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Rooms by Lauren Oliver
Sep. 22nd, 2014 01:32 pmThe Blurb On The Back:
How do ghosts see?
We didn’t always; it had to be relearned.
Dying is a matter of being reborn. In the beginning there was darkness and confusion. We learned gropingly. We felt our way into this new body, the way that infants do. Images began to emerge. The light began to creep in.
Now everything is perfectly clear. We do more than see. We detect the smallest vibrations, miniscule shifts in the currents, minor disturbances, molecules shifting. We are invisible fingers; we play endlessly over the surface of things.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Lauren Oliver’s first novel for adults is a literary character study about damaged individuals and damaged relationships. It’s a slickly written affair with an atmospheric supernatural element, but the plot is as predictable as its resolution and the living characters never really rose above archetypes while a subplot involving Trenton and neighbouring kooky teenager Katie was an irritating and needlessly convoluted take on the manic pixie girl trope. I did enjoy the narration from the two ghosts, particularly Sandra, a brassy broad who led a troubled life and who takes great joy in pointing out the foibles of the living and gambling on what they will do and I also enjoyed Alice’s backstory, particularly her marriage with Ed. Although there was enough here for me to keep turning the pages and Oliver knows how to turn a phrase, this wasn’t sufficiently original to excite my interest, although I would check out her other adult work.
ROOMS will be released in the United Kingdom on 25th September 2014. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC of this book.
How do ghosts see?
We didn’t always; it had to be relearned.
Dying is a matter of being reborn. In the beginning there was darkness and confusion. We learned gropingly. We felt our way into this new body, the way that infants do. Images began to emerge. The light began to creep in.
Now everything is perfectly clear. We do more than see. We detect the smallest vibrations, miniscule shifts in the currents, minor disturbances, molecules shifting. We are invisible fingers; we play endlessly over the surface of things.
( The Review (Cut For Spoilers): )
The Verdict:
Lauren Oliver’s first novel for adults is a literary character study about damaged individuals and damaged relationships. It’s a slickly written affair with an atmospheric supernatural element, but the plot is as predictable as its resolution and the living characters never really rose above archetypes while a subplot involving Trenton and neighbouring kooky teenager Katie was an irritating and needlessly convoluted take on the manic pixie girl trope. I did enjoy the narration from the two ghosts, particularly Sandra, a brassy broad who led a troubled life and who takes great joy in pointing out the foibles of the living and gambling on what they will do and I also enjoyed Alice’s backstory, particularly her marriage with Ed. Although there was enough here for me to keep turning the pages and Oliver knows how to turn a phrase, this wasn’t sufficiently original to excite my interest, although I would check out her other adult work.
ROOMS will be released in the United Kingdom on 25th September 2014. Thanks to the Amazon Vine Programme for the ARC of this book.
