Sunday, March 16, 2014

Book 28: The Secret History by Donna Tartt

This book was amazing. It's a perfect example of a book that can speak to you despite the fact that neither the characters nor their situations are relatable. Richard Papen escapes his drab suburban Californian hometown for a prestigious college in Vermont and immediately becomes enamored with an elite group of students in the exclusive Greek program, led by a charismatic professor. But as Richard grows closer to the group, he becomes more entangled in their web of secrets.

The group of Greek students represents everything Richard has dreamed of from his dreary home life in Californiawealth, sophistication, intellectualismand I think one of the main appeals of this book is watching Richard's dream gradually warp into a nightmare. Even if I've never been complicit in the murder of a friend, I'm all too familiar with the sensation of experiencing an ideal crumble.

The writing is tense and compelling, and Tartt's send-up of the pretensions of her her college cast is absolutely on point. A+

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