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A review by frasersimons
At Last by Edward St Aubyn
emotional
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I wasn’t quite sure how this could end satisfyingly, but I actually thought this came together rather perfectly, ending on its own terms. I always like contradictory characters best, and as we see in plain terms here, all of the characters we met were. Patrick’s feelings regarding them more so, which is to be expected at funerals. Dredging up the past presents the possibility of symmetry for the story too, allowing for catharsis, or the denial of it.
Perhaps surprisingly, I found this to be the most laugh-out-loud instalment as well. I’ve always found the biting humour in the previous ones as something that would make me smile, but I found myself chuckling at the grocery store, listening to the excellent audiobook of this (the narrator sounds so much stylistically like the one of Pushing Daisies I couldn’t help but feel some cross connection).
Perhaps surprisingly, I found this to be the most laugh-out-loud instalment as well. I’ve always found the biting humour in the previous ones as something that would make me smile, but I found myself chuckling at the grocery store, listening to the excellent audiobook of this (the narrator sounds so much stylistically like the one of Pushing Daisies I couldn’t help but feel some cross connection).