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taikafaitau 's review for:
The Secret History
by Donna Tartt
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
When I finished the book, my first thought was, "Sweet, it's over."
My second thought was, "Okay, well this is such a popular book and commonly referenced one, so I guess I have to give it a 5-star rating."
My soul could not rest until I landed on giving it a 3-star rating.
That being said, this was a good book. It was well written, the story was fairly interesting, and there was some intriguing social commentary. I want to give credit where it is due. One of my favorite burgeoning genres and my favorite aesthetic were both biproducts of this specific book. Without it, we wouldn't have Babel as a response. Opinions are mixed as to who wore it best, but in my opinion Babel took the starving bones of A Secret History and then gave it flesh and blood and dimension. Unfortunately for this book, I read Babel first.
3 is the rating I would have given this book had I never heard of it before, and that's what it gets. If you enjoyed The Great Gatsby, I think that you would really like this book. Personally, I hated that book. It's just a book about white, rich assholes. The same could be said for A Secret History. The points of both of these books are specifically to provide social commentary and critiques about the bourgeoise and how easy it is to want to sell your soul to be part of them. It is easy to get caught up in the outward beauty and ignore the rot that is beneath for as long as possible.
The commentary is poignant, but lacking. If you try to critique elitism and class without also addressing other intersectional issues like racism, xenophobia, homophobia (A Secret History does explore this a bit), ableism, etc. it just falls flat. It is an incomplete thesis. I feel like this book started the conversation and then Babel came in to add more depth and soul to it.
I have a lot to say about this book, so I definitely would recommend it. I will definitely be thinking about it for awhile. It even made me want to annotate, which is new (although that might be a result of doing my first buddy read for a recent book).
My pervading thought was, "who cares? Why would I have ever wanted to read a book about these characters?" They are flawed and morally grey, but not in a way that is very interesting. And honestly, that may have been the point. When you get an up-close look at these idolized caricatures, there is nothing interesting about them. Wealth doesn't equal being particularly interesting.
Like I said, I have a lot to say about this book, and it still didn't leave an imprint on my soul like other books have. It's a personal thing. I think this book is deserving of every praise it has received.
My second thought was, "Okay, well this is such a popular book and commonly referenced one, so I guess I have to give it a 5-star rating."
My soul could not rest until I landed on giving it a 3-star rating.
That being said, this was a good book. It was well written, the story was fairly interesting, and there was some intriguing social commentary. I want to give credit where it is due. One of my favorite burgeoning genres and my favorite aesthetic were both biproducts of this specific book. Without it, we wouldn't have Babel as a response. Opinions are mixed as to who wore it best, but in my opinion Babel took the starving bones of A Secret History and then gave it flesh and blood and dimension. Unfortunately for this book, I read Babel first.
3 is the rating I would have given this book had I never heard of it before, and that's what it gets. If you enjoyed The Great Gatsby, I think that you would really like this book. Personally, I hated that book. It's just a book about white, rich assholes. The same could be said for A Secret History. The points of both of these books are specifically to provide social commentary and critiques about the bourgeoise and how easy it is to want to sell your soul to be part of them. It is easy to get caught up in the outward beauty and ignore the rot that is beneath for as long as possible.
The commentary is poignant, but lacking. If you try to critique elitism and class without also addressing other intersectional issues like racism, xenophobia, homophobia (A Secret History does explore this a bit), ableism, etc. it just falls flat. It is an incomplete thesis. I feel like this book started the conversation and then Babel came in to add more depth and soul to it.
I have a lot to say about this book, so I definitely would recommend it. I will definitely be thinking about it for awhile. It even made me want to annotate, which is new (although that might be a result of doing my first buddy read for a recent book).
My pervading thought was, "who cares? Why would I have ever wanted to read a book about these characters?" They are flawed and morally grey, but not in a way that is very interesting. And honestly, that may have been the point. When you get an up-close look at these idolized caricatures, there is nothing interesting about them. Wealth doesn't equal being particularly interesting.
Like I said, I have a lot to say about this book, and it still didn't leave an imprint on my soul like other books have. It's a personal thing. I think this book is deserving of every praise it has received.
Content Warnings
Minor: Homophobia, Incest, Sexual violence, Violence, Xenophobia