This book embodies everything that I love in fiction, it is a perfect example of why I love to read. Every word and phrase that appears on the pages of this book (and it is pages, as this book is not available in ebook format as of yet!) is so beautiful and so rich. Everytime I sat down to read this book, I felt as if I was in the midst of eating a perfectly cooked filet mignon and a very rich but salty potato side dish accompanied by a strong red wine. This book was a true treat for my senses. It is a character driven book, the characters are central and the tale is about them – not about their surroundings or their events. It is the characters that rule this tale. So what was this book about? Excess, consumption, greed, selfishness, loss of innocence, pack think and ego maniacs – sound delicious?

The setting for this tale is a small, secluded (and mythical) Vermont liberal arts college populated by elite students. The story is told from the point of view of a male transfer student who is running from his blue collar background and his disinterested parents. He escapes into a group of students who have further secluded themselves from the student body even more in this remote environment. Richard – the protagonist – begins to study classics, focusing on Greek and attempts to pretend he is someone he is not - privileged, wealthy, elite. The circle of friends he finds himself among, appear to all be very wealthy and focused on academics in a way that is very odd for modern college students. They are extremely insular, not willing to permit anyone into their ranks. Richard, now admitted after he demonstrates his knowledge of ancient Greek, begins crafting himself in the image of those around him. The opening scene (in fact the prologue) begins with a murder scene, there is no mystery here. The reader knows who dies and how. The murderers are clear, there is no question as to motive. The focus of the story are the events leading up to the murder and the murders aftermath on its participants. What Tartt unwraps for the reader is a very disturbing tale. Will a need to fit in trump morality? What needs to happen for a person to separate from a group focused on hurting those around them? Or will most people just follow the group, no matter the evil effects on those around them? What is the greater good – is it the survival of a group of friends? The story is about loss of innocence, the extreme focus inward to the neglect of else, and group think. It is a beautiful and haunting tale. I thoroughly enjoyed every minute spent reading this book.

Readers who enjoyed Tana French’s The Likeness, will enjoy this book.