A review by lovelymisanthrope
Looking Glass Sound by Catriona Ward

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? N/A
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This was a book my husband bought me when he went out of town. 
"Looking Glass Sound" follows a young man by the name of Wilder Harlow. Wilder is determined to write a novel that chronicles his time spent in a small  coastal town in Maine. One fateful summer, he met two people that forever changed his life, but while the trio was trying to navigate who they want to become, the town is haunted by a serial killer. 
This novel was so engaging and kept me guessing from the first page. 
Wilder was a complex character, and I loved reading from his point of view. He really struggles to fit in and make friends, even into adulthood. The novel ends up covering a large time frame because the first chapter is when Wilder is 17, and then the end of the book is when he is well into adulthood. I really enjoyed this because we got to experience more of Wilder and see him try to grow through these challenging experiences. It was so easy to empathize with Wilder because at every turn he seemed to find himself being taken advantage of or tricked by some character. 
This novel has a lot of twists and turns all throughout and most of them I could not anticipate. This author is very skilled at crafting a misleading novel. There were one or two things I knew the general direction they were going to head in, but I could not have guessed what transpired in actuality. The ending of this novel was such a trip, and I really enjoyed the journey of ending up there. There was one aspect of the ending that I did not love, but I think it was poetic in its own way. 
I really enjoyed this novel and I cannot wait to pick up more from this author in the future! 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings