Book Review #74

Sweet Tooth
by Ian McEwan

I've read many of McEwan's novels and enjoyed most of them. I have mixed feelings about this one though. First of all, it is not a spy novel. Don't bother mentioning the creators of George Smiley and Serena Frome in the same sentence. She is not even all that interesting as a protagonist. McEwan knew how to write female characters in "Atonement." Less so here. Her main attribute is her beauty. She falls for nearly every man she meets and is betrayed by most of them. Tom's betrayal is especially vile and vindictive but most of all unbelievable and out of character. I stopped reading his letter because I found his treatment of Serena so offensive. The letter is McEwan's gotcha/tour de force. But in actuality it is McEwan showing off and being too clever for his own good. As for those closing lines, I almost fell for the "happy ending" but then...no. You can't have it both ways. I gave the book 3 stars, as some of it is beautifully written but some of it is a slog, terribly British, episodic and meandering. Plus it left me with a sour taste in my mouth. Not sweet.