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nancy_pocono50's review
3.0
I am so disappointed. I really want to give this well written book a higher score. Unfortunately about two-thirds of the way through the lead character fell out of character. After that, I no longer had sympathy or empathy for him. It was almost as if in plotting the story, the author boxed herself in and had to stretch the character in a non-believable direction. Shame because the writing is beautiful.
alisonjfields's review
4.0
7.0/10. For its trappings, this is not a spy novel, exactly (Kay’s protagonist is, among other things, terrible at keeping a secret), and it’s at once a lot funnier and. unsettling than I was expecting in that lovestruck delusional (if comparatively harmless) nerd, lives of quiet desperation sort of way.
sapphisms's review against another edition
3.0
CW for book's content: cheating, stalking, unhealthy relationships
I received this book through NetGalley and Tin House Books in exchange for an honest review.
Was this a good read? No. Was it a bad read? Again, no. I walk away from Kay's novel with very little but prose and an eyeful of ruined romanticizations of stalking. I constantly waited for a twist that came only in the very last 6% of the book. Stephen is a dry character, and I noted that someone on the back of the cover said that he was an intentionally 'hollow' character. I can't find anything positive about having a hollow character who is somehow not even characterized to this hollowness. Everything about him centers on his increasing obsession with Helen, the wife of PHOENIX, the subject of an investigation he'd been assigned by a British Intelligence Agency. There's something to say about how Stephen is gutted of all characteristics (and how these characteristics are only informed by his mother's perspective), but very little characterizes his internal motivations other than a need for escape and a descent into fantasy.
This is by far one of the oldest galleys I kept putting down and making myself pick back up. It's not a bad read, but it is an exhausting read. I'm reminded of my fifth grade's writing lessons- a story should have rising action, a peak, closing action, then conclusion. As it's a thriller, I thought that stakes would be high- but Stephen consistently faced so little consequence that I couldn't actually care that he was. If there is no actual threat of consequence, there's no action- this book is more of a misguided romance novel, maybe even another deconstruction of the 'women are more than what men think of them' (manic pixie dream girl- though, in this story, she's very much so a married woman who Stephen reinvents into a waif needing saving by him in his fantasy) trope. But, like I've said on other reviews- if the woman cannot challenge this view, then it still stands that all we, as the reader, get to see of her is the man's construction.
Stephen's rapid obsession, if that is supposed to qualify this as a thriller, escalated so gradually that, only after thinking on it to write this review, do I think about how severe his actions quickly became.
I lost track of side characters, for the most part- Alberic and Coralie, of course, stayed fairly central, and I think it's because they were written to stand out. Other characters, such as Charlotte and Louise, I got confused- to the point where what I assume was a large reveal () towards the end wasn't a reveal at all to me, because I had no idea who these characters were.
Regarding the end:
It's a smart novel, but the themes presented are couched under too-slow plot development, and the purposefully-hollow main character forces the narrative to drag its heels far too slow for me.
I received this book through NetGalley and Tin House Books in exchange for an honest review.
Was this a good read? No. Was it a bad read? Again, no. I walk away from Kay's novel with very little but prose and an eyeful of ruined romanticizations of stalking. I constantly waited for a twist that came only in the very last 6% of the book. Stephen is a dry character, and I noted that someone on the back of the cover said that he was an intentionally 'hollow' character. I can't find anything positive about having a hollow character who is somehow not even characterized to this hollowness. Everything about him centers on his increasing obsession with Helen, the wife of PHOENIX, the subject of an investigation he'd been assigned by a British Intelligence Agency. There's something to say about how Stephen is gutted of all characteristics (and how these characteristics are only informed by his mother's perspective), but very little characterizes his internal motivations other than a need for escape and a descent into fantasy.
This is by far one of the oldest galleys I kept putting down and making myself pick back up. It's not a bad read, but it is an exhausting read. I'm reminded of my fifth grade's writing lessons- a story should have rising action, a peak, closing action, then conclusion. As it's a thriller, I thought that stakes would be high- but Stephen consistently faced so little consequence that I couldn't actually care that he was
Spoiler
stealing tapes from his secret agency just to listen to Helen's voiceStephen's rapid obsession, if that is supposed to qualify this as a thriller, escalated so gradually that, only after thinking on it to write this review, do I think about how severe his actions quickly became.
Spoiler
He escalated from listening to Helen's voice, to breaking into her home, to following her in person, to trying to meet her on Christmas. It's scary, and it's definitely stalking, but it didn't elicit any sort of tension from me. With Coralie telling us how birdboned he is and what a mild-mannered man he is, corresponding with actual truth we see in his narrative (never actually interacting with Helen), I was never afraid for Helen. Or for Stephen to get caught until the end- and, even then, it's not for the crime he was committing.I lost track of side characters, for the most part- Alberic and Coralie, of course, stayed fairly central, and I think it's because they were written to stand out. Other characters, such as Charlotte and Louise, I got confused- to the point where what I assume was a large reveal (
Spoiler
regarding Marlow at the partyRegarding the end:
Spoiler
I can reserve an appreciation for the irony of Stephen being reduced to a story himself in the last chapter, with all of his coworkers reinventing their conceptions of him. "[Helen] would live her whole life without him and never even know of his existence except as a minor story in the news" (98%) and "This hunger is exhausting, though. Is it too much to ask: to love and to be loved?" (62%) present the central theme- that Stephen is so hungry to be loved that he invents a fantastical life in his head where him and Helen will meet and she'll leave her husband for him, but she will never truly know him (because, in meeting her, he cannot invent her reactions to him, etcetera).It's a smart novel, but the themes presented are couched under too-slow plot development, and the purposefully-hollow main character forces the narrative to drag its heels far too slow for me.
nerdyrev's review
4.0
If you have read more than one review on my blog, you may have noticed I have a thing for the publishing company Tin House. I have found almost all of the books I have read published by them intriguing to say the least. They have topics that are worth discussing and make one think.
The Long Room by Francesca Kay is no different. This is a book that can be discussed, taken apart, examined, and I still think there will be things to be found in it. While I will admit that at times it was a bit slow, the overall premise is what pulled me in.
Stephen is a listener in the 80s. His job is to listen to conversations that have been recorded in people's houses to listen for any talk of espionage. His subjects always have code names to keep from allowing bias.
Stephen is also routine oriented. He has his days planned out he does the same thing day in and day out, and he is a loner.
One day, he gets an assignment to listen to a husband and wife, yet he can only hear the day time portion and not the night time portion. The more he listens, the more he starts to connect with the wife Helen. He becomes so connected, he starts creating a narrative for this couple that may or may not be true. His curiosity becomes obsession and he starts to do things he would not normally do. How far will Stephen take it?
As stated above, Tin House has a way of publishing books that make people think. The whole time reading Kay's book, I kept wondering about conversations, people I knew, and how much I really knew about them. Stephen is in a place where he only gets a piece of the whole, yet creates a whole dialog which is a tiny bit based on truth, but mostly upon his own read into things. At one point, he dismisses a portion of dialog because it didn't fit his narrative.
I also kept thinking about how people approach politics and the idea of narrative. I don't think Kay chose the 80s without reason. It was a time of line drawing, heavy politics, and the beginning of the major split between conservative and liberal. It was the beginning of the political narrative that was taking place in London as well as the US.
What is truth and what is fiction, when you only hear one piece of the story?
Needless to say, I really enjoyed this one, but as stated, it is slower than most of their books. This is a simmer book rather than a boil book. It takes time, but once Stephen's world starts to become unraveled, it takes off.
I gave this one 4 stars.
*I want to thank Tin House publishing for the ARC of the book. It was given with the intent of receiving an honest review*
The Long Room by Francesca Kay is no different. This is a book that can be discussed, taken apart, examined, and I still think there will be things to be found in it. While I will admit that at times it was a bit slow, the overall premise is what pulled me in.
Stephen is a listener in the 80s. His job is to listen to conversations that have been recorded in people's houses to listen for any talk of espionage. His subjects always have code names to keep from allowing bias.
Stephen is also routine oriented. He has his days planned out he does the same thing day in and day out, and he is a loner.
One day, he gets an assignment to listen to a husband and wife, yet he can only hear the day time portion and not the night time portion. The more he listens, the more he starts to connect with the wife Helen. He becomes so connected, he starts creating a narrative for this couple that may or may not be true. His curiosity becomes obsession and he starts to do things he would not normally do. How far will Stephen take it?
As stated above, Tin House has a way of publishing books that make people think. The whole time reading Kay's book, I kept wondering about conversations, people I knew, and how much I really knew about them. Stephen is in a place where he only gets a piece of the whole, yet creates a whole dialog which is a tiny bit based on truth, but mostly upon his own read into things. At one point, he dismisses a portion of dialog because it didn't fit his narrative.
I also kept thinking about how people approach politics and the idea of narrative. I don't think Kay chose the 80s without reason. It was a time of line drawing, heavy politics, and the beginning of the major split between conservative and liberal. It was the beginning of the political narrative that was taking place in London as well as the US.
What is truth and what is fiction, when you only hear one piece of the story?
Needless to say, I really enjoyed this one, but as stated, it is slower than most of their books. This is a simmer book rather than a boil book. It takes time, but once Stephen's world starts to become unraveled, it takes off.
I gave this one 4 stars.
*I want to thank Tin House publishing for the ARC of the book. It was given with the intent of receiving an honest review*
andrew61's review against another edition
4.0
This was a interesting read set in the claustrophobic world of a British intelligence 'listening in ' station where operatives transcribe tapes of the day to day conversations of potential moles and suspicious individuals. set in 1981 the nation is glued to Brideshead revisited as Stephen Donaldson eavesdrops upon potential mole phoenix and his wife Helen. Stephen is a solitary individual , he struggles to engage with his colleagues, and he becomes obsessed with Helen's voice to the point that his fantasies lead to stalker like behaviour.
This is a slow burner of a book which is well worth sticking with as it is an excellent portrait of how obsession can ruin a life. The sense of being an aural peeping Tom is uncomfortable as Helen and Phoenix's most intimate moments; their quarrels, their love making, their phone calls to family, their dinner parties, their mundane moments are shared with Stephen and us the reader. This sense is enhanced by the setting , 1980's London as Christmas looms and the snow descends.
I liked Stephen as a character even though he was socially inept but his back story is well fleshed out by Francesca Kay and there is a separate thread where his mother prepares for their 'sad' Christmas day together with poignant scenes as she pins the Christmas stocking up on her own whilst comically their Christmas turkey defrosts in Stephen's car because her fridge is too small. Stephen is however immensely frustrating as the book is full of glimpses of the person and life he could have been and could have had but for his obsession.
I don't want to say much more as the story develops in a gripping way even if this is a book without crashes and bangs. It reminded me to some extent of the domestic feel of Le Carre's Smiley as he navigates the world of 1970's London in Tinker Tailor but ultimately this is a very good novel about the individual complexities of a very interesting man. Well worth reading.
This is a slow burner of a book which is well worth sticking with as it is an excellent portrait of how obsession can ruin a life. The sense of being an aural peeping Tom is uncomfortable as Helen and Phoenix's most intimate moments; their quarrels, their love making, their phone calls to family, their dinner parties, their mundane moments are shared with Stephen and us the reader. This sense is enhanced by the setting , 1980's London as Christmas looms and the snow descends.
I liked Stephen as a character even though he was socially inept but his back story is well fleshed out by Francesca Kay and there is a separate thread where his mother prepares for their 'sad' Christmas day together with poignant scenes as she pins the Christmas stocking up on her own whilst comically their Christmas turkey defrosts in Stephen's car because her fridge is too small. Stephen is however immensely frustrating as the book is full of glimpses of the person and life he could have been and could have had but for his obsession.
I don't want to say much more as the story develops in a gripping way even if this is a book without crashes and bangs. It reminded me to some extent of the domestic feel of Le Carre's Smiley as he navigates the world of 1970's London in Tinker Tailor but ultimately this is a very good novel about the individual complexities of a very interesting man. Well worth reading.
zzzrevel's review
2.0
This book held so much promise for me. There is
an obvious build up of tension as the protagonist
gets deeper and deeper involved in something he
should never be doing, but the whole story just
ends a bit disappointingly for me.
an obvious build up of tension as the protagonist
gets deeper and deeper involved in something he
should never be doing, but the whole story just
ends a bit disappointingly for me.
jhaeger's review against another edition
A slow burner of a spy novel, exploring the effects of espionage on a person opposed to a mission.
missmesmerized's review against another edition
4.0
Stephen Donaldson, a single well-educated young man, was recruited for the Institute after completing his studies at Oxford. The aim and tasks of his employer remained rather unclear and so he finds himself listening to audio tapes and scanning them for hints of communist and revolutionary plans. Day by day he gets more familiar with the individuals he observes, he feels like being part of their family since he gets to hear every word spoken at their homes. The target PHOENIX becomes especially interesting when Stephen kind of falls in love with Helen who seems to be lonely and disconnected from her husband.
Sending the reader back into the beginning of the 1980s with the cold war at a critical point, Francesca Kay provides us with a glance through the keyhole of espionage and state intervention. Yet, it is less the political implication that comes into the focus but the very private lives of the targets which are portrayed via the tapes and which do not hide anything. Not just Stephen is very carefully drawn and quite authentic in his thoughts and manner, but also the persons observed and it is the details, e.g. the Christmas presents Stephen offers to one of his colleagues, which show an incredible capacity of close observation of the human being. Apart from this, the atmosphere at the time, the fear of IRA bombs or even a 3rd World War, is exceptionally well translated into the text.
Sending the reader back into the beginning of the 1980s with the cold war at a critical point, Francesca Kay provides us with a glance through the keyhole of espionage and state intervention. Yet, it is less the political implication that comes into the focus but the very private lives of the targets which are portrayed via the tapes and which do not hide anything. Not just Stephen is very carefully drawn and quite authentic in his thoughts and manner, but also the persons observed and it is the details, e.g. the Christmas presents Stephen offers to one of his colleagues, which show an incredible capacity of close observation of the human being. Apart from this, the atmosphere at the time, the fear of IRA bombs or even a 3rd World War, is exceptionally well translated into the text.
rickmanreader's review against another edition
3.0
This one draws you in until suddenly you realize there is no way out. I was reminded of the movie The Lives of Others (both follow spies who are listeners, one for the British government in 1981, the other for the Stasi in East Germany circa 1984) but on the whole they don't really compare. The movie was really, really good, this book was just ok.
kempfme's review against another edition
2.0
I got this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. It was not what I was expecting for an espionage type of read. The story revolves around Stephen, a guy that listens to tapes on suspects for the Government, who has come under some delusion that he is in love with one of his suspect's wife. He is so into this delusion that he ends up stealing tapes from his work and takes it upon himself to go on his own physical investigation of this woman. Things do go wrong, but Stephen and those around him are concerned, but I don't think that they are concerned enough about what is going wrong, or at least until it is too late.
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