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The Cloud of Unknowing
by
Thomas H. Cook,
Otto Penzler (Goodreads Author)
DavidSears grew up in the shadow of his brilliant younger sister, Diana, convinced by their father that she would accomplish great things. Instead, she married and had a son, Jason, who—like David and Diana’s father—is schizophrenic. Her husband, Mark, a geneticist, never made peace with Jason’s condition.Perhaps this is why, when Jason drowns, Diana will not accept the au...more
Hardcover, 320 pages
Published
January 15th 2007
by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
(first published 2006)
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Young Jason Regan has been found drowned in a pond near his home whilst in the care of his brilliant scientist father, Mark. Mark was on the edge of a brilliant scientific breakthrough, so was distracted by his research the day Jason drowned. THE MURMUR OF STONES opens with the court handing down the decision that no-one was to blame for his death; Jason was a victim of misadventure. The story of the aftermath of the decision is told through the eyes of David Sears, Jason’s uncle. The reader kno...more
It's not that this book was bad, exactly, but I just didn't think that it accomplished what it was trying to do. Another book delving into perception versus reality, this time with latent paranoid schizophrenia thrown in, all with the intent (so I felt) of drawing the reader into the cloud of unknowing as if they were experienceing it rather than just reading about it. I don't know if it was the format or the length, but it just didn't happen for me. Instead, I felt like we just had the classic...more
A clever, psychological thriller from the gifted pen of Thomas H Cook. He is on familiar ground, the suspicion, which wreck havoc on human relationships, told from the point of a small town lawyer, added with nail biting suspense, keeps you engaged and leads to a surprising climax.
The Cloud of Unknowing, by Thomas H. Cook. A.
This is a book full of twists and turns with no clear idea how it will end even when it does end. Dave and Dianna have a terrible childhood to endure and try to live beyond. They were raised by their father who was a diagnosed schizophrenic who heard voices and often acted in ways that were only cognizable to him through the voices he acted upon, and sometimes cognizable to Dianna as well. This story is relayed to a detective by Dave, who tells the wh...more
This is a book full of twists and turns with no clear idea how it will end even when it does end. Dave and Dianna have a terrible childhood to endure and try to live beyond. They were raised by their father who was a diagnosed schizophrenic who heard voices and often acted in ways that were only cognizable to him through the voices he acted upon, and sometimes cognizable to Dianna as well. This story is relayed to a detective by Dave, who tells the wh...more
This book reminded me of Shutter Island in the way reality shifts and nothing is fully resolved. Still, it is well written and kept me turning the pages. In the end the reader is not sure about the deaths, which were murder or not. You are left with impressions but no certainty. Diana and Dave's father must have done away with their mother in a haze of schizophrenia but you don't really go down that path. Diana probably killed their father but nothing is ever admitted. Diana's husband Mark surel...more
I do not regularly read mysteries. I picked this one up because of the title. It is the same title held by a spiritual book written roughly in the 14th century. I loved the language Cook uses. I love the textural quality of the words and how they create imagery and evoke feelings. The metaphors augment the disturbing nature of the book. And it was for the language that I read it completely--that and hoping there would be a surprise twist at the end.
As it was, I had the ending all worked out abou...more
As it was, I had the ending all worked out abou...more
Although Cook's works tend to be too retrospective for my taste, it works for this book. In between chapters, the main character (David) is trying to explain his situation. Each chapter is a narration on what's going on in David's life, but the entire book is plagued by flashbacks of his childhood and descriptions of things that have already happened. In other books by Cook that I've tried to read, this obsession with repetitiveness bothered me. In this book, it's relevant to the mental states o...more
It was bound to happen sooner or later; my first Cook novel to elicit a lukewarm reaction. That’s not to say it was horrible; I don’t actually think it’s possible for Thomas H. Cook to write a horrible novel. The Cloud of Unknowing was a bit of a bust for me, though.
David and Diana Sears were raised by their brilliant but schizophrenic father. Now they are adults and they carry all the baggage from that often difficult childhood. David is a married lawyer with a teenage daughter. Diana is also m...more
David and Diana Sears were raised by their brilliant but schizophrenic father. Now they are adults and they carry all the baggage from that often difficult childhood. David is a married lawyer with a teenage daughter. Diana is also m...more
Rating: 3.5 stars
For some reason, this book failed to *wow* me; it was good, but it wasn't amazing. David Sears' family has been wrought with mental illness since he was a kid. He grew up under the frightening rule of a schizophrenic father, his sister Diana his only protector. Now adults, the roles have flipped as David tries to save Diana from herself after the drowning death of her young son, who was also schizophrenic. Although it was ruled an accident, Diana is convinced that her son was mu...more
For some reason, this book failed to *wow* me; it was good, but it wasn't amazing. David Sears' family has been wrought with mental illness since he was a kid. He grew up under the frightening rule of a schizophrenic father, his sister Diana his only protector. Now adults, the roles have flipped as David tries to save Diana from herself after the drowning death of her young son, who was also schizophrenic. Although it was ruled an accident, Diana is convinced that her son was mu...more
Unabridged. 7 CDs ~8.5 hours
Blurb - David Sears grew up in the shadow of his brilliant younger sister, Diana, convinced by their father that she would accomplish great things. Instead, she married and had a son, Jason, who -- like David and Diana's father -- is schizophrenic. Her husband, Mark, a geneticist, never made peace with Jason's condition.
Perhaps this is why, when Jason drowns, Diana will not accept the authorities' conclusion that his death was accidental. Or perhaps Diana is going mad...more
When a family is plagued by mental illness, everything said becomes suspect. Are people really hearing voices in their heads - or is it a means of covering of what is really going on around you?
When there is a child found dead on the bottom of a pool many questions arise. Was it 'by-chance'? Or was it really the Dad they suspect?
Suspense reigns supreme! You'll change your mind many times as the Author has the ability to make you believe and suspect exactly what he wishes you to do.
Our protagonist grew up with a schizophrenic father, so when his nephew is diagnosed with schizophrenia it is not a surprise. But when that newphew drowns, his sister refuses to believe the police conclusion that it was an accidental drowning. Does she really see what no one else did, or is she also succumbing to an undiagnosed schizophrenia? This is an interesting study of the power of family histories, and the difficulties of being related to someone mentally ill. But if you don't enjoy plot t...more
This book might not be everyone's cup of tea as it's not a typical suspense novel;. It's psychological suspense and the writing is so beautiful, sometimes it is enough to savor Cook's use of language. I found it to be a great story, character study and I was gripped from the opening page.
Jul 02, 2008
Mary
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
mystery fans
Shelves:
mystery-crime-fiction
After David's nephew dies under questionable circumstances, he begins to fear for his sister, Diana's sanity. Having grown up with a paranoid schizophrenic father, mental illness is never far from David's mind, and since her son's death, Diana is beginning to exhibit some of the same symptoms from which their father suffered. At first, David feels he must protect his sister, but by the end of the story, it is his family he is trying to protect from Diana.
From the first chapter, told from inside...more
From the first chapter, told from inside...more
I had a love/hate relationship with this book. I thought it was boring, but then I kept needing to know what the heck it was getting at - and then all of a sudden a fantastic plot twist at the very end - made me quite satisfied with!
Master of the Delta was heartbreaking and delivered a fine sucker-punch. This one telegraphs the sucker punch and feels gimmicky.
I too did not think the book was bad. It's just not my thing. I felt it was depressing, wandered around too much and just not interesting to me.
Another splendid Cook's work. Although this book was too heavy after reading children's books, the theme and the psychological descriptions were superb. Whenever I want to read mystery, I choose Cook without hesitance.
This was my least favorite of the Thomas H. Cook books I have been reading. Maybe I need to take a break from his books for a while and come back to them later. I've been listening to "Breakheart Hill," and it's pretty good, but I'm not loving it like the first three of his books I read.
I haven't read anything other from Cook, but I feel like I can say he has a penchant for metaphors, the book was strewn with them. I didn't mind so much as I got going, but it felt as though it read like a screen play, prodding the actors to use their eyes in a fiery way rather than intense way.
I like stories about crazy people, I like to read about academics, that way I don't feel stupid when they talk to me, I can just listen in. All in all a fun mystery with an interesting set up, with alter...more
I like stories about crazy people, I like to read about academics, that way I don't feel stupid when they talk to me, I can just listen in. All in all a fun mystery with an interesting set up, with alter...more
Another wonderful Thomas Cook story. It is suspenseful and a bit eerie because you are never sure what is happening. A really good book.
The Cloud of Unknowing by Thomas H. Cook was an ambitious book about the mysterious death of a child and the infliction of paranoid schizophrenia. The story follows the uncle of the child through his testimony with a detective and his narration of the actual events of the story. I felt both narratives intertwine perfectly and give a great sense of the mindset of all of those involved. The questions posed by the author, the language and technique of how this story was portrayed, and the level of...more
Maybe I have had enough of my THC binge. This one deals with the paranoid schizophrenics in a family, a drowned kid, and what happens to them all.
THC writes so well about men who are prigs, I really wonder what he is like as a person.
Anyway, the lunacy in this one was unsettling, which I would say means he was successful...if the characters are so real that they make one uneasy, that is good writing!!
Anyway, good stuff.
THC writes so well about men who are prigs, I really wonder what he is like as a person.
Anyway, the lunacy in this one was unsettling, which I would say means he was successful...if the characters are so real that they make one uneasy, that is good writing!!
Anyway, good stuff.
i really enjoyed this book. was suspenseful and found it interesting. easy / fast to read
not one of my favorite novels by Cook
This is a good psychological study involving mental illness inherited from father to siblings and a child of a sibling who mysteriously either commits suicide or is murdered. Of course this causes doubts and accusations. I have read several books by Cook some that I loved and some I didn't. I do think he is an excellent author.
Wow! A must read! This book grabs you from page one and literally propels you to it's final pages. I've rarely read a book that I "can't put down" and this is definitely the closest approximation. I think I started this one on Friday and finished about 11am Sunday night. For many of you, this truly would be a sitdown read!
Mr. Cook once again hooks the reader into this painful drama wrapped around mental illness. Well paced and well written right up to the last word! He does a great job of letting suspicion take hold of you, (as in Red Leaves) making you want to turn each page.
I thought this one drifted along and it seemed like there would be an inevitable and foreseeable twist at the end, as there was. Didn't see much suspense or hold much interest, the description of the book was better than reading it.
After Red Leaves, Murmur of Stones left me wanting more, and I felt that the author simply got tired of writing and ended it with no real thought to a creative ending. Great idea, but the execution of it was not that great.
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
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| Another very good novel from Cook | 2 | 9 | Mar 21, 2008 08:01pm |
There is more than one author with this name on Goodreads.
Thomas H. Cook is the author of over twenty books, including works of true crime. His novels have been nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award, the Macavity Award and the Dashiell Hammett Prize. The Chatham School Affair won the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel in 1996. His true crime book, Blood Echoes, was nominated for the Edgar Alla...more
More about Thomas H. Cook...
Thomas H. Cook is the author of over twenty books, including works of true crime. His novels have been nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award, the Macavity Award and the Dashiell Hammett Prize. The Chatham School Affair won the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel in 1996. His true crime book, Blood Echoes, was nominated for the Edgar Alla...more
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Apr 03, 2013 07:57pm