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The Gargoyle

by Andrew Davidson (Goodreads Author)

3.94 of 5 stars 3.94 · rating details · 22,080 ratings · 3,855 reviews

A New York Times BestsellerThe Gargoyle: the mesmerizing story of one man's descent into personal hell and his quest for salvation. On a dark road in the middle of the night, a car plunges into a ravine. The driver survives the crash, but his injuriesconfine him to a hospital burn unit. There the mysterious Marianne Engel, a sculptress of grotesques, enters his life. She i...more

Paperback, 516 pages

Published August 4th 2009 by Anchor (first published 2008)

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Dec 10, 2011 Nancy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sf-fantasy, romance, library-books

I’m usually suspicious of over-hyped books, but a friend at the library highly recommended it.

A short way into the story, the narrator’s mom dies, his grandmother dies, he gets severely burned in a car accident, and his aunt and uncle die. I felt beat over the head with all the suffering and seriously thought about giving up reading by page 50. Then Marianne Engel, a woman with a history of mental illness, shows up in the nameless narrator’s hospital room telling a story about her previous life...more

64 likes · like · see review

Dec 10, 2008 Jason Pettus rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

(Reprinted from the Chicago Center for Literature and Photography [cclapcenter.com]. I am the original author of this essay, as well as the owner of CCLaP; it is not being reprinted here illegally.)

It's easy to take the low road whenever a subpar book with tremendous hype comes out, to comically trash that book not necessarily for its ludicrous elements but rather that a group of corporate executives decided to spend millions on it anyway. But what if that author happens to be on your friend lis...more

124 likes · like · see review

Aug 05, 2008 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: amazon-vine, reincarnation, 2008-books-read

I began to get an idea why the publisher paid $1.5 million for this novel (the highest ever paid in Canada) after the first few pages. Andrew Davidson is able to tease stories out paper with his pen like his character, Marianne, is able to tease gargoyles out of stone with a chisel. Through the mouth of Marianne and with images straight out of Dante's Inferno, he tells 700 years of stories of Marianne's reincarnations which have included whispering nuns, fiery arrows, callous mercenaries, deadly...more I began to get an idea why the publisher paid $1.5 million for this novel (the highest ever paid in Canada) after the first few pages. Andrew Davidson is able to tease stories out paper with his pen like his character, Marianne, is able to tease gargoyles out of stone with a chisel. Through the mouth of Marianne and with images straight out of Dante's Inferno, he tells 700 years of stories of Marianne's reincarnations which have included whispering nuns, fiery arrows, callous mercenaries, deadly plagues, lost ships, gregarious Vikings, and being buried alive.

It's with a man's cocaine-influenced fiery car accident and his subsequent treatments in a burn unit that the novel itself begins. However grotesque this situation really is, the author is able to find the perfect words that transform the story into a work of art. The car is falling into the pit of Dante's hell and the burn victim's bed is in the belly of a bleached white skeleton.

So here we have a man who was orphaned at birth, who was brought up by meth addicts who eventually blew up their house, and who later became a model and then a porn star to make ends meet on the street (Of course, after sustaining 1st-4th degree burns over most of his body and having a penectomy, there's not much of that career left.)

As the man is lying in his hospital bed thinking of a spectacular way to kill himself involving hanging, jumping from a building, a bullet to the head, an overdose, and a razor blade to the wrist all at once, a psych patient wanders into his hospital room. She swears she's known him for 700 years, tells him this is the 3rd time he's been burned, says she knows how he got the scar on his chest, tells him stories of dragons and monks, and leaves him a grotesque (not to be confused with a gargoyle) that she herself carved for him. Then she proceeds to tell him stories about the various lives they've met in.

This is a masterpiece of a book indeed. I've not seen so much symbolism and layers of story in a modern book in a quite a while. I found myself lost within the stories within the story and gasping for air at their astonishingly horrible and beautiful endings. This is definitely a book worth careful scrutiny and more than one read.

Note: While I critique both purchased and free books in the same way, I'm legally obligated to tell you I received this book free through the Amazon Vine program in return for my review. Blah blah blah.(less)

49 likes · like · see review

Aug 18, 2008 Peter rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: didn-t-finish

I gave this almost 200 pages to win me over since it has been hyped so much and everyone seems to love it, but I had to give up on it and move on. I thought that the writing was very good, with some vivid images, especially the early one equating the narrator's burn to the pain caused by touching a hot stove--for a full minute. I also, surprisingly, enjoyed some of Marianne's tales of love.

The problem was--okay, one of the problems was--that I found them to be more interesting than her own stor...more I gave this almost 200 pages to win me over since it has been hyped so much and everyone seems to love it, but I had to give up on it and move on. I thought that the writing was very good, with some vivid images, especially the early one equating the narrator's burn to the pain caused by touching a hot stove--for a full minute. I also, surprisingly, enjoyed some of Marianne's tales of love.

The problem was--okay, one of the problems was--that I found them to be more interesting than her own story. The main issue I had was that there was no real conflict to propel the plot along and I didn't think that the characters were strong enough to carry the story themselves. Yes, there were some details that intrigued me (like the Asian woman whispering to a young Narrator about the origin of his scar, which was completely forgotten in the pages that I was able to get through), and Marianne's assertion that they were lovers did pique my interest a little bit--was she for real or just a looney tune? But the majority of the plot seemed to be about the Narrator's recovery in the burn unit, his rehabilitation and physical therapy, which, granted, was quite thoroughly researched but a little boring after a while. But there were also parts where the author slipped into long, monotonous, detailed description that could have easily been cut. A half page listing all of the foods at the Christmas feast? Seriously?

My second major issue was the characters. I just felt that they were one-dimensional and uninteresting beyond the fact that one is burned and the other thinks they're lovers from 700 years ago. They reminded me of the titular gargoyle: meticulously crafted but ultimately stony and impenetrable and without much substance below the surface. I didn't think that they had any chemistry together, either. In fact, I was more charmed by the crush Gregor had on Mizumoto than I was by the primary romance.

I'm sure there were a ton of literary references and layers upon layers of symbolism in here that I didn't get, which may give it depth, but if I can't muster up the energy to plod along or care about the characters enough to watch them recuperate and court each other, what good is it? Honestly, if this were to have crossed my desk, I would have passed on it.(less)

43 likes · like · see review

Apr 08, 2012 Buggy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: shelf-09, fiction, addicted, top, love-story

Opening Line: "Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, often violently, just like love."

I really liked this book and found myself absorbed in the world that Andrew Davidson has created. THE GARGOYLE is a multilayered tragedy within a love story and it will affect you on many different levels; horrific, sad and gruesome it is also complex, funny, thought provoking and redeeming. Unfortunately any summery you read won't really do it justice.

THE GARGOYLE has been written in a first person narrative and...more Opening Line: "Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, often violently, just like love."

I really liked this book and found myself absorbed in the world that Andrew Davidson has created. THE GARGOYLE is a multilayered tragedy within a love story and it will affect you on many different levels; horrific, sad and gruesome it is also complex, funny, thought provoking and redeeming. Unfortunately any summery you read won't really do it justice.

THE GARGOYLE has been written in a first person narrative and although we never learn the narrator's name he is self-consciously and sometimes humorously aware that he's writing a book. We begin with our good looking and self absorbed narrator (N) driving his car while high on cocaine and with a bottle of bourbon between his legs. He subsequently starts hallucinating and to avoid the burning arrows flying at his car drives off the road. N's car flips several times and catches fire, burning him alive. The next half of the book takes place within the burn ward as N begins his long road to recovery.

The car accident and most of the burn ward scenes are detailed, horrific and at times hard to read but they're also so well written that you'll be able to smell the hospital and really feel N's pain and suffering. N has been burned so severely that he no longer resembles anything close to the gorgeous porn star that he once was and as he begins his therapy it's only in the detailed planning of his suicide that he's able to get through the day. The shots of morphine that silence the snake living in his spine help too but you'll have to read the book to understand that.

One day a strange and wild woman known as Marianne Engel escapes from the psyche ward and sneaks into the burn unit. She proceeds to tell N that she has known him for 700 years, that he has been burned before and that they were once lovers in medieval Germany where she was a nun and he was a wounded solider. It doesn't matter if he can't remember; she tells him, she will prove it to him. And so begins Marianne's tales of their past lives.

The book then begins to jump between time periods as Marianne Engel tells her life story which is set in the middle ages along with several other short stories about different tragic lovers. The flashbacks became my favourite parts of the book taking us to Germany, Japan, Italy and the Vikings of Iceland. The characters from these times are exquisitely interesting and the details of the era, amazing. The research Mr Davidson has put into this book is simply mind boggling.

N doesn't believe Maryanne, concluding that she is schizophrenic, nonetheless he comes to rely on her and in their own way the two begin a relationship. Throughout Maryanne's storytelling and hospital visits she continues her lifetimes work, that of carving stone Gargoyles. We are also introduced to several characters both within and outside the hospital all slowly becoming N's friends as he changes and becomes a man of worth.

The only part of the book that `lost me' a bit would be the several chapters during N's morphine withdrawal whereupon he enters the gates of hell and confronts all the characters from Marianne's stories and quotes Dante's inferno. This was bizarre and went on for too long but did tie up all the characters from Marianne's gripping stories. For me the ending was thought provoking and perfect. Cheers!

"Only after I was born into physical repulsiveness did I come to glimpse the possibilities of the heart" (less)

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Aug 30, 2008 Jackie rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-star, work-review-related-reading

This is a most unusual tale. It is the love story of a severely burned ex-porn star and a schizophrenic sculptor on it's surface. Which is interesting enough--both are lovably flawed fascinating characters in their on right. But soon the other stories, spanning centuries, begin. Each is a heartbreaking yet uplifting story of love. All are told in language I can only call magical--I found myself often stopping to re-read sections because I wanted to savor their beauty a bit longer. Reading this b...more

32 likes · like · see review

Jul 15, 2011 Colleen McGlashen rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fiction, supernatural, bookshelf-worthy, don-t-die-before-you-read-this

This is not just a book, it's an adventure. You can tell that Davidson did not rush this book. The writing is detailed and vivid but not overdone. The characters jump off the page when you're reading this book, its like you're right there with them. It's amazing, it's a great read, it's an experience.

This book should not be underestimated, there are stories within stories and meanings within meanings and real depth. The writing is excellent. This book will move you emotionally and not always for...more

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Sep 26, 2008 Michael rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2008

The unnamed narrator of Andrew Davidson's debut novel "The Gargoyle" may be beautiful to the world but internally, his life is a mess. Raised as an orphan by his two meth-addicted cousins and then in foster care, he's now a adult cinema star whose life is built upon looks and appearances rather than any real depth. He's addicted to drugs, drinks too much and all of this leads to him to a horrific car accident in which he is horribly burned over most of his body, even going so far as to burn and...more

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Feb 20, 2012 Mike (the Paladin) rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: urban-fantasy

Everyone told me I'd love this book, then they all told me I SHOULD love this book. I read all the blurbs about how wonderful, astounding, amazing, unbelievable it was.

You know, I actually wanted to like it. I was looking for a good book. I was hoping for an absorbing story that would draw me in, where I could sink into the story.

Alas, this wasn't it. I forged my way through a good part of the book, after all sometimes books start slowly and then "take off". This one didn't. I finally skimmed m...more

14 likes · like · see review

Apr 17, 2012 Merve Özcan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: romance, favorite-books

Kitabı bitirdim. Son yıllarda okudugum en güzel kitap olduğunu söyleyebilirim. Hele cehennemde geçen olaylar ve ilk başta tek ortak noktası aşk olan hikayelerin bu şekilde birbirine bağlanması gerçekten garipti ve muhteşemdi. Mantıksız gelen şey ben yazarın o Tom or Francesco olduğunu var saydım ama bu varsayıma göre Marianne ve bizim yazar 3 defa daha karşılaşmış oluyorlardı. Tabii ki de burada anahtar kelime varsayım
Her şeye rağmen çok değişik bir kitaptı.

Bir kaza sonucu vücudu çok büyük defor...more

6 likes · like · see review

Aug 06, 2011 oliviasbooks rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary_fiction, love-story-romance, unfinished-2011, swapped-or-given-away, historical-fiction, urban-fantasy-paranormal, scb-challenge-2011, adult-fiction

After reading 59 pages and waiting five months for summoning up enough motivation to go on reading (all my Goodreads friends seem to love the book with abandon - so what's wrong with me?), I have decided to finally put a lid on the case and throw the book out of its designated and by this time slightly dusty spot on my nightstand. I had this subconscious fear that maybe I have detoriated and am not able to concentrate on "real" grown-up books anymore. All I seem to enjoy these days are young adu...more

8 likes · like · see review

Aug 13, 2008 Lolly LKH rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

The Gargoyle moves you to want to be in love and to NEVER want to be in love. Love is suffering, love is bliss. Davidson has penned a beautiful book full of love, meaning, and intelligence. It's not often that a person can learn history,religion and culture in a book about love. Oh and he threw in burn procedures, yes BURN procedures in a book about love, somehow it seems fitting. Wait, I think I forgot to mention there are language translations too. I do realize a lot of people run from anythin...more

30 likes · like · see review

Sep 23, 2008 Lauren rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Lauren by: BookWorld

Shelves: fiction

Over the period of one day, I was completely immersed in the story... so many stories within one! Starting with a real shock of a near-fatal auto accident, this book definitely starts off with a bang. The main character (who is never "named") is severely burnt, and spends months upon months in a hospital's burn unit. I really enjoyed seeing the transformation of the main character both physically, spiritually, and emotionally throughout the 400+ pages of the novel. With the care/love of an eccen...more

14 likes · like · see review

Aug 25, 2008 Diane rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

---Wow...just where do I start? Honestly, I was not sure whether I was going to read this book or not. I took the book home from the library 2 weeks ago, read a few gory pages and then stopped. I then read that this debut author, Andrew Davidson, was given a $2 million dollar advance on this book, and I had to read it to see what all the hype was about. I am so glad I did.

The Gargoyle, is a story about redemption.

This book is not for the faint of heart. The story begins with a horrible car accid...more

12 likes · like · see review

Oct 03, 2008 Bill rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone who enjoys reading

Shelves: first-reads

It's hard to believe that this is a first novel, it is a very well accomplished book, I can see me becoming an Andrew Davidson fan over time.

What I loved most about the Gargoyle is that it is so hard to categorise. It is a love story, an adventure story, a supernatural thriller, a horror tale (perhaps?) and there are many heart wrenching and indeed comedic moments in the book.

The characters are all very well developed and the parallels and use of Dante's Inferno have kicked my curiosity into ove...more

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Oct 08, 2008 Shelby rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone

Recommended to Shelby by: My bookclub

Shelves: read2008, favorites

What a book! I thought okay so an odd storyline when I heard about it. But my book group was saying it was so good that I thought I would give it a try and I'm soooo glad that I did. This book makes you glad to be a reader. For me it brought stories and that love of a really really good book to life again. I am about halfway through it and I keep making me put it down because I dread it ending.
Andrew Davidson has written a gift for the reading world. His stories sweep you up and place you there...more

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Oct 19, 2008 Mollysusie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Wow! WOW! Woooow!

Things I loved about this book: the writing! the imagery! the story! the plotline! the fact that everytime someone asked me what I was reading about I could say a porn star!

But mostly it was the writing. Finally, a male author who can show, not tell when it comes to feelings. To love. To devotion. Again, not an American male writer...

Things I didn't like about this book: the first-person point of view. the author addressing the "dear reader". But the writing, actual good writi...more

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Aug 26, 2008 Lisa rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

'The Gargoyle' is a bold and ambitious novel for first-time author Andrew Davidson. Opening with the narrator's description of a horrific car crash, you immediately sense that this novel is not going to be a 'light and fluffy' read! "Truth be told, I started with the crash because I wanted to catch your interest and drag you into the story" (p.3) and does he ever - even for the reluctant reader who wants to tear herself away from the gruesome descriptions leaping out of the pages like the flames...more 'The Gargoyle' is a bold and ambitious novel for first-time author Andrew Davidson. Opening with the narrator's description of a horrific car crash, you immediately sense that this novel is not going to be a 'light and fluffy' read! "Truth be told, I started with the crash because I wanted to catch your interest and drag you into the story" (p.3) and does he ever - even for the reluctant reader who wants to tear herself away from the gruesome descriptions leaping out of the pages like the flames that consume the narrator's flesh - Davidson artfully uses our morbid fascination with violence, which has fuelled public executions of the past and the continued success of slasher films in the present, to shock and beguile the reader and by the end of chapter 1 you are well and truly hooked. Whilst some readers may be appalled, I found the anger, violence and gratuitous descriptions in the earlier part of the novel refreshingly honest and raw, capturing just a smidgen of the mental, emotional, spiritual and physical torment that any burns victim must face.

Enter Marianne Engel, a beautiful, and possibly mentally ill, eccentric sculptor who is convinced that she has known the narrator in medieval Germany. Aghast at his injuries and faced with the reality of his multitude of 'sins' from his previous life as a drug-fuelled director of porn, the un-named narrator dismisses her as mad but is impressed at her disregard for the burns unit protocol and is maliciously satisfied to see the stir she causes with the nurses and his doctor. Thus starts the bizarre and fantastic friendship between the two which is carried along by Marianne's outrageous, but seemingly historically accurate, stories of love and self-sacrifice. In the first part of the novel, Davidson makes uses of direct address to readers, which does indeed drag you into this story where the borders between reality, memory, madness, symbol and fiction all become blurred. This direct address wanes as the narrator becomes more independent and able to cope with his injuries so it seems does his need to appeal to the reader’s common-sense assuming that the reader is also as mesmerised by the strange appearance of Marianne Engel as he is. Indeed by the time I realised this I was well and truly hooked by the story as the narrator is also captivated by Marianne Engel’s beguiling fairytales.

This is a very erudite book that draws on seven years of meticulous research but one thing that I love is that the writing never gets away from Davidson nor degenerates into a style that is pretentious or superior. This is, in part, helped by the fantastically self-depreciating, wry humour that sneaks its way through this book without ever being forced or obvious. Mutli-layered and figurative, this book is laden with religious and literary symbolism which only adds to its charm. The imagery is rich and indulgent in a way that confronts the narrator and readers' own understanding of reality and how, in this fluid and ever-changing post-modern world where it's supposed to be ok to believe 'anything', do you categorise something archaic as Marianne Engel's medieval religious view of the humanity?

An excellent 'book club' choice, you will want, in fact need, to talk about it and it will stay etched in your memory for years to come and is this not what great literature is meant to do? Highly recommended.
(less)

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Aug 16, 2008 Audrey rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone

Recommended to Audrey by: I was lucky to win a copy.

‘Gargoyle’ by Andrew Davidson is like no other novel. It revolves around a beautiful but utterly corrupt, nameless, pornographer who is burnt beyond recognition. For him although he lives, he is already dead. Marianne Engel is the elusive, haunting and unstable sculptress of the stone Gargoyles; the title of the novel. Ultimately, she is his saviour in a way that he could never have understood previously. This novel reaches beyond the reader’s usual expectations. It is a story of great depth; an...more

9 likes · like · see review

Mar 11, 2008 Sarah rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Gargoyle is a harsh punch to the gut to those who doubt love transcends time.

The first line got me...Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, often violently, just like love. At that moment, I was pulled off the cliff along with the happless narrator...feeling the explosion and the flames chewing away his skin. As the unnammed narrator awakens, he is recovering in the burn ward and no longer recognizable as a man. This is a far cry from his former glory days of an attractive, womanizing, successf...more The Gargoyle is a harsh punch to the gut to those who doubt love transcends time.

The first line got me...Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, often violently, just like love. At that moment, I was pulled off the cliff along with the happless narrator...feeling the explosion and the flames chewing away his skin. As the unnammed narrator awakens, he is recovering in the burn ward and no longer recognizable as a man. This is a far cry from his former glory days of an attractive, womanizing, successful porn producer. But hey, not much further down to go from here, right? The narrator is a sardonic, inappropriatly hilarious bastard...who we root for without understanding why.

He is soon visited by the kooky Marianne Engel, who identifies him as her lover from medieval times...when she was a scribe and he was a mercenary. We suspect she has escaped from the mental ward, but as her story is revealed, the lines between fantasy, psychosis, and truth are a mesmerising blur. She's a clever orator, and tells not her own story, but those of her friends triumphs in love. These 4 international fairy-tales... Sei the Japanese glassblower, Siguoor the Sweedish Viking, Francesco the Italian welder, and Vicki the sea-widow. No spoilers, but these characters are utilized later in the book in such a perfect way...you wanna squeal in delight.

I flat out love this book, so much that towards the end I made myself put it down to drag out the end so it wouldn't be over. Clearly that wasn't successful, as I devoured it in 3 days. It manages to be both literary (allusions to Dante's inferno & history of european monestaries) and commercial. Davidson is a master craftsman, especially skilled at seamlessly weaving past and present. Endings never satisfy me, but this book never loosens the vice grip on the readers attention, compassion, and ability to believe in the fantastic.

Kudos, I recommend everyone picks this up in August, when it is on sale. Davidson is a formidable author...and I look forward to what he comes out with next!(less)

7 likes · like · see review

Nov 23, 2010 Wendy rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: nov-10

This has got to be one of the best books I have ever read!

7 likes · like · see review

Mar 15, 2010 indri rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Bubub, Buzenk

Recommended to indri by: Alwi Hasni, hadiah dari kang Nenangs

Shelves: a-gift, suspense

#2010-22#

Betapa miripnya dengan momen antara tidur dan jatuh ketika segalanya indah tak nyata dan tidak badani. Betapa miripnya dengan mengapung ke arah penyelesaian.

Apa yang dirasakan ketika terjun dari puncak bukit, di tengah kepopuleran dan kemahsyuranmu, keterkenalan yang nista, lalu seolah-olah terhukum dengan terbakar dalam kotak logam yang tadinya dikendarai? Lalu waktu bergerak seakan lambat ketika kau merasa setiap inci tubuhmu memanas, terbakar, sambil kau menghitung di tengah panas ta...more

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Jan 29, 2009 Thauna rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Gargoyle is a memorizing albeit unconventional love story. The narrator is a worldly, handsome, successful porn star who's soul is in turmoil even before his horrific accident. The story begins with an accident caused by drugs, alcohol and a hallucination of burning arrows which leaves our narrator severely burned and lucky to have survived. In spite of his miraculous survival, he is hateful, miserable and spends his free time planning his suicide once he is released from the hospital burn w...more

6 likes · like · see review

Nov 16, 2008 Brenda rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I LOVED this book... The writing was amazing!!! I couldn't put it down... It was SO descriptive... I rarely read books twice, but I think this one is going on the list!

From the book:
"Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, often violently, just like love."

"Your car gathers speed down the embankment, bouncing. Your hypothesis is quickly proven correct: it is, indeed, quite painful. Your brain catalogues the different sensations. There is the flipping end over end, the swirling disorientation, and the...more

8 likes · like · see review

Sep 26, 2008 Rob rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: literature-fiction

I'll give the Gargoyle 3 1/2 stars. I know it received a hefty $1.5 million sale, but the story isn't as strong as the writing. for a first time novelist, Davidson showcases a skilled hand at writing prose, but the subject matter never really took flight for me. The story centers on a man who is badly burned in an accident, then turns his life around when a mentally unstable sculpturess comes into his life and tells him they've been romancing each other over the course of 1,000 years. The resear...more

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Nov 12, 2008 Rosalie rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It took me about 2 1/2 months to get through this book. I am usually a quick reader, but this book challenged that and won. I finished it with no lingering feelings, but glad that I did finally finish.

The writing was great. I enjoyed the writer's ability to construct different worlds, but the main story was not something that held me. I think the reason for this is that I did not buy into the whole mysticism of the story. Maybe mysticism isn't the right choice of word, but the religious feel bur...more It took me about 2 1/2 months to get through this book. I am usually a quick reader, but this book challenged that and won. I finished it with no lingering feelings, but glad that I did finally finish.

The writing was great. I enjoyed the writer's ability to construct different worlds, but the main story was not something that held me. I think the reason for this is that I did not buy into the whole mysticism of the story. Maybe mysticism isn't the right choice of word, but the religious feel buried into the cliches did not bode well with me. There is also an intention that the author clearly set out to do, but failed...at least for me. The Gargoyle had a lot of potential with a brilliant idea about love that transcends time, but it missed a couple of ingredients. If this was a dish I would say that the cook knew the technicalities of his cooking tools and the steps of his cookbook, but forgot to add the correct amount of spices. There were so many elements missing from the story. Everything seemed forced and predictable. There are still questions that needed to be answered, such as how did Marianne come across the stories she told, claiming she knew the characters as her friends, and how did she come to posses items from her previous life? I had hoped the ending would win me over despite the slow start. I was greatly disappointed. I grew to not care about Marianne and her cause. The only character I truly cared about was Bougasta, Marianne's dog. I did not agree with the ending, but cared that I finished it at last.

Andrew Davidson is a good writer. I would even go as far as calling him a great wordsmith, but I am not sold on his storytelling or at least with this book. There were occasions that I enjoyed the read, but as the story went its way, it got lost in the mist of cliches and surrealism. It could have been a great book, but it just did not happen.

I give it two stars, one star for me for finishing it and one star for the author's ability to dedicate a whole paragraph on food, a list of dishes that would make your stomach crave. I did enjoy that. Roasted eggs, anyone? (less)

8 likes · like · see review

Sep 02, 2008 Justin rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Grabbed this book up from the library anxious to get on with what was apparently sold for over a million by the author. Shucks. The calculus must be (always has been?) about profit, not story. Is this too harsh? Read the book. ALL first person, which is sort of ok, except this author is in and outside his own story, at times tracking it from an objective viewpoint, and at other times overly-descriptive and precise about what-we-do-not-know. The book sort of clumsily cuts between vignettes of pre...more

13 likes · like · see review

Aug 25, 2008 Linda Sexauer rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2008

This book had moments of brilliance, but in the end, it kind of flopped. I thought the ending was incredibly unclimactic. I've heard this book compared to Life of Pi, which I loved, in the sense that the reader (supposedly) wonders: did it all really happen or didn't it?

Since the marketing campaign asks me to compare these two books, then I shall. I must state that the inherent tension in Life of Pi never lets up. It makes one's head spin. I remember what a big deal it was to have found another...more

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Aug 23, 2008 Kathy (Bermudaonion) rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm sure everyone has read at least one review of The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson by now, but I just finished it, so bear with me while I chime in with my opinion. Having just finished the book, I need to catch my breath and gather my thoughts, but I must say that I loved it. Thanks to Doubleday for providing me with a copy!

The narrator, whose name is never revealed, is a porn king who is badly burned in a car accident. The burns leave him grossly disfigured. He spends months in the hospital and...more

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Jun 10, 2008 Polly Cole rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Polly by: Book Expo

I read The Gargoyle in one sitting - from start to finish in 12 hours. It was so incredible that I just. couldn't. stop. I was a captive passenger in a car, driving through the Southwestern United States - the desert - a good place to be burned alive!

Several times over the course of the first few chapters I had to put the book down - the literary car crash and resulting horrors were so visceral that I was terrified that the vehicle I was in would mimic the visual images my brain was receiving f...more

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How did you interpret The Gargoyle?	15	184	Mar 01, 2013 05:51pm
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The Ultimate 1x1 ...: Consume me with yr Love (Vamp --Dan)	15	9	Nov 27, 2012 08:58am
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About Andrew Davidson

Hi, and thanks for coming to my profile on Goodreads.

On August 5th, 2008, my first novel - The Gargoyle - was published. This was, of course, tremendously exciting for me. In America, the publisher is Doubleday; in Canada, the publisher is Random House; in the UK, the publisher is Canongate; in Australia, the publisher is Text. As well, the book is translated into twenty-nine other languages.

I'm v...more

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Quotes from The Gargoyle

“You are mine,I am yours; you may be sure of this. You've been locked inside my heart, the key has been thrown away; within it, you must always stay. ” — 182 people liked it

“Accidents ambush the unsuspecting, often violently, just like love.” — 157 people liked it

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