Good gravy! What a book!
Have you read this? If you have, can we talk?
This book reads like Agatha Christie hired Edgar Allen Poe, Franz Kafka, and a few characters from The Great Gatsby to write one of her murder mysteries — all while Sophocles and Plato were in the corner of the room smoking and making snide remarks.
The writing is bonkers good. The characters are absolutely absorbing.
I kind of want to go back and read it all again.
My Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars
Genre: Literary fiction that is also somehow mass market.
Format: Audible listen while I was folding laundry for 22 hours and 3 minutes.
Read It If: You miss feeling like you’re in college. This book will keep you on the edge of your seat and also make you feel like you’re forgetting to turn something in to your professor.
Steer Clear If: You don’t have the stomach for 1980s racism, bigotry, misogyny. Or you’re not very good at suspending disbelief.
Would I Recommend this to My Parents: No.
Bonus: I can’t get enough of Book Riot — and their new podcast, Zero to Well-Read, did a great episode on The Secret History. Definitely recommend you listen after reading. (Or before, if you’re into knowing a lot about a book before committing.)