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A review by rrrebekahmay
Bellman & Black by Diane Setterfield
3.0
Four friends are spending the summer months together when they come across a rook half a field away. William Bellman reckons he can hit it. Charles, Fred and Luke believe otherwise. A small round stone, a loved slingshot, a good aim, a perfect arc. The bird falls. And here begins William's journey into adulthood and then old age, always followed by a man named Black.
My description of this book doesn't give it justice, but I don't exactly know how to explain what this book is about. What I can say is this: it is not a ghost story. This was marketed as a ghost story, and indeed some of the editions on goodreads titles this as Bellman & Black: A Ghost Story, my edition is simply Bellman & Black. Even so, I was expecting some ghosts, a bit of horror, but I didn't get any of that. That's the fault of the publishers, not the author, but it still makes me lower my rating a bit because I didn't get what I wanted and what I was told I was going to get. Still this is an enjoyable novel.
For me, Bellman & Black was a really quick read. Every time I picked this up, for maybe half an hour or a couple of minutes during the adverts while I was watching a TV show, I found that I was flying through the pages. I loved Diane Setterfield's style of writing, it was very easy to read and she did well with making the reader read between the lines without making things confusing.
William Bellman was an interesting character to read about and I enjoyed the tale of his life. I wasn't as attached to him as I'd have liked, but he was still one of those obsessive personalities where his making was also his downfall. I really enjoyed the side characters as well, his colleagues, his family, his friends. All really nice and interesting people. The story itself wasn't particularly special but still enjoyable. The rook parts were very intriguing, and I really liked the very last one.
I think who Black is, is, to me anyway, definitely open to interpretation.
Having read this, I'd definitely pick up Setterfield's other book, The Thirteenth Tale, I really like her writing and her storytelling. All in all, I'd recommend this book, but just know that if you're looking for a ghost story you'll be disappointed if you read this.
My description of this book doesn't give it justice, but I don't exactly know how to explain what this book is about. What I can say is this: it is not a ghost story. This was marketed as a ghost story, and indeed some of the editions on goodreads titles this as Bellman & Black: A Ghost Story, my edition is simply Bellman & Black. Even so, I was expecting some ghosts, a bit of horror, but I didn't get any of that. That's the fault of the publishers, not the author, but it still makes me lower my rating a bit because I didn't get what I wanted and what I was told I was going to get. Still this is an enjoyable novel.
For me, Bellman & Black was a really quick read. Every time I picked this up, for maybe half an hour or a couple of minutes during the adverts while I was watching a TV show, I found that I was flying through the pages. I loved Diane Setterfield's style of writing, it was very easy to read and she did well with making the reader read between the lines without making things confusing.
William Bellman was an interesting character to read about and I enjoyed the tale of his life. I wasn't as attached to him as I'd have liked, but he was still one of those obsessive personalities where his making was also his downfall. I really enjoyed the side characters as well, his colleagues, his family, his friends. All really nice and interesting people. The story itself wasn't particularly special but still enjoyable. The rook parts were very intriguing, and I really liked the very last one.
I think who Black is, is, to me anyway, definitely open to interpretation.
Spoiler
I'm still not sure what he represents. Death? Memory? I'm thinking probably Memory, or possibly Time, but more likely one of those than Death, since the myth of Memory and Time was told at the beginning of the book. I'm leaning towards Memory because Black shouts 'remember' at Bellman while he's dying, and it's Memory and Time that escort people to the afterlife when they die.Having read this, I'd definitely pick up Setterfield's other book, The Thirteenth Tale, I really like her writing and her storytelling. All in all, I'd recommend this book, but just know that if you're looking for a ghost story you'll be disappointed if you read this.