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66th out of 100 books
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25 voters
My rating:
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Envy
"Kathryn Harrison is a wonderful writer…Spellbinding."
- The New York Times Book Review
"A juicy story of psychosexual suspence"
- The Wall Street Journal
"Shockingly complex and compulsively readable."
- O, The Oprah Magazine
"[Envy] has to be considered another succcess for one of the most interesting writers of her generation."
- St. Louis Post Dispatch
"Complex and disturbing…...more
Paperback, 314 pages
Published
December 18th 2007
by Random House Trade Paperbacks
(first published July 12th 2005)
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(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.)
This is an author I first discovered believe it or not through a random airport buy a number of years ago, when I picked up her racily-covered 2006 Exposure during a boring layover and ended up really enjoying it, albeit in a "high-class Judith Krantz" kind of way. And so when I ...more
This is an author I first discovered believe it or not through a random airport buy a number of years ago, when I picked up her racily-covered 2006 Exposure during a boring layover and ended up really enjoying it, albeit in a "high-class Judith Krantz" kind of way. And so when I ...more
I've liked Katherine Harrison (The Seal Wife) and been intrigued if a bit weirded out by her (The Kiss), and now I found a book of hers I didn't like. Rampant with sexuality, though barely stimulating, her characters cheat, manipulate, ignore, stalk, and steal each other's partners. Oh, and not too surprisingly, there is a tease of incest here too to make it all more shocking. Except that it is all actually pretty boring, and the main character Will, a psychiatrist, is so emotionally unstable an...more
I have mad love for Kathryn Harrison. I think she’s a beautiful writer and she often tackles difficult subjects, train wrecks from which you can not turn away.
Envy is the story of psychoanalyst Will Moreland. The landscape of his life is pitted with estranged relationships (his identical – save for the brother’s wine-stain birthmark – twin, Mitch); death (his young son, Luke, killed in a boating accident) and a strained sexual relationship with his wife, Carole (they still do it, but...more
Envy is the story of psychoanalyst Will Moreland. The landscape of his life is pitted with estranged relationships (his identical – save for the brother’s wine-stain birthmark – twin, Mitch); death (his young son, Luke, killed in a boating accident) and a strained sexual relationship with his wife, Carole (they still do it, but...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Perhaps best known for her 1997 memoir, The Kiss, in which she recounted her affair with her estranged father, Harrison is an expert at exploring themes of transgression, betrayal, and obsession. Envy deals with it all: marital estrangement, sexual dysfunction, sibling rivalry, and parental grief. Though riveting in parts and suspenseful the entire way through, the novel's sheer drama, approaching the formulaic, suffocated a few critics. The characters (some flat, others narcissistic and passion
...more
This book was really depressing at certain points and kind of disturbing. It's about this guy named Will whose son just died and is having a lot of complications with his marriage. At his college reunion he runs into his ex-girlfriend who has a daughter that could possibly be his. You start to learn about all the scandals he was involved with in the past and it becomes obvious that he still has feelings for this woman. The only reason why I didn't enjoy this book fully was because it was a li...more
Lori Tobias Christiansen
added it
Book about a therapist who has lost his son, is distanced from his wife and having pornographic thoughts about his patients. His twin brother, superstar swimmer, but with port wine stain on his face, has alienated himself from the family. Therapist discovers he may have a daughter he never knew. New patient ultimately seduces him... I won't give the rest away. Good read. She's very good at the technical stuff of moving the story along without doing so chronologically or with every boring scene. ...more
My thoughts so far, on page 198 out of 300: I must say that I had assumed, from the description, that this book would be a lot more "action"-oriented than it has turned out to be. The main character, Will, is philosophical and analytical to the EXTREME, oh my goodness; being that he is a pyschiatrist, I suppose it makes good sense that he would be. However, most of his self-analyzation - about himself, his life, his marriage, his non-existant relationship with his brother, his past, ...more
I reviewed this book for the Chicago Sun-Times Book Review section. It was published 7/15/05. This book resides at the intersection of mysticism and psychology. It's insights are obscured by the parameters of the writer's own point of view. Huh? Read it and you'll see what I mean.
Kathryn Harrison's Envy: More Sizzling Sex Secrets
By Sally Duros
Kathryn Harrison has delivered a compelling tale in her brooding new novel, Envy. Readers who admired her controversial m...more
Kathryn Harrison's Envy: More Sizzling Sex Secrets
By Sally Duros
Kathryn Harrison has delivered a compelling tale in her brooding new novel, Envy. Readers who admired her controversial m...more
Kathryn Harrison is a masterful writer. This book is an incredible whirlwind with intriguing components: sex, love, marriage, identity, incest (?), and more sex.
If you've read her memoirs, some of this material will feel familiar. As someone who started with her non-fiction, I find her rendering of these narratives fresh and captivating, however familiar.
!
If you've read her memoirs, some of this material will feel familiar. As someone who started with her non-fiction, I find her rendering of these narratives fresh and captivating, however familiar.
!
Wow. Although I disliked the author's "The Mother Knot: A Memoir," I decided to give this novel a try after seeing that it was a NYTimes Notable Book selection. I found this story gripping. Very edgy sexual content and lots of psychoanalysis. After the central character, a psychologist, attends his 25th college reunion, his inner life begins to unravel. From his initial question of whether he might have been the father of a former girlfriend's now-adult daughter follows his painfu...more
This was almost a 2 star book, but there was one little twist that I liked better than the rest. Too much sex. I mean, I like sex as much as the next girl, but it was almost gratuitous, and definitely vulgar. Only a so-so story, and very little characterization, so I guess she needed the sex to sell it.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
A lucky random pick from the college library shelf... I raced through it, totally engrossed in the story of a New York psychiatrist figuring out some sick family secrets of his own.
I have read Harrison's memoir The Kiss, so I expected the book to be a bit bizzarre, I loved it though and would like to read all of her books.
Main lesson from this book: reading about other people's psychotherapy is boring. But, enough twists and turns to keep me entertained
at times self-consciously written, but still deliciously dark and gripping, although "resolved"/concluded far too easily
This was such a disturbing novel. Yuck! I put it in the basement when I was done reading it.. unsettling!
I could not get into this book. The part I read was about a guy who went to his college reunion.
A very intense and intricate story. Shocking in places. Two or three stories in one. Family scandal.
Psychological look into the nature of human desire. Very well written.
boring porn as kathryn harrison tries to shock again.
if you want true harrison edge, read "exposure", "thicker than water", and "the kiss". she's able to summarize her fucked-up childhood in those three, and it's much more potent than the faux-shock factor in "envy".
about the only thing i enjoyed were THE SURPRISES, which i will now give away:
-the twin bro slept with all of the psychologist's former gfs, including his wi...more
if you want true harrison edge, read "exposure", "thicker than water", and "the kiss". she's able to summarize her fucked-up childhood in those three, and it's much more potent than the faux-shock factor in "envy".
about the only thing i enjoyed were THE SURPRISES, which i will now give away:
-the twin bro slept with all of the psychologist's former gfs, including his wi...more
The back of the book strongly pushes the sex aspect of the story, but I think really the story is about grief. It explores different types, degrees, and methods of grieving, along with different losses — children, siblings, intimacy, innocence and purity. Will is self-analytical to an annoying degree, and there were several times when I just wanted him to shut up already. If you don’t mind that, this is a pretty good story. I do wish you got to spend some more time with Carole. She and Will don’...more
I didn't even finish it. It didn't keep my interest at all.
Michele St John
added it
Envy: A Novel by Kathryn Harrison (2006)
a good read. a few lovely passages, nothing life changing.
This book is dirty. I can't believe I didn't like it more.
( Inveja ) Não é um livro fácil, tem muita teoria e blá blá blá, mas tem algumas tiradas interessantes.Só fica realmente interessante quase no fim!
Marguerite
rated it
Recommends it for:
Twins
Recommended to Marguerite by:
New York Times
Shelves:
contemporary-fiction
Kathryn Harrison kept me turning pages in this, thanks to a deft use of suspense. I did anticipate one twist, and thought the wife's character was flat (though a refreshing contrast to the gaggingly reflective husband). But the pace and plot kept me interested. Not enough to stay up to read the last 50 pages, but close. I'll be looking for more of her books in the library.
This is a slightly perverted but thoroughly engaging story of a psychiatrist going through a mid-life crisis. He meets an old flame at a college reunion and learns he could have fathered a child; he also has a enstranged twin brother. This book will keep you interested, though not everyone will like where it goes.
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Readers Also Enjoyed
Kathryn Harrison is the author of the novels Envy, The Seal Wife, The Binding Chair, Poison, Exposure, and Thicker Than Water.
She has also written memoirs, The Kiss and The Mother Knot, a travel memoir, The Road To Santiago, a biography, Saint Therese Of Lisieux, and a collection of personal essays, Seeking Rapture.
Ms. Harrison is a frequent reviewer for The New York Times Book Revie...more
More about Kathryn Harrison...
She has also written memoirs, The Kiss and The Mother Knot, a travel memoir, The Road To Santiago, a biography, Saint Therese Of Lisieux, and a collection of personal essays, Seeking Rapture.
Ms. Harrison is a frequent reviewer for The New York Times Book Revie...more
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