A review by roisin_prendergast
Ancient Light by John Banville

4.0

Ooooh what a book. I've not read the two novels before this one because I thought it was a standalone book, and it can pass for one. A bit Oedipus, a bit Jocasta complex - although this boy's womanly older lover is not his mother. Woven with sensibilities all Greek, desirous, Freudian, ancient, psychoanalytical and sensual. So otherworldly but still altogether human and tender. I've already said it, but John Banville is a literary craftsman. He just amazes me. I get utterly lost in his prose - so much so that I agree with what another reader has said in the way that the storylines - although still incredibly engaging and juicy in themselves - nestle comfortably as a background for these incredibly intricate but engaging feats of writing. I actually felt a bit sick in parts, a kind of heartsickness, because it hit me that deep. As weird as this sounds I know I've read a good book if it makes me feel nauseous haha.