A review by jmatkinson1
Trio by William Boyd
4.0
It's the Summer of 1968 and a disparate group of characters have landed in Brighton to make a film. Amongst them are three at a crossroads in their lives. Anny, the glamorous American filmstar having an affair with her co-star as well as a French philosopher but chased by the FBI as her terrorist ex-husband has absconded. Elfrida, an alcoholic novelist who has published nothing for ten years but is suddenly inspired by the tragic end to the life of Virginia Woolf. Talbot, the filmmaker who hides a guilty secret as he lives an alternative life in London. For all three the summer will force changes for good or ill.
Boyd is a fantastic writer about the human condition and this book is no exception. It took me a while to find the rhythm but once I did I started to really feel for the characters. I found Anny's ending the least satisfying as it jarred a little with the character developed over the course of the book, but it made sense in the bigger picture of the three main individuals - three different escapes. Having said all that, it's still a terrific book!
Boyd is a fantastic writer about the human condition and this book is no exception. It took me a while to find the rhythm but once I did I started to really feel for the characters. I found Anny's ending the least satisfying as it jarred a little with the character developed over the course of the book, but it made sense in the bigger picture of the three main individuals - three different escapes. Having said all that, it's still a terrific book!