Rating:  Summary: A new voice bursts upon the literary scene Review: "Faithful" is a tour de force. A work of elegant prose, confidently presented, that presents the evidence and allows one to draw ones own conclusions regarding the characters. No authorial spoon feeding here. Polished, stylish, and sophisticated, it will leave you saying 'first novel? couldn't be.' "Faithful" is one of those rare books that will be discussed in graduate programs, debated at cocktail parties, and seen in the hands of discerning readers on beaches from the Hamptons to St. Tropez.
Rating:  Summary: Tacky Tale Told Tediously Review: Davitt Siegerson's "Faithful" would have been better titled "Unfaithful" since that's the premise. We are introduced to the main characters of Nick and Trish who are newly married. The beginning engages as the joys of newlyweds are faithfully portrayed. Then Trish becomes unfaithful. The book devolves from there. The obvious sell here is the lurid sex scenes that pile one on top of the other (...) However, it comes across as extremely barren. All of the characters from Nick & Trish to ex-boyfriend Joe and abused sometime girlfriend Johnny are exceedingly trivial. None of these characters achieves any spiritual level of identification that gives a value level to the tale. Instead, the characters all have the mentality of bunnies, with my apologies to rabbits. Ultimately, Siegerson becomes trivial with this tacky tale told tediously. Taxi!
Rating:  Summary: As strong a debut as I've read Review: I first heard of Sigerson when I bought the David and David album he produced in the late 80's. It had this song "Welcome to the Boomtown," on it, and the rest of the album was great too. I guess I got this book as a curio--wanted to see what some record producer thought he was up to writing a novel. I was stunned. The book is brilliant. The work of someone who has found his calling. As strong as any first novel I have read. As terrific as some of the albums Sigerson has produced ( Tori Amos, The Bangles ) are, it's a shame he wasted time doing them. He should have been writing all along.
Rating:  Summary: Do nice guys really finish last? Review: I started reading this book at 11:00 PM---bad idea---I was up for two more hours, and had to force myself to go to bed!Nick Clifford finds himself married after only dating Trish for two months. He knows her almost as little as we do, as we start reading. She seems fun and beautiful, and very interested in pleasing her man. All seems perfect, until page 14, when we realize that Trish is not the most faithful wife. "She doesn't know the man with her, doesn't know why she let him buy her a drink at the hotel where they're both staying, doesn't know why she came to his room when the bar closed. She especially does not know why, when he kissed her in the bar, with his dark good-smelling skin, she didn't really resist." Maybe this was the part that really threw me for a loop. I assume that people who cheat, at least feel guilty about it. She goes with her emotions, whichever way they fall. "What happened, in this second week of her marriage---does she feel bad about it? How can she? It has no connection to her real life." (Unfortunately, like many others, this is how people rationalize their little affairs.) She comes home, knowing that she is not going to tell him. Why would she? He is loving, sweet, the kind of man that a lot of women say they want, and then go for the bad-boy instead. (Except for me, of course) She finds that she is pregnant (hopefully by Nick, we never really find this out) and they are like the perfect couple "he is aswirl with joy, but too full of it to feel it as joy. He loves this women, easily to death and past it." She sees her ex-boyfriend of 6 years, someone who really treated her badly in the past, and tries to get her back, knowing she is pregnant. It took her a few weeks. Just when you think she is going to stay with Nick, she leaves him for Joe. After her baby, it gets more complicated. Nick is the greatest father on earth. Even though he moves to New York for half of the time (they live in London) he comes back often, has sleepovers with his baby, and proves to really love his daughter Charlotte, and she loves him as well. Does Trish ever stop sleeping with Nick? Does he want her to? Does Joe know? Does he care? These are the questions that get answered in this immediate page turner (almost) all the way till the end! I realized that it's not so much the plot that sucks you into this novel. It's the author's style of writing. He makes you think, read back on what he's wrote just to make sure you have read it right, and the sizzling sex scenes. (I don't embarass easily, but I even felt a tinge of red in my cheeks while reading.) I hope to find more authors like Davitt Sigerson in the future. I finished the book in two nights, and now I'm disappointed that it's over.
Rating:  Summary: dull as dirt Review: I was left thinking not only about choices that the characters made but also about choices we all make every day and the consequences of those choices. I also appreciated the depth of insight into the life that these three were left to lead - the complexities, the love, the children. Great book for a reading club. Really well written - a great read all around. I'll read it again on a hot summer night for sure!
Rating:  Summary: Juicy Review: I was left thinking not only about choices that the characters made but also about choices we all make every day and the consequences of those choices. I also appreciated the depth of insight into the life that these three were left to lead - the complexities, the love, the children. Great book for a reading club. Really well written - a great read all around. I'll read it again on a hot summer night for sure!
Rating:  Summary: The Way We Cheat Now Review: In a literary era glutted with clucking chick lit and (worse) puffed up lad lit, Sigerson delivers a short, stunning bolt of emotional-reality-rescue for real men and women. Beautifully written, shot through with wickedly apt observations, it's a brave look at all-too vulnerable people.
Rating:  Summary: dull as dirt Review: Largely unreadable, I'm afraid. I was hopeful when I began, but Sigerson turns onto a turgid cul de sac: will he? won't she? who cares about these dreary people? If infidelity is your thing, I'd recommend Madame Bovary or Anna Karenina instead.
Rating:  Summary: Very pleasantly surprized Review: Picked this book up because he had produced some of my favorite records and wanted to see if his talent translated to literature. Stayed up all night reading it as it was incredibly well written and the story developed so quickly. I very strongly recommend this book and would compare Sigerson to Joseph Heller or J.D. Salinger in the brilliance of the writing.
Rating:  Summary: An absorbing journey Review: The first time I read "Faithful" was for the journey, the ride, the twists and turns that good, solidly written characters can take you on. The second time I read it was to absorb the language, the nuances, the sights and smells, those great bits where you go, "Yeah, I know how that feels." Davitt Sigerson is a fresh, daring and honest voice who isn't afraid to veer off the well-worn beaten path. Think Scott Spencer or John O'Hara for the level of intimacy we're talking here. Reading "Faithful" is like hearing a song for the first time and knowing instantly that it's bound to make your All-Time Favorites mix tape. Oh, and it's pretty darn sexy too!
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