In Awe

Rating:
Summary: a lot going on
Review: There was a lot going on in this book... sometimes too much for me to keep up with. And some of the violence seemed gratuitous. However: the human relationships hold the book together. As with Mysterious Skin -- this is a story of very real characters on a very fantastic journey. The novel is really a backdrop for a fearless examination of human pain, desire, love, self-sabotage, coping, strength. Even though "the" main character happens to be male, I particularly appreciate that Heim's female characters are REAL people -- not just hollow sidekicks. Say what you want about Heim's [] depiction of gay life... All I know is that there are not many writers (male, female, gay or straight) who manage to transcend the sexist prejudice of our culture and allow female characters to be as human as their male characters. This one does. Bravo, Heim!

Rating:
Summary: a lot going on
Review: There was a lot going on in this book... sometimes too much for me to keep up with. And some of the violence seemed gratuitous. However: the human relationships hold the book together. As with Mysterious Skin -- this is a story of very real characters on a very fantastic journey. The novel is really a backdrop for a fearless examination of human pain, desire, love, self-sabotage, coping, strength. Even though "the" main character happens to be male, I particularly appreciate that Heim's female characters are REAL people -- not just hollow sidekicks. Say what you want about Heim's [] depiction of gay life... All I know is that there are not many writers (male, female, gay or straight) who manage to transcend the sexist prejudice of our culture and allow female characters to be as human as their male characters. This one does. Bravo, Heim!

Rating:
Summary: A Dark Tour de Force
Review: This book is Scott Heim's second novel, and he still is able to capture the reader and hold them and bring them into his dark world. It is a fanastic novel that deals with death, romantic desire, revenge, and homophobia to name a few. I found that it is equal in power to his first novel, it's just the subject is different. It has the poetry of the first book, it's just darker but just as moving. I really liked it, and hopefully Scot Heim will give us his next novel soon!!!

Rating:
Summary: This book changed my life!
Review: Well, perhaps not. It did, however, hold a mirror to some aspects of my own life. I, like Boris, was hopelessly in love with a beautiful, savage, and, unfortunately, unobtainable objet de desir. As such I am perhaps prejudiced to vote in favour of this novel, but I do know good writing when I see it. Dripping with poignant imagery, the plot serves as a static background upon which we can examine Heim's multi-layered characters. The copious amount of detail serves the purpose of enhancing this. Please, you critical reviewers, try reading the book dispassionately and you'll see what I mean. I await Heim's next attempt with bated breath.

Rating:
Summary: Ominous & dark
Review: With his intricate characters, Heim plunders into the depths of loss to convey the waves of malevolent warnings that come from being on the downwardly spiralling road. Incredibly moving and powerful. This is what you'd get if a horror movie didn't have specific monsters: a dark and brooding tale of people in limbo waiting for their lives to change and being unable to force them to change for the better. I'll be rereading this next year so I can savor it all over again.