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A review by inthebooknook
Universal Harvester by John Darnielle
4.0
John Darnielle's writing style and pacing is simply beautiful. His capacity for suspense is stunning.
I enjoyed this book and couldn't put it down...until the ending. Is it very unsophisticated of me to want a novel wrap up nicely with all questions answered? Probably.
The majority of the book leads you to believe something or someone crazy is lurking in plain sight of a quaint midwest town. However, as you find out, the "lunatic" is just a woman dealing with the grief of losing her mother at a young age. And the woman, like her father, has become obsessed with finding her. It starts out as a mystery/thriller and ends as the depressing story of the neurotic life of an abandoned daughter: a bit of a bait an switch. I enjoyed the trick and the skill with which Darnielle accomplished it, however, it made the whole thing seem a little anticlimactic.
Maybe that's his point. Sometimes life is a little anticlimactic. Maybe you never find what you're searching for. Hey, is this getting too deep?
Nonetheless, I will most certainly be picking Wolf in White Van to read next. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this book even if I'm unsure of the payoff.
I enjoyed this book and couldn't put it down...until the ending. Is it very unsophisticated of me to want a novel wrap up nicely with all questions answered? Probably.
The majority of the book leads you to believe something or someone crazy is lurking in plain sight of a quaint midwest town. However, as you find out, the "lunatic" is just a woman dealing with the grief of losing her mother at a young age. And the woman, like her father, has become obsessed with finding her. It starts out as a mystery/thriller and ends as the depressing story of the neurotic life of an abandoned daughter: a bit of a bait an switch. I enjoyed the trick and the skill with which Darnielle accomplished it, however, it made the whole thing seem a little anticlimactic.
Maybe that's his point. Sometimes life is a little anticlimactic. Maybe you never find what you're searching for. Hey, is this getting too deep?
Nonetheless, I will most certainly be picking Wolf in White Van to read next. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this book even if I'm unsure of the payoff.