John Boyne

Heart's Invisible Furies

Lila R E

I have mixed feelings about this because on the one hand it was very readable and I always think it’s an achievement when a book this long can hold my attention and keep the storyline moving. I thought Cyril’s journey of self-discovery was nice and the characters were generally pretty well-written. howeverrrr overall I just found it a bit too on the nose — this was the case for me with the humour, the (underlying? i think?) messages and the coincidental encounters/events that furthered the plot — which made the whole thing feel almost farcical. while the dialogue initially seemed witty and authentic, after about 300 pages it got a bit interminable, especially when certain lines/jokes were repeated and events that we have already read about were retold (which is a red flag imo). I can see this novel’s appeal because it’s a well-packaged story about finding yourself and the trials and tribulations of life etc etc but for me it just lacked sophistication and ultimately missed the mark.

ps also was kind of hilarious to read some reviews on here because literally all of the more negative ones hyperfixate on the risqué elements of the narrative so while that was not my issue with the book at all maybe me not loving it makes me a traditionalist lollll

Heart's Invisible Furies

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