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tashreads2manybooks's Reviews (1.06k)
Wow, what a spellbinding book! I honestly couldn’t put it down. I was so invested in the characters and really cared about how their stories would end.
This is a chillingly dark tale revolving around a ten-year-old boy named Alex who claims to see demons, and the psychiatrist, Anya, who is treating him. Alex is haunted by one demon in particular, the sinister Ruen; a Harrower (upper level demon) who is thousands of years old. Although Alex perceives Ruen as his friend, it is pretty clear from the start that the demon does not have good intentions for Alex.
Anya, meanwhile, is grappling with a tragic event from her own past, and has to learn to deal with demons of her own before aiding Alex in exercising his.
The novel delves into the darkness of serious mental illness, and examines the unsatisfactory way society deals with it. It seems Jess-Cooke is criticizing a social systems that does not adequately deal with people on the fringe. Alex comes from a very low socio-economic background and lives with his mother in appalling housing conditions.
I enjoyed the way the chapters alternate between Alex’s and Anya’s stories. It gives the reader a glimpse into both worlds. I found myself, from the onset, willing people to believe poor Alex. He is so vulnerable and lovable; I just wanted to protect him from the evil lurking in the shadows.
The ending left me reeling. It is not often that an ending of a novel surprises me, and although I expected some kind of twist, I didn’t see this one coming.
At the novel’s core is how one traumatic event can impact the rest of a life, physically, emotionally and psychologically. An absolutely terrific read; horrific and haunting in places, but gentle and hopeful in others.
This is a chillingly dark tale revolving around a ten-year-old boy named Alex who claims to see demons, and the psychiatrist, Anya, who is treating him. Alex is haunted by one demon in particular, the sinister Ruen; a Harrower (upper level demon) who is thousands of years old. Although Alex perceives Ruen as his friend, it is pretty clear from the start that the demon does not have good intentions for Alex.
Anya, meanwhile, is grappling with a tragic event from her own past, and has to learn to deal with demons of her own before aiding Alex in exercising his.
The novel delves into the darkness of serious mental illness, and examines the unsatisfactory way society deals with it. It seems Jess-Cooke is criticizing a social systems that does not adequately deal with people on the fringe. Alex comes from a very low socio-economic background and lives with his mother in appalling housing conditions.
I enjoyed the way the chapters alternate between Alex’s and Anya’s stories. It gives the reader a glimpse into both worlds. I found myself, from the onset, willing people to believe poor Alex. He is so vulnerable and lovable; I just wanted to protect him from the evil lurking in the shadows.
The ending left me reeling. It is not often that an ending of a novel surprises me, and although I expected some kind of twist, I didn’t see this one coming.
At the novel’s core is how one traumatic event can impact the rest of a life, physically, emotionally and psychologically. An absolutely terrific read; horrific and haunting in places, but gentle and hopeful in others.
After reading this novel the first thought that came to my mind was a quote from Hamlet: “Something is rotten in the state of Denmark”. Only with A Serpentine Affair, something is rotten in Hyde Park!
The story follows seven university friends over a period of 25 years. Since graduating, they try to meet up once a year for a reunion. This year they are having a picnic in Hyde Park. Seven women arrive at the picnic, but only six will leave.
This is no happy reunion. Each woman seems to have a secret, and after a few too many bottles of white wine, the allegations and confessions fly. But could one of these secrets be enough to destroy a friendship of 25 years? And could it be a motive for murder?
I found this to be a compelling read. After the initial confusion (very short-lived) of who was who, I felt like I had to discover all their secrets. I felt like a voyeur on a reality television series – watching a train wreck unfold but not being able to look away. And Seskis sure knows how to deliver on the drama. Revelation follows revelation and you never quite know when it will stop.
But don’t expect to love the characters. They are awful (with a few exceptions of course). These are bitter, angry and resentful women with so much baggage they may as well own a Louis Vuitton store. Their marriages are mostly unhappy, with the exception of Camilla and probably Sissy, though she has her fair share of tragedy.
I view this novel as an examination of strained relationships. How our connection (or lack thereof) to other people define us. While outwardly successful, these women fail in their roles as wives, mothers, daughters and friends.
The story is told from various points of view and can be a little difficult to follow at first, but you soon learn to compartmentalize each individual character (I found myself imagining my own university friends, although thankfully, none of them are as malicious and damaged as these women yet!). One criticism is that all the different voices sometimes confuse the story (especially in part 3 where extremely peripheral characters narrate a chapter each).
Overall a very entertaining read that appealed to the drama queen in me, and clearly illustrates the old adage: with friends like these, who needs enemies!
Thank you Netgalley and Kirk Parolles for providing me with a copy of this novel for review. A Serpentine Affair was released on 2nd August 2013
The story follows seven university friends over a period of 25 years. Since graduating, they try to meet up once a year for a reunion. This year they are having a picnic in Hyde Park. Seven women arrive at the picnic, but only six will leave.
This is no happy reunion. Each woman seems to have a secret, and after a few too many bottles of white wine, the allegations and confessions fly. But could one of these secrets be enough to destroy a friendship of 25 years? And could it be a motive for murder?
I found this to be a compelling read. After the initial confusion (very short-lived) of who was who, I felt like I had to discover all their secrets. I felt like a voyeur on a reality television series – watching a train wreck unfold but not being able to look away. And Seskis sure knows how to deliver on the drama. Revelation follows revelation and you never quite know when it will stop.
But don’t expect to love the characters. They are awful (with a few exceptions of course). These are bitter, angry and resentful women with so much baggage they may as well own a Louis Vuitton store. Their marriages are mostly unhappy, with the exception of Camilla and probably Sissy, though she has her fair share of tragedy.
I view this novel as an examination of strained relationships. How our connection (or lack thereof) to other people define us. While outwardly successful, these women fail in their roles as wives, mothers, daughters and friends.
The story is told from various points of view and can be a little difficult to follow at first, but you soon learn to compartmentalize each individual character (I found myself imagining my own university friends, although thankfully, none of them are as malicious and damaged as these women yet!). One criticism is that all the different voices sometimes confuse the story (especially in part 3 where extremely peripheral characters narrate a chapter each).
Overall a very entertaining read that appealed to the drama queen in me, and clearly illustrates the old adage: with friends like these, who needs enemies!
Thank you Netgalley and Kirk Parolles for providing me with a copy of this novel for review. A Serpentine Affair was released on 2nd August 2013
Read this while at University and loved it! Tried it again 10 years later and just couldn't get into it.
When I began reading this book the characters disgusted me. The world McGregor portrays is so foreign and sinister to what I am used to (thank goodness I suppose) that I found it quite unsettling reading. It is a world of drug users, alcoholics and delinquents; where the most urgent and important need is to make enough money for the next score. By the end of the novel, i can't say i liked any of the characters, but they became more human. I pitied them. I hoped for something positive amongst the ashes and squalor.
I found it to be a rather cautionary tale; nothing good comes from this lifestyle, and most of the characters come to a rather gristly end. Yet it gives the addicts; the homeless; the forgotten people in society a face and a voice - even if what that voice says is something that makes us uncomfortable, and we would rather be deaf to it.
Well written and thought provoking.
I found it to be a rather cautionary tale; nothing good comes from this lifestyle, and most of the characters come to a rather gristly end. Yet it gives the addicts; the homeless; the forgotten people in society a face and a voice - even if what that voice says is something that makes us uncomfortable, and we would rather be deaf to it.
Well written and thought provoking.