A review by lola425
The Crime Writer by Jill Dawson

4.0

Really enjoyed this book, but then I am a sucker for stories that mix truths and fictions. I a not generally a reader of crime fiction or even suspense fiction unless it has some literary elements, but I could not put this book down. Patricia Highsmith, the character in this book, is so compelling. She is an introvert, a loner, the books marinating inside her head making her question her own motives, her own capacity for evil, while at the same time she is interesting and seductive, both drawing people to her and pushing them away. Also examines who, exactly, is capable of evil and why. Was the fact that Patricia (the character, not the real-life author) could so easily slip into the fantasy of murdering anyone who she deemed as a threat or a betrayal a function of the years she spent writing those types of characters or is the impulse integral to who she is and the fiction only serves to sublimate the aggression she feels? In addition to being a taut psychological examination of a character, it also a pleasure to see glimpses of the real Patricia Highsmith's style of writing in the narrative. I love The Price of Salt and The Talented Mr. Riley and there are shades of each of these here. I would recommend to people who like suspense with a literary bent. There are crime novel tropes here, but they don't feel done to death.