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A review by maketeaa
Wild Houses by Colin Barrett
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
crime fiction always makes me nostalgic because it's what i spent most of my time reading when i was 13/14. wild houses feels like that same nostalgia repackaged, a crime novel which maintains all the thrilling beats of a typical crime novel but all the reflection of literary fiction.
the story opens with dev hendrick opening the door to his friends, sketch and gabe, dragging in a 17-year-old-boy named doll english. it's a revenge kidnapping against doll's older brother, cillian -- chillingly, we read of the sentiment that this is the only thing that can threaten a man that doesn't care for his own skin. however, it's clear from the beginning, and his later actions, that dev himself is not fully on board with his house being the location of this kidnapping. on the other side we see nicky, doll's girlfriend. a seventeen-year-old waitress, we see her interactions with a large cast of characters, including doll's older brother, and through her perceptive nature begin to question the relationships between the characters.
a big theme is doll's allegiance to cillian. it's brought to our attention first by nicky and her silent indignance towards it, but also in the aspect of the kidnapping itself. does cillian truly care for doll as much as sketch and gabe assume so? there is little emotion we see towards his brother after the kidnapping, most of it being seen from their mother, sheila, upon her finding out. in fact,it's sheila herself who develops the plan to get almost 18k to get doll back, while cillian only carried it out. it's also noteable that cillian didn't even try to bring together another 3k, showing up to dev's house short. nicky, additionally, as young as she is, plays a courageous role in his rescue.
but what i feel is the most noteworthy part of the book is dev's character arc. dev, who allows his two friends to use his own home as they wish, with a history of violent bullying, and who, despite his large stature, simply can't get himself to stand up for himself, does stand up for doll. he takes agency over his own house when doll's life is on the line, rescuing him in his own way, finding some form of allyship between the younger boy which seemed like as a result of both their victimhoods.
a really vivid and unique take on a crime novel, steeped in detailed imagery and irish culture. definitely deserves its place on the booker prize longlist!
the story opens with dev hendrick opening the door to his friends, sketch and gabe, dragging in a 17-year-old-boy named doll english. it's a revenge kidnapping against doll's older brother, cillian -- chillingly, we read of the sentiment that this is the only thing that can threaten a man that doesn't care for his own skin. however, it's clear from the beginning, and his later actions, that dev himself is not fully on board with his house being the location of this kidnapping. on the other side we see nicky, doll's girlfriend. a seventeen-year-old waitress, we see her interactions with a large cast of characters, including doll's older brother, and through her perceptive nature begin to question the relationships between the characters.
a big theme is doll's allegiance to cillian. it's brought to our attention first by nicky and her silent indignance towards it, but also in the aspect of the kidnapping itself. does cillian truly care for doll as much as sketch and gabe assume so? there is little emotion we see towards his brother after the kidnapping, most of it being seen from their mother, sheila, upon her finding out. in fact,
but what i feel is the most noteworthy part of the book is dev's character arc. dev, who allows his two friends to use his own home as they wish, with a history of violent bullying, and who, despite his large stature, simply can't get himself to stand up for himself, does stand up for doll. he takes agency over his own house when doll's life is on the line, rescuing him in his own way, finding some form of allyship between the younger boy which seemed like as a result of both their victimhoods.
a really vivid and unique take on a crime novel, steeped in detailed imagery and irish culture. definitely deserves its place on the booker prize longlist!