A review by noahfence
The Secret History by Donna Tartt

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

this book is just gorgeous. one of the points made very early on in the novel is that ‘death is the mother of beauty, and beauty is terror’ and i think tartt really proves this point in the secret history. even the most horrifying, traumatic events are somehow turned into something glorious (in the terrifying, biblical sense of the word)—and if not glorious, then simultaneously horrifyingly beautiful and extremely poignant.

the tension in the secret history builds tentatively for over 250 pages before sharply tumbling downwards in a rapid deterioration that ends in a way you would never expect—but simultaneously in the only way it could ever end.
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