A review by daviddavidkatzman
The View From The Tower by Charles Lambert
5.0
Full disclosure: Charles Lambert is an all-around wonderful human being who read the manuscript for [b:A Greater Monster|12480602|A Greater Monster|David David Katzman|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1315706831s/12480602.jpg|17465192] before I published it, and he provided me a thoughtful promotional blurb for it, which graces the back cover. He also wrote a recommendation for me for MFA programs. Given how prolific and busy he is, I can’t say enough about his kindness. Buy his books!
Lambert is a patient, careful writer. A View from the Tower is another great achievement, a work of emotional and psychological realism. Although billed as a thriller, it is truly a literary study of grief, love, and the inconstant and unpredictable nature of relationships and connections.
Yes, indeed, there is a fascinating political narrative here undergirding the entire story. You’ll find physical danger and mystery. But A View from the Tower does not have the pace of the thriller; don’t buy this book expecting The Da Vinci Code. Expect complex characters and utterly believable reactions to brutal events. Helen, the main character, was married to Federico, a senior political figure in the Italian government. At the very beginning of the novel, he is assassinated while driving in his armored limo to work. And this unfortunately occurs just as Helen is reconnecting (literally) with her former adulterous lover and Federico’s best friend from their politically radical past. Pass a side of guilt, anyone?
The remainder of the novel works bits and pieces forward to reveal exactly why and by whom he was killed, yet what in many novels would be the foreground, here is really the backdrop for exploring how Helen deals with her husband’s murder: her feelings about him and their relationship, and her relationship to her occasional lover Giacomo. She is in some ways on a journey of discovery about herself as well as discovery that…perhaps she didn’t know Federico as well as she thought she did. The threads of who he was, who anyone is, begin to fray and unravel. I believe the greatest attribute of this work that elevates it so highly is the convincing realism. Lambert is a master at creating characters who seem real. He strikes no false note here. He never panders to likeability. These are fully fleshed out, breathing people. Flaws, insecurities, mannerisms, egos, awkwardness, everything is on display.
A View from the Tower also provides a convincing sense of setting. Call Rome another character, I enjoy they way that Lambert effortlessly weaves in subtle details of life in the capital city. You can taste the olive oil.
Truly, emotions are the star of A View from the Tower. Lambert opens a window to reveal how people feel (and act) in tragic circumstances. Highly recommended.
Lambert is a patient, careful writer. A View from the Tower is another great achievement, a work of emotional and psychological realism. Although billed as a thriller, it is truly a literary study of grief, love, and the inconstant and unpredictable nature of relationships and connections.
Yes, indeed, there is a fascinating political narrative here undergirding the entire story. You’ll find physical danger and mystery. But A View from the Tower does not have the pace of the thriller; don’t buy this book expecting The Da Vinci Code. Expect complex characters and utterly believable reactions to brutal events. Helen, the main character, was married to Federico, a senior political figure in the Italian government. At the very beginning of the novel, he is assassinated while driving in his armored limo to work. And this unfortunately occurs just as Helen is reconnecting (literally) with her former adulterous lover and Federico’s best friend from their politically radical past. Pass a side of guilt, anyone?
The remainder of the novel works bits and pieces forward to reveal exactly why and by whom he was killed, yet what in many novels would be the foreground, here is really the backdrop for exploring how Helen deals with her husband’s murder: her feelings about him and their relationship, and her relationship to her occasional lover Giacomo. She is in some ways on a journey of discovery about herself as well as discovery that…perhaps she didn’t know Federico as well as she thought she did. The threads of who he was, who anyone is, begin to fray and unravel. I believe the greatest attribute of this work that elevates it so highly is the convincing realism. Lambert is a master at creating characters who seem real. He strikes no false note here. He never panders to likeability. These are fully fleshed out, breathing people. Flaws, insecurities, mannerisms, egos, awkwardness, everything is on display.
A View from the Tower also provides a convincing sense of setting. Call Rome another character, I enjoy they way that Lambert effortlessly weaves in subtle details of life in the capital city. You can taste the olive oil.
Truly, emotions are the star of A View from the Tower. Lambert opens a window to reveal how people feel (and act) in tragic circumstances. Highly recommended.