- Paperback: 160 pages
- Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd (6 Sep 2004)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0141188073
- ISBN-13: 978-0141188072
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
A Spy In The House Of Love (Penguin Modern Classics)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
Beautiful, bored and bourgeoise, Sabina leads a double life inspired by her relentless desire for brief encounters with near-strangers. Fired into faithlessness by a desperate longing for sexual fulfilment, she weaves a sensual web of deceit across New York. But when the secrecy of her affairs becomes too much to bear, Sabina makes a late night phone-call to a stranger from a bar, and begins a confession that captivates the unknown man and soon inspires him to seek her out
About the Author
Anais Nin (ca. 1903-1977). Her first book -- a defence of D. H. Lawrence -- was published in the 1930s. Her prose poem, House of Incest (1936) was followed by the collection of three novellas, Winter of Artifice (1939). Her novels, Ladders to Fire, Children of the Albatross, The Four-Chambered Heart, A Spy in the House of Love and Seduction of the Minotaur were first published in the United States between the 1940s and the 1960s. In the 1940s she began to write erotica for an anonymous client, and these pieces are collected in Delta of Venus and Little Birds (both published posthumously).
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
The lie detector was asleep when he heard the telephone ringing. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
The lie detector was asleep when he heard the telephone ringing. Read the first page Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
31 of 33 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Anais Nin superbly creates a captivating, complex female character – Sabina – divided between her will to live multiple lives, and escape the routine of an ordinary existence; and her sense of guilt, personified by the Lie Detector, which follows her virtually everywhere. Her promiscuous search of love culminates in an emotional break down which revels her fragile nature and her naiveness in trying to escape reality by constructing her perfect, idyllic love dimension, out of multiple superficial love relationships.
The story line is not meant to be followed in a chronological order. There is an element of repetition that, though has been criticized, in my opinion works in favor of the concept on which evolves the whole story and Sabina’s psychology. There is also a poetic component that enriches the narrative, although it is not as keenly developed as in other works of Anais Nin, such as in Under A Glass Bell.
A Spy In The House Of Love can be a perfect introduction to Anais Nin and her writings, but it can be also appreciated as a distinct fiction story. This book, although relatively short, manages perfectly to develop Sabina’s complicated character and her psychology, absorbing completely the reader in its dimension. Therefore, I vividly recommend this book to all readers in search of a short fiction story but still capable of captivating the reader through the complexity of its main character.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
On first reading this book I was immediately struck by its depth of characterisation and originality. Formally in the mode of 'By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept' it is a novella written in beautiful abstract prose. Where as much of Nin's work is concerned with reportage of sexual adventure, this book depicts her emotional response to a number of relationships. Her rich use of imagery and dense language make 'A Spy in the House of Love' a memorable and inspirational book that goes some way to transporting the reader back to the streets and hotels of post-war New York.
Format:Paperback
A woman who loves her husband but has a need to sleep with other men feels guilty about these infidelities and does her best to keep them from him. In this way she feels herself split into different personalities and different people and discovers things about herself though this sexual odyssey.
If you've read my summary and felt "so what?" then you'll have been like me while reading it, thinking that the book has lost it's impact in 21st century Western culture because in the 50s and in the eyes of many people today, marriage and fidelity are things everyone should want and have and that the kind of sexual exploration and adventure seen in the book are things to be ashamed of. Not anymore though! Men and women frequently live lives where they are no longer tied down by conventional sexual mores and live differently (and happily) the lives they want to.
That said, I'm sure the book caused something of a stir when it was first published. The book also addresses the lack of feeling Sabina (the main character) has when she is in these extramarital affairs (hence the title) so it isn't totally risqué, there are morals presented.
While the book is little over 100 pages long, the writing style is at times laborious as Anais Nin likes to use a lot of metaphors, similes and descriptive words in her work, making a single moment stretch beyond it's use. Her characters, while varied, often fail to come to life and despite being told that they're exciting, vibrant people, I never felt this in Nin's writing. Her style leans toward the abstract which is more suited to concepts than people. The dialogue often felt too much like she wanted to make a point and so it goes from being artful to being unrealistic and turned the characters into ciphers.
The book tackles extra-marital affairs well even if the writing is at times tedious to read and the characters a bit colourless. I enjoyed parts of it and eventually finished it but overall felt it could have been better than it was. Not a great read but short. Of all the writers of this time - 40s and 50s - I wouldn't say Anais Nin is or was one of the essential authors to read and "A Spy in the House of Love" is quite a weak novella.
If you've read my summary and felt "so what?" then you'll have been like me while reading it, thinking that the book has lost it's impact in 21st century Western culture because in the 50s and in the eyes of many people today, marriage and fidelity are things everyone should want and have and that the kind of sexual exploration and adventure seen in the book are things to be ashamed of. Not anymore though! Men and women frequently live lives where they are no longer tied down by conventional sexual mores and live differently (and happily) the lives they want to.
That said, I'm sure the book caused something of a stir when it was first published. The book also addresses the lack of feeling Sabina (the main character) has when she is in these extramarital affairs (hence the title) so it isn't totally risqué, there are morals presented.
While the book is little over 100 pages long, the writing style is at times laborious as Anais Nin likes to use a lot of metaphors, similes and descriptive words in her work, making a single moment stretch beyond it's use. Her characters, while varied, often fail to come to life and despite being told that they're exciting, vibrant people, I never felt this in Nin's writing. Her style leans toward the abstract which is more suited to concepts than people. The dialogue often felt too much like she wanted to make a point and so it goes from being artful to being unrealistic and turned the characters into ciphers.
The book tackles extra-marital affairs well even if the writing is at times tedious to read and the characters a bit colourless. I enjoyed parts of it and eventually finished it but overall felt it could have been better than it was. Not a great read but short. Of all the writers of this time - 40s and 50s - I wouldn't say Anais Nin is or was one of the essential authors to read and "A Spy in the House of Love" is quite a weak novella.
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