn't co exist well with the rest of the book. I understand that it is supposed to be the reason for Clarissa's uncertainty in her new home, but it just felt too strange when set along the rest of the book.
I was happy with the ending and with Clarissa's growth as as character.
Overall, it was a unique read that kept me interested but left me a bit unsatisfied and a little weirded out.