Once I came to grips with the fact that I would never remember the name of this book -- I called it The Reluctant Wife, The Realistic Wife, The Rambunctious Wife (well, that last one's not actually true; I never called it that) -- I enjoyed this deeply disturbing but quite thought-provoking novel.
At first look, the characters seemed to be one dimensional. Clearly Catherine was evil; after all, she was out to kill Mr. Truitt for money. As for Mr. Truitt, he was simply a sexual pervert, wasn't he? But as I read on, I found the two main characters to actually be very complex and interesting, if not exactly likeable.
As I read a book, especially for book club, I try to decide which character I like the best, or that at least I find the most interesting. About halfway through the book, I was thinking to myself that I detested all of the characters and found none to be compelling. By the end, however, I found myself drawn to Catherine. It's true she had done some terrible things, and was about to do the most terrible thing of all. But as I learned about her past, I was able to see why she did the things she did. Furthermore (and more importantly), I realized that she had a conscience and even a bit of a moral compass.
Give me some of your thoughts about the characters -- who did you find most interesting or who did you like the best?
I think the thing I liked most about this book, the thing that kept me turning the pages, was the author's writing style. I found the cadence to be almost poetic. He would write the most disturbing words but I found it to be beautifully written. It was the kind of book that I would get to the end of a chapter and want to keep reading, even if I was tired. It wasn't because I couldn't wait to find out what happened next; it really was just the writing style. And I LOVED the ending.
What did you like best about the book? You must answer this question even if you disliked the book.
I found Mr. Truitt's obsession with sex (and the author's choice of discriptives) to be one of the things that I found most uncomfortable about the book. As I learned of his past, however, I decided he really was obsessed with sex because that was the only way in which he found closeness and what he considered to be love. It was a bit over the top, however. Sleeping with his finger in her sex? Really?
I also didn't quite get the random references to people cutting off their hands or hanging themswelves. I found that to be quite weird.
What did you like least about the book?
My rating is 8 out of 10.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
At first glance, I thought this book was going to be disturbing, possibly gruesome, and I guess some would say that it was. However, I was hooked from the first few pages. I was intrigued by Catherine because I knew there had to be a story behind her despair and lies. Mr. Truitt totally freaking me out in the beginning and I was sure he was going to be some sadist who was going to torture this girl...
ReplyDeleteTruitt was a sad sole. I felt for him as he revealed his story about the relationship he had with his mother. I agree with Kris in that his sexual nature and actual shame about it was a direct result of the lack of love and affection he had with anyone as a child. I also think that his desires are real and natural, particularly for a pubescent boy. It just happened to continue into adulthood.
I could not relate to any of the characters but I will say that I like Catherine the most. I knew that there was a reason behind her madness, particularly because she always mentioned a mother, and no father. I also liked that fact that she immediately took on a caregiver role when she and Truitt had the carriage accident her first night in town. I knew there was something soft about her.
The thing I liked best about the book is the growth and evolution of the characters. I liked how the author revealed their stories slowly and thoughtfully throughout the book. I didn't find the events predictable, as we have seen in other stories. I knew there was a connection between Catherine and Truitt's son, but couldn't quite put my finger on it, so to discover he was the reason for her quest for Truitt was a surprise. I also liked Truitt's soft and forgiving nature, even though he was painted as somewhat of a monster in the beginning.
There wasn't much I didn't like about the book, although I would like to know more about why the author inserted those random stories about other people (death, deception, etc).
I also would give this book about an 8.
This book is the perfect example of why I like being in a book club. I did not love this book. However, after discussing it and hearing other view points, I like the story and characters better than I did. I would have initally rated the book a 5. After reading Kris' and Josey's thoughts, I would rate it a 7.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading it I never considered not finishing it, yet I didn't particularly look forward to the time spent reading it. It was a bit too dark for me. The random stories (as Josey mentioned) threw me and seemed strange. And the way the author painted Mr. Truitt's contstant thoughts around sex were....well...I found myself thinking, "oh come on now." I also found myself thinking, "what kind of person has thoughts like this running through their mind to write?"
Having said that, I did enjoy the ending and that would be what I liked the best about this book. When Tony was raping Catherine and there was blood everywhere, I did not expect an ending I would like. And up to the very end, I wasn't sure where it was going. I thought Tony's demise was perfect.
My favorite character was Mr. Truitt. I liked that he continued to forgive Tony and I also liked when he told Catherine at the end, he always knew about her past.
Here's my assignment to those who enjoyed this book. Please read the author's first novel, The End of te World as We Know It and report to me if you like it. I'm not going to read anymore of his books!
Oh, one last comment. Wasn't Mr. Larsen's death random? Can anyone figure out why that spin was added to the story?
ReplyDeleteI liked this book from the beginning. It seemed like some sort of mail-order bride was going to meet her soon-to-be husband. But, almost immediately the reader finds out that she was not entirely honest in her letter. That’s putting it mildly! Given how dark books seem to be these days, I was prepared not to like either Catherine or Truitt. However, I ended up liking them both, because as several of you noted, the characters were complex and not what they first appeared to be.
ReplyDeleteI did not find Truitt to be as creepy as Jen and Kris did. I like the way Josey put it about his sexuality being sort of caught in an immature state. He was a very lonely man, and he found comfort and warmth in sex. His position in town put him in a very solitary position—everyone dependent upon him but certainly not wanting to be his friend. His wife betrayed him with a sexual relationship with another man. It’s not surprising that his sexuality was affected.
Catherine was a challenging character for me. I didn’t ever think she was capable of being truly evil. Even when she was poisoning Truitt, I never believed she would ultimately go through with it. In retrospect, I wonder if she was torn about “the plan” right from the beginning. Imagine having heard all the horrible things about Truitt from Tony and then discovering that he didn’t seem to be that person at all. I think it rattled her from the beginning.
Tony I didn’t like, which probably goes without saying. And, let me say that I suspected from the beginning that Tony was the long-lost son, although I didn’t realize until late that he and Catherine had planned this together. I thought that Catherine would discover that Tony was Truitt’s son when she started hunting for him. I suppose it’s understandable that Tony would have issues with Truitt, but I couldn’t sanction his intense and insane desire for revenge. I thought his death was handled about the only way that could give the book a satisfactory ending.
What I found most intriguing about the book was the use of the weather/climate as a motif. Maybe it’s because I’m such a sun-worshipper and hate the cold, but I could totally see how the bleak, cold, unforgiving weather could make people do crazy things. It leant a darkness to the narrative that I thought was very effective. As early as the carriage ride from the train station, the weather is introduced as a player in the mysterious goings-on of the story.
I rate this book with an 8. I liked the characters, the narrative and the atmosphere. (And, it was the first book I read on my Kindle!)
Did Mr. Larsen actually die, or was he sent away? Maybe I missed something, but I really didn't get it. Was that a symbol that people just go away? They die or disappear? I didn't get that either.
ReplyDeleteAnd on a relative note, what was the deal with Mrs. Larsen? She seemed to play a pretty large role but was always in the background. The author did not expand on her role...maybe that was the point???
I think Mr. Larsen went to the nut house. It was fairly unclear. As for Mrs Larsen, I think she was a maternal symbol. She took care of him and there was no sexual relationship.
ReplyDeleteI think the author's other book is nonfiction. There was some mention about this being his first novel.