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357th out of 693 books
—
848 voters
Silver Lake
by
Peter Gadol
Robbie and Carlo have been involved professionally and personally for twenty years. Lately, though, their architectural practice and their marriage are beginning to falter.
One fall day, Tom Field, a peculiar young man, drifts into their storefront office asking to use the phone. The men get to talking; Tom is curious but enchanting, and Robbie ends up playing tennis with h...more
One fall day, Tom Field, a peculiar young man, drifts into their storefront office asking to use the phone. The men get to talking; Tom is curious but enchanting, and Robbie ends up playing tennis with h...more
Paperback, 296 pages
Published
September 1st 2009
by Tyrus Books
(first published 2009)
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Too many pet peeves for me to enjoy this book at all. From comma abuse, to run-on sentences, to a false ending (oh, please never do this!), to misplaced words and phrases, to rambling descriptions, internal monologues, and side trips that had little to nothing to do with the main story, I couldn't stay lost in this tale. The first rule of a good book (in my opinion) is suspending disbelief, and that simply wouldn't happen with Silver Lake.
I must say, I do like a good depressing story, and this w...more
I must say, I do like a good depressing story, and this w...more
Peter Gadol writes what he calls "moral thrillers:" a lawyer is involved in a hit-and-run, for instance (in his book THE LONG RAIN). The lawyer is then called on to defend the wrongly accused. What does he do?
In books reminiscent of THE TALENTED MR RIPLEY (Patricia Highsmith) or THE ICE STORM (Rick Moody)--which is to say, precisely written and forcefully paced--Gadol writes across genres of literary fiction and noir, making his novels mean something, but not at the expense of a good read.
In SIL...more
In books reminiscent of THE TALENTED MR RIPLEY (Patricia Highsmith) or THE ICE STORM (Rick Moody)--which is to say, precisely written and forcefully paced--Gadol writes across genres of literary fiction and noir, making his novels mean something, but not at the expense of a good read.
In SIL...more
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Peter Gadol’s sobering novel, Silver Lake, is a profound meditation on long-term relationships and a grim portrayal of one couple’s instability in spite of their longevity.
Carlo and Robbie met in college and have been together for twenty years. Partners in business, as well as in life, their architectural company, Stein Voight, is showing signs of failure, and the underlying financial stress has carried over to their life at home in Silver Lake, outside of Los Angeles. Yet everything appears mos...more
Carlo and Robbie met in college and have been together for twenty years. Partners in business, as well as in life, their architectural company, Stein Voight, is showing signs of failure, and the underlying financial stress has carried over to their life at home in Silver Lake, outside of Los Angeles. Yet everything appears mos...more
Apr 25, 2012
Yvonne
rated it
2 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
free-read,
kindle-lendable-fiction
It's been a while since I've read a more depressing book. What we learn about Robbie and Carlo initially is that they've been a couple for 20 years, they're both architects who work together in their own business and they seem to be content and happy with their lives. With that start, you know it could only go downhill from there, which it does.
Let's just say a young man enters their lives who is the catalyst for doom & gloom for this couple. I think this is basically an essay on how secret...more
Let's just say a young man enters their lives who is the catalyst for doom & gloom for this couple. I think this is basically an essay on how secret...more
Jul 25, 2011
Larry Hoffer
added it
It's probably been about 8-10 years since Peter Gadol's last book, so when I discovered Silver Lake I fell on it like a soldier protecting his company from a grenade. Needless to say, I wasn't disappointed, except when I was faced with the prospect of another 8-10 year wait!
It's a lazy weekend, and Robbie and Carlo are doing some work in their architecture studio when a young man enters and asks to use the phone because his car broke down. After some conversation, Robbie and Carlo invite the ma...more
It's a lazy weekend, and Robbie and Carlo are doing some work in their architecture studio when a young man enters and asks to use the phone because his car broke down. After some conversation, Robbie and Carlo invite the ma...more
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This novel took me by surprise. It had this ominous modern noir feel to it, while remaining decidedly literary. I loved how Gadol really pulled the loose string on the protagonists' relationship and allowed himself to pull it very slowly, so that the unraveling would be tense and gradual.
I picked up the book from my library's "local fiction" shelf, because it is set in the neighborhood in which I have lived for the past dozen years. It added even an extra element to imagine all of this happenin...more
I picked up the book from my library's "local fiction" shelf, because it is set in the neighborhood in which I have lived for the past dozen years. It added even an extra element to imagine all of this happenin...more
I finished this book today and I really liked it.
Peter Gadol's writing is hard to describe...simple, yet descriptive. Particularly when he writes about scene settings and moods. I wasn't even looking to buy a book the day I picked this up. The cover drew me in first, and I read a page at the bookstore and I was intrigued with it...in a very simple, comfortable kind of way...I just wanted to see where the story was going to lead.
This book weaves an intricate story and tells how so many things c...more
Peter Gadol's writing is hard to describe...simple, yet descriptive. Particularly when he writes about scene settings and moods. I wasn't even looking to buy a book the day I picked this up. The cover drew me in first, and I read a page at the bookstore and I was intrigued with it...in a very simple, comfortable kind of way...I just wanted to see where the story was going to lead.
This book weaves an intricate story and tells how so many things c...more
Gadol uses the back drop of a mysterious death to explore the dynamics of a 20 year marriage. Tom, a friend of Carlo and Robbie (the couple), is found dead in their backyard. Sometimes the mystery of Tom's death is intriguing and sometimes it just seems like a grim and strange setting to dive into the issues in this long term relationship. Gadol rolls Carlo and Robbies' relationship in some soap opera infedilities and Hallmark TV nostalgia. Gadol's craftsmanship was highest by cutting the scenes...more
The reviews noting the main characters as "wooden" and the prose "pretentious" are wrong, absolutely wrong. Robbie and Carlo are treated with ingenious sensitivity and the growing gulf between them, after twenty years of loving one another, sears itself across the reader's heart more with every page.
There is one sentence late in the book that, unfortunately, shatters the carefully constructed tension and invalidates the tenuous, dubious synchronicities to which the author has directed the reade...more
There is one sentence late in the book that, unfortunately, shatters the carefully constructed tension and invalidates the tenuous, dubious synchronicities to which the author has directed the reade...more
Well written and magical and beautiful descriptions of the place. Definitely satisfied my craving for LA fiction. Reading about a modern middle-class gay couple was interesting for me as I am one. I think the delicate balance that exists for all of us in wanting to be alone and to be together was too sharply tilted toward the dark side. I will say that I normally hate 3rd person omniscient narration that hides some key plot point to build reader suspense. It worked oddly well thought went a litt...more
May 20, 2010
Cheryl Klein
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
queer-books,
fiction
The most literary page turner or the page-turningest literary novel I've read in a long time. Silver Lake is the story of two men who have been together for twenty years, most of which have been devoted to making a good life even better: They have a house with a lake view, a semi-successful architectural practice and their weekends are devoted to tennis and expensive cheese. But while the core is not exactly rotten, there are definitely a few loose threads in the fabric of their relationship tha...more
The way he made the writing seem to reflect the aesthetic tastes of the two protagonists was cleverly done. Functional, rational and sleek, the prose glided over the dark, threatening urban enviornment which felt like it constantly wanted to seep through the modernist surface. Even the way he couldn't make up his mind about the ending seemed to fit.
Very dark, angst-filled story.
Robbie and Carlo are life and business partners. They meet a young man and invite him into their home. When the guest becomes too drunk to drive home they invite him to spend the night. While they are sleeping the guest commits a violent act at their home.
The ensuing story is more true-to-life docudrama than a mystery or thriller. It made an impression.
.
Robbie and Carlo are life and business partners. They meet a young man and invite him into their home. When the guest becomes too drunk to drive home they invite him to spend the night. While they are sleeping the guest commits a violent act at their home.
The ensuing story is more true-to-life docudrama than a mystery or thriller. It made an impression.
.
3 likes · like · see review
This was decent and gets bonus points for taking place in the hood.
However, it hurt me to read this, literally. The copy I had was new from the library and the pages are so thick and stuff it required a lot of force to keep the book open. The publisher should really try out some lighter paper for future editions!
However, it hurt me to read this, literally. The copy I had was new from the library and the pages are so thick and stuff it required a lot of force to keep the book open. The publisher should really try out some lighter paper for future editions!
A lot of the writing seemed really pretentious. And I can't decide if it was intentional, or if this writer was really somehow trying too hard.
The guy who killed himself seemed pretty interesting and I would have liked to get to know him better. The other two assholes were sorta losers.... All of their cutsey attempts at suburbia and the way their life together was such a boring imitation of a straight marriage..... Complete with the lies....
The guy who killed himself seemed pretty interesting and I would have liked to get to know him better. The other two assholes were sorta losers.... All of their cutsey attempts at suburbia and the way their life together was such a boring imitation of a straight marriage..... Complete with the lies....
Beautifully written book set in Los Angeles. I'll never get over the magic of reading a book that takes place in a neighborhood I know so well. It was surprisingly suspenseful and an intriguing story of long and short term relationships, secrets, trust, loneliness, and the patterns one can fall into.
Very good homo fiction.
This book made me both hopeful and sad. It's about a gay couple and an event that tears them apart. It's about love and forgiveness and fidelity and the connection that people have with each other.
the book grew on me. It was a bit long winded and corny at first but the depth of the relationship and how you can be together and grow apart hit home as the book continued.
I can't seem to make it through this book. I pick it up (well, I pick up my Kindle) and read a few pages, then put it down and a few weeks/months later try again....
Insightful book about keeping secrets from people you love. The writing wasn't my favorite style, but I liked the plot and the characters.
I just couldn't get into this book at all. I found the two main characters annoying, and I had not interest in what happened to them.
May 03, 2013
Adriana
marked it as purchased
May 01, 2013
Wkd
added it
Apr 16, 2013
Is
marked it as to-read
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