This was definitely an interesting book. The synopsis suggests that the book is set during one evening. This is not quite right. There are flashbacks This was definitely an interesting book. The synopsis suggests that the book is set during one evening. This is not quite right. There are flashbacks that flesh out the story.
The narrative is not so much about what is being said, but also about what is being left out. which is an interesting tactic. All the characters, from the parents that are having dinner in a posh restaurant to the sons of these couples, are vile. Seriously, all of these people have issues! I don’t mind unlikeable characters, but these really took the biscuit. Don’t even get me started on the fact that these people are discussing some very sensitive information about their sons a dinner in a restaurant. It seems absolutely ridiculous to me.
Yet, I did enjoy this book and the revolting characters. It was strangely fascinating. I grew up in The Netherlands, where this story is set, and I returned to live here five years ago, and my conclusion is that this book is incredibly Dutch. I am glad I decided to read it in its native language because of that. The way these people interact, think and talk feels very Dutch to me. I just recognise too many people I have known here in these characters ( Luckily there are many lovely Dutch people in real life!). Is that weird or worrying?
Did I love this book? No, in the end there was nothing to root for, which is a bit of an issue for me. The ending was unsatisfactory, but I am not sure how I would have preferred it to end. The ending does seem right for the tone of the book.
If you enjoy an uncomfortable slow book, you could do worse than chose to read this book....more
I was determined to finish this book. It was not bad enough to stop reading it, but I found it hard going. The story is a re-hash of the stuff that DaI was determined to finish this book. It was not bad enough to stop reading it, but I found it hard going. The story is a re-hash of the stuff that Dan Brown tends to do. I did not mind that so much, as I remember quite enjoying the Da Vinci Code. In this case, the main character Langdon Reilly stumbles across a hidden map in a copy of a 17th century religious painting after his sister and nephew are killed. A chase ensues.
At no point did I feel thrilled or excited by this book. It felt stale for some reason. And there were annoying little mistakes in it that bothered me, but may not bother others. For instance, the author suggests you can travel from the UK to France just with a driving licence as ID. Well, you can not. You need a passport or a European identification card. The United Kingdom is not part of the Schengen agreement that allows travel without such travel documents. And there were a couple of other things that did not quite work. I would have thought an editor would have flagged these things up!
Now, I was reading a Dutch translation of the book, and I was reminded why I do not tend to read books translated from English. I felt like I was quite often second-guessing the translation, because at times it felt awkward, or badly phrased. I wonder how much of my opinion of this book has been based on the translation. But then, the plot remains the same and the plot was just not good enough for me. I do not read thrillers or mysteries very often, but when I do, I want to feel like I am on the edge of my seat and I just did not feel that at all.
This one will go the guest library as it is lacking in Dutch books anyway....more
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