A review by nashwa017
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett

3.0

I'm giving this book one more star than it deserves, and that is for the audiobook which was narrated by the wonderful Tom Hanks, and that man can tell a story. I imagined him as Danny, the protagonist - because he has considerable more charm than the main character of this book. Other than that, the story was really bland. The titular Dutch House was supposed to have this looming, ominous presence but it never fully translated to the page. While I appreciated the sibling relationship between the two main characters, it was never fully developed, the details were rushed and towards the end, I really couldn't believe how fast the characters were losing momentum. The story was supposed to be very character driven, I get that - no particular plot was needed but after the 50% mark, it was such a drag to get through. The twists were unbelievable, very much like a Bollywood movie where the dumbest things happen and you think "ok, this is how it is then."