2020-06-22
This is a novel in three parts, and the first part started really well. It took a long time to set up, but it established a good range of characters, atmosphere and setting. It held all the promise of a strong plot that I couldn’t wait to see develop.
It took a turn in the second part, when it started to introduce yet more characters, whose purpose – it turns out – is to simply run into the characters from the first part. Any suggestion of a plot fizzled out into a series of vignettes, and this continued into the third part.
In the end, this was an atmospheric book with both interesting and memorable characters and events. But there was no real story, and the book itself simply meandered to no real conclusion. There was no climax, nobody changed, and nothing was achieved.
Overall, a somewhat disappointing novel that falls into the literary trap of not really telling a story.
Rating: 3/5