Inspired by a post by
jofish22, I've been reading lots of airport thrillers. Largely, I've enjoyed myself, although I was not particularly fond of The Geographer's Library a literal object lesson in alchemical artifact. I found it boring. I've discovered artifacts don't really do it for me. Neither does immortality. And the baby-in-a-flask thing just pisses me off.
But I'd already mooched several other books, so when Rule of Four showed up, I read it and enjoyed it a little more. The setting was more vivid. The treasure at the end was more intriguing. But the numerological puzzle solving got a little tiresome and I did not for one second believe in the relationship between the narrator and his girlfriend. Given a choice between solving the manuscript puzzle of the ages and some dull photographer girlfriend; I'd choose the manuscript. Or better yet a partner who respected my research.
It was The Lake of Dead Languages, which is also compared to A Secret History, that really caught my attention. It's a classic girls' boarding school thriller about a woman who returns to teach at the school where both her roommates committed suicide her senior year. Events seem to be repeating themselves. Who or what is responsible for the repetition of events?
This book really grabbed me with it's woven strands of narrative and its astute exploration of the twisted psychology of teenage girls. There weren't many surprises (I had the mystery solved about halfway through and predicted most of the plot twists which are amply foreshadowed) and some moments went over-the-top, but by and large it was a very satisfying suspense novel with just the right degree of ickiness.
The biological factors: the way the girls do and don't relate to their bodies and their natural processes was particularly intriguing. Goodman looks aslant at numerous body dismorphic issues and the way that the (all female) environment tends to amplify psychological distress.
How did I find this book?
srotu was it you who recommended it? Anyway, I enjoyed it, even if it's creepy atmospheric teen boarding school gothic are not for everyone.
Also: I finally read Smilla's Sense of Snow, which
mrissa is not responsible for, but kept firmly in my mind. It's a fantastic genre bending novel about Greenland and greed. I almost feel like it's the fourth for the arctic quartet, but I'm not sure, yet. Definitely filed under the category of noir.
So after all that murder and conspiracy I should probably read something a little lighter, but you are welcome to recommend more books related to those above.
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But I'd already mooched several other books, so when Rule of Four showed up, I read it and enjoyed it a little more. The setting was more vivid. The treasure at the end was more intriguing. But the numerological puzzle solving got a little tiresome and I did not for one second believe in the relationship between the narrator and his girlfriend. Given a choice between solving the manuscript puzzle of the ages and some dull photographer girlfriend; I'd choose the manuscript. Or better yet a partner who respected my research.
It was The Lake of Dead Languages, which is also compared to A Secret History, that really caught my attention. It's a classic girls' boarding school thriller about a woman who returns to teach at the school where both her roommates committed suicide her senior year. Events seem to be repeating themselves. Who or what is responsible for the repetition of events?
This book really grabbed me with it's woven strands of narrative and its astute exploration of the twisted psychology of teenage girls. There weren't many surprises (I had the mystery solved about halfway through and predicted most of the plot twists which are amply foreshadowed) and some moments went over-the-top, but by and large it was a very satisfying suspense novel with just the right degree of ickiness.
The biological factors: the way the girls do and don't relate to their bodies and their natural processes was particularly intriguing. Goodman looks aslant at numerous body dismorphic issues and the way that the (all female) environment tends to amplify psychological distress.
How did I find this book?
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
Also: I finally read Smilla's Sense of Snow, which
![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
So after all that murder and conspiracy I should probably read something a little lighter, but you are welcome to recommend more books related to those above.