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A review by fablejack
The Barrowfields by Phillip Lewis
4.0
This was a netgalley ebook that I took a while to read for some reason. I certainly enjoyed the writing and the first third pulled me in and kept me there.
The narrator, father and sister were fascinating and flawed, and their flaws were revealed in such engaging writing with some unique words interspersed which was appropriate given the family's penchant for reading. At times I wondered if the author was showing off with those words, but figured if you've got it, flaunt it. I related to the father's characterization so much through my own experience. And the gothic house they lived in was so intriguing and stood as its own separate character rather than just a backdrop. The book was appropriately literary throughout and it made me want to read more in general, which felt like a gift.
(spoilers ahead...)
Because I enjoyed the first section so much, I was disappointed when the narrator left for college. Something had to happen, of course, for the plot to move on but, honestly, from then on the story seemed a bit more haphazardly pasted together. I wish we could have spent more time with his sister earlier and, later, with his quirky and (almost too) smart and nerdy college friends. Also, Buller! Probably my favorite character.
I think we were supposed to believe the narrator was forever an outsider like his sister, but he seemed to fit in well wherever he went the more he experienced, making friends and drawing people to him. His fascination with the love interest was portrayed in fairly realistic terms of the kind of obsession a crush has at that age, but I can't say I was as interested in that relationship as others even as it developed. I began to feel the novel was trying to cover too much ground. Again, I understand the plot must go on....
Ultimately, I was left feeling rather unresolved about his relationship with his sister Threnody and felt more time/space devoted to that would have been time well spent. I had a lot of "why" questions for her character and answering some, not all, could have left her with some mystery intact. Her big reveal wasn't particularly surprising considering how much the narrator thought about it, which is ok. How it played out in her life wasn't much addressed except through the mother's comments and I was interested.
Overall, very enjoyable and I could have kept reading. I might even say I savored it, especially toward the beginning. If one entire book had focused on the narrator growing up and ended when he left for school, I would have looked forward to reading the second book. As it is, I'll look forward to another book by this author and check it out.
The narrator, father and sister were fascinating and flawed, and their flaws were revealed in such engaging writing with some unique words interspersed which was appropriate given the family's penchant for reading. At times I wondered if the author was showing off with those words, but figured if you've got it, flaunt it. I related to the father's characterization so much through my own experience. And the gothic house they lived in was so intriguing and stood as its own separate character rather than just a backdrop. The book was appropriately literary throughout and it made me want to read more in general, which felt like a gift.
(spoilers ahead...)
Because I enjoyed the first section so much, I was disappointed when the narrator left for college. Something had to happen, of course, for the plot to move on but, honestly, from then on the story seemed a bit more haphazardly pasted together. I wish we could have spent more time with his sister earlier and, later, with his quirky and (almost too) smart and nerdy college friends. Also, Buller! Probably my favorite character.
I think we were supposed to believe the narrator was forever an outsider like his sister, but he seemed to fit in well wherever he went the more he experienced, making friends and drawing people to him. His fascination with the love interest was portrayed in fairly realistic terms of the kind of obsession a crush has at that age, but I can't say I was as interested in that relationship as others even as it developed. I began to feel the novel was trying to cover too much ground. Again, I understand the plot must go on....
Ultimately, I was left feeling rather unresolved about his relationship with his sister Threnody and felt more time/space devoted to that would have been time well spent. I had a lot of "why" questions for her character and answering some, not all, could have left her with some mystery intact. Her big reveal wasn't particularly surprising considering how much the narrator thought about it, which is ok. How it played out in her life wasn't much addressed except through the mother's comments and I was interested.
Overall, very enjoyable and I could have kept reading. I might even say I savored it, especially toward the beginning. If one entire book had focused on the narrator growing up and ended when he left for school, I would have looked forward to reading the second book. As it is, I'll look forward to another book by this author and check it out.