icarusandthesun's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
hallucinogenic, wild - an absolute fever dream.
the writing was impressive, the characters and their development smooth and spiralling like a vortex of water. their decline was obvious, yet so gradual and gracious that later one is left wondering, how could it come to this? how could the same characters that felt new and strange and beautifully secretive at the beginning, discussing greek prepositions in the library, become so fucked up and alien?
i went into this book expecting dark academia, a romantic murder accompanied by sweet greek verses and justified with latin proverbs. well, this was dark academia - for maybe the first hundred pages. after that it turned into a sort of psychological thriller but filled with alcohol and drugs, homer and thoroughly morally grey characters that had no sense of reality and being, in a sleepy town that felt as wicked and grey as its inhabitants.
i lost the book's story line and supposed purpose out of sight rather quickly - the time richard got pneumonia, to be exact. that was the first "what am i reading?"-moment of many yet to come.
and still, i found myself reading for hours straight, leisurely, curious and enticed. a little confused, a little enthralled.
this book was as unpredictable as life itself, and as tempting as a cult.
the writing was impressive, the characters and their development smooth and spiralling like a vortex of water. their decline was obvious, yet so gradual and gracious that later one is left wondering, how could it come to this? how could the same characters that felt new and strange and beautifully secretive at the beginning, discussing greek prepositions in the library, become so fucked up and alien?
i went into this book expecting dark academia, a romantic murder accompanied by sweet greek verses and justified with latin proverbs. well, this was dark academia - for maybe the first hundred pages. after that it turned into a sort of psychological thriller but filled with alcohol and drugs, homer and thoroughly morally grey characters that had no sense of reality and being, in a sleepy town that felt as wicked and grey as its inhabitants.
i lost the book's story line and supposed purpose out of sight rather quickly - the time richard got pneumonia, to be exact. that was the first "what am i reading?"-moment of many yet to come.
and still, i found myself reading for hours straight, leisurely, curious and enticed. a little confused, a little enthralled.
this book was as unpredictable as life itself, and as tempting as a cult.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Blood, Drug abuse, Drug use, Death, and Mental illness
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Physical abuse, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Violence
Minor: Antisemitism, Eating disorder, Classism, Racial slurs, Animal death, Racism, Sexism, Vomit, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Homophobia, and Incest
another_fine_reader's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Alcoholism
Moderate: Suicide, Incest, Addiction, Drug use, and Domestic abuse
sab7800's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
Originally had this at 4 stars but since changed it to 5 as I've been unable to get this book out of my head despite finishing it months ago.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism and Murder
Moderate: Addiction, Domestic abuse, Incest, Toxic friendship, Drug use, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Death, and Drug abuse
smiley_ari's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
To quote Peter Griffin: “it insists upon itself”
It was a pretty good book but I would have had more fun reading a greek tragedy or like, Hamlet. The reason being: i could not stand the characters so when the plot focused on something like romance i absolutely could not bring myself to care about it, and it fell flat.
It was a pretty good book but I would have had more fun reading a greek tragedy or like, Hamlet. The reason being: i could not stand the characters so when the plot focused on something like romance i absolutely could not bring myself to care about it, and it fell flat.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide attempt, Gun violence, and Drug abuse
Moderate: Alcohol, Addiction, and Domestic abuse
eirinnfi's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-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
3.0
Judy Poovey best character, would have given 4 stars if it was 100 pages less.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Murder, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Incest
dryriver's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
I thought I would love this book, but unfortunately, I was quite disappointed by the majority of it.
What I liked: Tartt does an excellent job at character building, creating complex characters which are lovable and despicable, and crafting the atmosphere of a scenario. To be honest, I love the writing -- it verges on gothic romance with a dark focus on environmental qualities and emotional turmoil.
What I didn't like: Was there any plot? While the writing was excellent, the majority of the book focuses on someone being drunk or doing drugs, someone being pissed at someone else, someone trying to get drunk or do drugs or cause tension..... and it drags. Had this book been 300 (or fewer) pages, I probably would have rated it higher. Maybe it's the superiority complex, immense wealth, ignorance, and privilege held by most characters, but I could not get myself to care much about their emotional turmoil as it was self-imposed.
By the last half of the book, I genuinely hated the majority of the characters and only continued because I hate not finishing a book even more. It was also dotted with racism, homophobia, and incest, all of which seemed like unnecessary shock factors.
I am glad others liked this book more than I did, but for what reason, I'm not entirely sure. Though I think Tartt is a great writer, I can't say I enjoyed this read.
What I liked: Tartt does an excellent job at character building, creating complex characters which are lovable and despicable, and crafting the atmosphere of a scenario. To be honest, I love the writing -- it verges on gothic romance with a dark focus on environmental qualities and emotional turmoil.
What I didn't like: Was there any plot? While the writing was excellent, the majority of the book focuses on someone being drunk or doing drugs, someone being pissed at someone else, someone trying to get drunk or do drugs or cause tension..... and it drags. Had this book been 300 (or fewer) pages, I probably would have rated it higher. Maybe it's the superiority complex, immense wealth, ignorance, and privilege held by most characters, but I could not get myself to care much about their emotional turmoil as it was self-imposed.
By the last half of the book, I genuinely hated the majority of the characters and only continued because I hate not finishing a book even more. It was also dotted with racism, homophobia, and incest, all of which seemed like unnecessary shock factors.
I am glad others liked this book more than I did, but for what reason, I'm not entirely sure. Though I think Tartt is a great writer, I can't say I enjoyed this read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder
Moderate: Incest, Racism, and Xenophobia
Minor: Domestic abuse
stierwood's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Lots of highlights and low points, including but not limited to the 2 dimensionality of the only female character, the page-turning aspect, the dialogue & prose being both incredibly descriptive/beautiful/smart & pretentious/awkward at the same time, the sharp and interesting (except for camilla) and highly dislikeable characters, and the incest 😟 much to unpack. Deeply disturbed
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Medical content, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Suicide, Addiction, Drug use, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Gun violence, Mental illness, Murder, Racial slurs, Torture, Violence, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Classism, Death, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Grief
nenaveenstra's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
I started reading The Secret History because I wanted to know what the fuss was about, right? It's extremely popular all over bookish Internet and I had to know. Well, after 660 pages of it, I still don't know.
I've seen people talk about this book as if it's a mystery, and as if it's a satirical look at academia and elitism, and I've also seen people talk about this book in the context of its characters. And of course, there is something to say for all of those aspects. To start with the mystery - it's not really a mystery, when you know 'whodunit' from the beginning of the book. It's more of a 'whydunit' for the first half of the book, which was actually quite entertaining; I was curious to find out why they decided to kill Bunny, or rather, what was the straw that broke the camel's back, because Bunny was a prick from beginning until his tragic end. The second half of the book, however, drags on, because there are hardly any consequences for what they've done. All the second half of the book does, in regards to the mystery element, is work up to a climax at the very end of the book - but nothing happens in between.
In regards to the satire in this book, it was very clear that we weren't necessarily supposed to like these characters. The Greek students were all very pretentious and did nothing but study, spend tons of money and plot murder, while all the other students seemed much more fun. For some reason, though, Richard wanted to belong to the rich, pretentious kids, even though that's not at all the environment he comes from. The insertion of Richard felt a bit forced to me, especially at the beginning, and I felt like it could've been utilised better. I think it would've been more interesting if, instead of just being a wallflower annex push-over, he would've given commentary on the students' problematic behaviour.
Now on to the character work. I couldn't help but think about the people on the internet who romanticised these characters' lives and wished to be part of this friend group. To those people I say: you're fucking crazy. Not only were the characters very unlikable, I also found they were quite flat caricatures of what they were supposed to represent. For all the time I spent with them, I still struggle to distinguish Henry from Charles and I remember Camilla only because she was the only girl in the group.
The Internet aside, my main experience with this book is that most of it was boring, but I appreciate what it was trying to do. I think Donna Tartt is a very good writer, there were some beautiful sentences in this book and I really liked the references to literature and pop culture in here, as well as probably some tropes and things that I didn't pick up on. I also thought she was very funny sometimes, although I'm not sure if it was intentional. I just think I would have liked this book so much more if it was a couple hundred pages shorter (and that's from someone who loves big books).
A good start would be to scrap the epilogue. That really would've made the story go out with a bang (pun intended).
I've seen people talk about this book as if it's a mystery, and as if it's a satirical look at academia and elitism, and I've also seen people talk about this book in the context of its characters. And of course, there is something to say for all of those aspects. To start with the mystery - it's not really a mystery, when you know 'whodunit' from the beginning of the book. It's more of a 'whydunit' for the first half of the book, which was actually quite entertaining; I was curious to find out why they decided to kill Bunny, or rather, what was the straw that broke the camel's back, because Bunny was a prick from beginning until his tragic end. The second half of the book, however, drags on, because there are hardly any consequences for what they've done. All the second half of the book does, in regards to the mystery element, is work up to a climax at the very end of the book - but nothing happens in between.
In regards to the satire in this book, it was very clear that we weren't necessarily supposed to like these characters. The Greek students were all very pretentious and did nothing but study, spend tons of money and plot murder, while all the other students seemed much more fun. For some reason, though, Richard wanted to belong to the rich, pretentious kids, even though that's not at all the environment he comes from. The insertion of Richard felt a bit forced to me, especially at the beginning, and I felt like it could've been utilised better. I think it would've been more interesting if, instead of just being a wallflower annex push-over, he would've given commentary on the students' problematic behaviour.
Now on to the character work. I couldn't help but think about the people on the internet who romanticised these characters' lives and wished to be part of this friend group. To those people I say: you're fucking crazy. Not only were the characters very unlikable, I also found they were quite flat caricatures of what they were supposed to represent. For all the time I spent with them, I still struggle to distinguish Henry from Charles and I remember Camilla only because she was the only girl in the group.
The Internet aside, my main experience with this book is that most of it was boring, but I appreciate what it was trying to do. I think Donna Tartt is a very good writer, there were some beautiful sentences in this book and I really liked the references to literature and pop culture in here, as well as probably some tropes and things that I didn't pick up on. I also thought she was very funny sometimes, although I'm not sure if it was intentional. I just think I would have liked this book so much more if it was a couple hundred pages shorter (and that's from someone who loves big books).
A good start would be to scrap the epilogue. That really would've made the story go out with a bang (pun intended).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Suicide, Murder, Incest, and Cursing
Moderate: Racism, Death, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Homophobia and Domestic abuse
clevermird's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
The latest entry in my quest to read the great classics of Western literature, The Secret History was billed to me as a "modern classic", which often sets me worried - I often do not like "modern classics". But to my surprise, not only was this book not a drag, but I was sucked into the world and found myself really enjoying it.
Eager to get away from his boring, tense home life in California, Richard Papen gets a scholarship to Hampden College and moves to Virginia. There, he joins the Classical Studies program and gets to know the tiny, insular department: charismatic, old-fashioned professor Julian; eccentric genius Henry; anxious, dissolute Francis; friendly, alcoholic Charles; his sister, the cool, enigmatic Camilla; and extroverted freeloader Bunny. But by the very first chapter, we know this story can only end badly as Bunny is murdered by the rest of the students for reasons unknown. The rest of the book elaborates on the situation - what led five seemingly normal college students to commit cold-blooded murder? What other secrets are they hiding? And how will they live with themselves afterword?
There's a lot this book does right. The characters are complex, interesting, and full of very human contradictions. The prose is well-done and enjoyable to read and Tartt makes several jabs at academia that I found amusing as a former member of that subculture myself. However, the book isn't perfect, either. The writing, while overall well done, does feel a bit full of itself at times. Some of that is the narrator's personality, but it does get grating at times. Additionally, the book drags at points, even for a slow-paced character study.
Overall, however, a fascinating look at the dark side of academia, the facades that people put up, and what can drive seemingly normal people to desperate ends.
Eager to get away from his boring, tense home life in California, Richard Papen gets a scholarship to Hampden College and moves to Virginia. There, he joins the Classical Studies program and gets to know the tiny, insular department: charismatic, old-fashioned professor Julian; eccentric genius Henry; anxious, dissolute Francis; friendly, alcoholic Charles; his sister, the cool, enigmatic Camilla; and extroverted freeloader Bunny. But by the very first chapter, we know this story can only end badly as Bunny is murdered by the rest of the students for reasons unknown. The rest of the book elaborates on the situation - what led five seemingly normal college students to commit cold-blooded murder? What other secrets are they hiding? And how will they live with themselves afterword?
There's a lot this book does right. The characters are complex, interesting, and full of very human contradictions. The prose is well-done and enjoyable to read and Tartt makes several jabs at academia that I found amusing as a former member of that subculture myself. However, the book isn't perfect, either. The writing, while overall well done, does feel a bit full of itself at times. Some of that is the narrator's personality, but it does get grating at times. Additionally, the book drags at points, even for a slow-paced character study.
Overall, however, a fascinating look at the dark side of academia, the facades that people put up, and what can drive seemingly normal people to desperate ends.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Alcoholism, Suicide attempt, Addiction, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Classism, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Incest, Outing, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Physical abuse, Racism, and Sexism
bookish_worm's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Suicide
Moderate: Domestic abuse