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A review by lucasilievskie
The Other by Thomas Tryon
3.0
3.5
A Bradbury-esque horror tale affecting the classic evil twin trope (with a twist), The Other is a richly plotted and atmospherically rendered story set in the nostalgic throes of 1930s rural Connecticut.
The twisting plot and the underlying mystery impart a chameleonic quality to the novel, and I can’t help but praise how fluidly Tryon shifts between genres without you knowing it. Is it a New England Gothic mystery? A psychological thriller? A Bildungsroman? A ghost story? Or all of the above? The Other rightly felt like the literary equal of a magic act – blink once and you’ll miss it.
The writing style, however, was the biggest gripe for me – for a 288-page novel, the reading experience felt awfully long. Tryon somehow manages to combine King and Bradbury’s meandering styles into one – and I would’ve much preferred a more straightforward narrative.
Rating: Three (and a half)
A Bradbury-esque horror tale affecting the classic evil twin trope (with a twist), The Other is a richly plotted and atmospherically rendered story set in the nostalgic throes of 1930s rural Connecticut.
The twisting plot and the underlying mystery impart a chameleonic quality to the novel, and I can’t help but praise how fluidly Tryon shifts between genres without you knowing it. Is it a New England Gothic mystery? A psychological thriller? A Bildungsroman? A ghost story? Or all of the above? The Other rightly felt like the literary equal of a magic act – blink once and you’ll miss it.
The writing style, however, was the biggest gripe for me – for a 288-page novel, the reading experience felt awfully long. Tryon somehow manages to combine King and Bradbury’s meandering styles into one – and I would’ve much preferred a more straightforward narrative.
Rating: Three (and a half)