Reviews

This is the first book by Graeme Macrae Burnet that I have read. It cleverly combines a biographical account by ‘GMB’ of Collins Braithwaite, a 1960s ‘anti-psychiatrist’, with the account of a woman who believes her sister killed herself after a number of sessions with him. At times, provocative, shocking and funny.

lola113's review against another edition

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dark 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? Yes

mikarala's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective tense medium-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

4.5

This is a very fascinating, compulsive read that leaves you wanting answers that you never get. It's purposefully abstruse and leave's many things up to the reader's interpretation, which makes it both fun and somewhat frustrating to read. I found the characters compelling and bewildering, and the prose was really engaging while also being extremely refined and intellectual. I got the impression that the author loves reading and examining the human condition.

There's something that left me wanting a bit more, hense the .5 star deduction, but I truly enjoyed this novel.

moon_daisy's review against another edition

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challenging funny mysterious reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

For me this is a 3.5 stars but I have rounded it up here. I was a big fan of His Bloody Project and its pseudo-historical style and love the concept of "discovered notebooks". So this was a really interesting premise.

Here's what I liked:
The way that it incorporates psychology history, like the the anti-psychiatry movement, which is interesting to me as a psychology student.
The main character and the way they were characterised. They felt distinctive as a voice throughout their sections.
The "unreliable narrator" mystery.

And here's what I wasn't so sure about:
I would have liked a little more clarity, despite liking the mystery overall. A little more to work with?
Leading on from that, I felt it ended a little too soon, abruptly even.
I wanted to spend more time on the "hook" of the story but didn't feel like there was enough dedicated to it (or a resolution reached).
Thinking about it, all of these points are about wanting more out of what we already have.

Overall a solid read, especially if you are interested in psychology, but don't expect all of the answers or it to be "satisfying".

danon17's review against another edition

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dark mysterious reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I was so sure there would be a twist, and I spent the book trying to figure out what it would be. There isn't really one, so that was probably not fair of me!

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