The Last Weekend
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Product Description
Review
A seriously good novel and deserves to overtake a few more loudly trumpeted false favourites in the popularity stakes.
--The Lady
an insidiously gripping tale
--Country Life
`gripping...a masterpiece of pacing and revelation' --Irish Times
"a compelling thriller" --Metro
"a terrific thriller, a page-turner of impressive
literary skill"
--Sunday Business Post
`a compelling psychological thriller that, in parts, will cause you to actually flinch' -- Metro
`Morrison's Last Weekend is delightfully twisted' -- Esquire
'This is one achievement among several for Blake Morrison, who has written a novel that is artful and naturalistic...' -- TLS
`the story is beautifully crafted, astutely observed and peopled with believable characters.' -- Sunday Telegraph
`Morrison handles the elements of his novel with impeccable control'
-- Observer
"The fascination is horrible, the prose addictive, the situation magnificently claustrophobic, the denouement shocking" -- Glasgow Herald
"This is a suspenseful thriller, but more importantly it succeeds as an exceedingly clever investigation into the strangeness of lies" -- Independent on Sunday
'In short, magnificently awful'
--The Herald
`It is the assuredness of Morrison's portrayal of Ian's descent which makes The Last Weekend compelling ' -- The Independent
Creepy, compelling, but often extremely funny. Blake Morrison has inhabited the world of a deeply flawed character with unforgettable results. -- Financial Times, Mark Bostridge
His truly sensational latest novel, which places him at the forefront of British novelists writing today. -- Sunday Express, review
Tautly written and tightly structured, this is a novel that explores jealousy, rivalry, deceit and manipulation. --The Mail on Sunday
It's a page-turner: creepy, and uncomfortably close to home. --The Observer The Observer
--The Lady
an insidiously gripping tale
--Country Life
`gripping...a masterpiece of pacing and revelation' --Irish Times
"a compelling thriller" --Metro
"a terrific thriller, a page-turner of impressive
literary skill"
--Sunday Business Post
`a compelling psychological thriller that, in parts, will cause you to actually flinch' -- Metro
`Morrison's Last Weekend is delightfully twisted' -- Esquire
'This is one achievement among several for Blake Morrison, who has written a novel that is artful and naturalistic...' -- TLS
`the story is beautifully crafted, astutely observed and peopled with believable characters.' -- Sunday Telegraph
`Morrison handles the elements of his novel with impeccable control'
-- Observer
"The fascination is horrible, the prose addictive, the situation magnificently claustrophobic, the denouement shocking" -- Glasgow Herald
"This is a suspenseful thriller, but more importantly it succeeds as an exceedingly clever investigation into the strangeness of lies" -- Independent on Sunday
'In short, magnificently awful'
--The Herald
`It is the assuredness of Morrison's portrayal of Ian's descent which makes The Last Weekend compelling ' -- The Independent
Creepy, compelling, but often extremely funny. Blake Morrison has inhabited the world of a deeply flawed character with unforgettable results. -- Financial Times, Mark Bostridge
His truly sensational latest novel, which places him at the forefront of British novelists writing today. -- Sunday Express, review
Tautly written and tightly structured, this is a novel that explores jealousy, rivalry, deceit and manipulation. --The Mail on Sunday
It's a page-turner: creepy, and uncomfortably close to home. --The Observer The Observer
Book Description
Set over a long weekend in East Anglia, Blake Morrison's new novel is a taut, atmospheric, brilliantly chilling story of a rivalrous friendship and of the green-eyed monster that eats the soul.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
25 of 26 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
There is definately the touch of the Ian McEwan about this book. Like the other author, the prose is extremely well written and the narrative so exciting that it was really difficult to put this book down. Like McEwan, Morrison has the knack of unsettling you and I hurtled through the pages as I was anxious to discover what exactly happened to the characters in the end, even though none were particularly sympathetic - the narrator being particularly cringe-worthy.
The story concerns two couple who are reunited for a Bank Holiday weekend on the East coast with the two male characters being old friends from university. What I loved about the story was how the author managed to get right inside the head of his principle creation and conjure situations where we eventually start to realise that things aren't exactly what they seem. In the beginning we are offered glimpses of the main character's past and, one by one, these start to piece together into the jigsaw of the main thread of the novel, only that the picture we are trying to put together might not necessarily be the one that we had started off with. Consequently, the story becomes increasingly more exciting as the clues start to fit together and the last thirty or so pages had to be finished off late at night as I could not bare the suspense!! Not going to say any more as I don't want to spoil anyone's enjoyment but hope this is sufficient to prompt your curiousity.
Blake Morrison is not an author I had heard of before and I was prompted to buy this book after reading an excellent review in my Sunday newspaper. I am glad that I followed my interest up and, as the other reviwer stated, agree that this would make an excellent film or drama. Modern literature is a bit of a mixed bag for me. I like a good story but I hate pulp fiction. "The last weekend" is well crafted with some wonderful descriptions but is a thriller at the same time. All in all, I would thoroughly recommend this book although buyers should be aware that they will want to finish the thing once they have got their teeth into the first few chapters! Really enjoyed this book.
The story concerns two couple who are reunited for a Bank Holiday weekend on the East coast with the two male characters being old friends from university. What I loved about the story was how the author managed to get right inside the head of his principle creation and conjure situations where we eventually start to realise that things aren't exactly what they seem. In the beginning we are offered glimpses of the main character's past and, one by one, these start to piece together into the jigsaw of the main thread of the novel, only that the picture we are trying to put together might not necessarily be the one that we had started off with. Consequently, the story becomes increasingly more exciting as the clues start to fit together and the last thirty or so pages had to be finished off late at night as I could not bare the suspense!! Not going to say any more as I don't want to spoil anyone's enjoyment but hope this is sufficient to prompt your curiousity.
Blake Morrison is not an author I had heard of before and I was prompted to buy this book after reading an excellent review in my Sunday newspaper. I am glad that I followed my interest up and, as the other reviwer stated, agree that this would make an excellent film or drama. Modern literature is a bit of a mixed bag for me. I like a good story but I hate pulp fiction. "The last weekend" is well crafted with some wonderful descriptions but is a thriller at the same time. All in all, I would thoroughly recommend this book although buyers should be aware that they will want to finish the thing once they have got their teeth into the first few chapters! Really enjoyed this book.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The book takes place over a bank holiday weekend where two couples share a weekend in a country house. Ollie & his wife Daisy - glamourous and wealthy, invite former university friend Ian and his wife Em(considerably poorer and "ugly toads" compared to the golden couple) for the weekend on the basis they have something important to tell them.
There is a sort of feel good feel to it to start with (think This Life, Peter's Friends, The Priory (Royal Court Play)) but as things unfold old rivalries and unfinished business becomes exposed.
It is a fairly short read and pretty page turning - I read it in a day which says alot for it's plot pace. The book is unusual because it doesn't patronise the reader - which is a real strength. So when a scene is described from one character's perspective that may not be all it seems to be, rather than having another character explain what actually happened (eg. Bret Easton Ellis Rules of Attraction), the reader is left to work it out and form his/her own conclusions.
The only real weakness in the book is the ending which was to me unsatisfying, very disappointing given the strength of the book and several of the ending strands were implausible. It's a shame and this is the only reason it gets 4 stars from me - otherwise would have been a clear 5.
It's kind of sad that authors can't include "alternative endings" in future editions of books a la DVD extras!! This book could be made perfect!
Good read though and would recommend nonetheless. Ideal reading for a weekend away.
There is a sort of feel good feel to it to start with (think This Life, Peter's Friends, The Priory (Royal Court Play)) but as things unfold old rivalries and unfinished business becomes exposed.
It is a fairly short read and pretty page turning - I read it in a day which says alot for it's plot pace. The book is unusual because it doesn't patronise the reader - which is a real strength. So when a scene is described from one character's perspective that may not be all it seems to be, rather than having another character explain what actually happened (eg. Bret Easton Ellis Rules of Attraction), the reader is left to work it out and form his/her own conclusions.
The only real weakness in the book is the ending which was to me unsatisfying, very disappointing given the strength of the book and several of the ending strands were implausible. It's a shame and this is the only reason it gets 4 stars from me - otherwise would have been a clear 5.
It's kind of sad that authors can't include "alternative endings" in future editions of books a la DVD extras!! This book could be made perfect!
Good read though and would recommend nonetheless. Ideal reading for a weekend away.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
For a writer of Blake Morrison's stature, this seems a curiously lightweight novel - airport fiction for the middle classes. The scenario is familiar enough: a group of forty-somethings spend a weekend together at a cottage in rural Norfolk. At first, they seem set to enjoy their reunion, but as the weekend progresses, old rivalries and passions begin to rise to the surface.
For me there were too many cliches, particularly the rivalry between the narrator - a primary school teacher from northern England - and his old university friend, a rich London lawyer who is irritatingly successful with women and good at sports. After a particularly tedious account of a game of golf between the two men, I almost abandoned the book, but kept finding myself reading one more chapter, just to find out what happened next.
Then, about a third of the way into the novel, the tone became darker and the narrator no longer seemed entirely credible, or likeable. At that point I started to become more engaged with the narrative and found it increasingly compelling. I read the second half of 'The Last Weekend' in a single sitting.
Overall, I'd say that this is a good holiday read and it's worth sticking with the unpromising beginning, as the narrative becomes genuinely gripping as it progresses, but as a serious work of fiction, it's rather flawed and isn't up to the high standards that Morrison has achieved in his non-fiction.
For me there were too many cliches, particularly the rivalry between the narrator - a primary school teacher from northern England - and his old university friend, a rich London lawyer who is irritatingly successful with women and good at sports. After a particularly tedious account of a game of golf between the two men, I almost abandoned the book, but kept finding myself reading one more chapter, just to find out what happened next.
Then, about a third of the way into the novel, the tone became darker and the narrator no longer seemed entirely credible, or likeable. At that point I started to become more engaged with the narrative and found it increasingly compelling. I read the second half of 'The Last Weekend' in a single sitting.
Overall, I'd say that this is a good holiday read and it's worth sticking with the unpromising beginning, as the narrative becomes genuinely gripping as it progresses, but as a serious work of fiction, it's rather flawed and isn't up to the high standards that Morrison has achieved in his non-fiction.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Great read
Had me hooked!
A group of 40something friends on a weekend away - what will go wrong?
Admittedly there were parts that I struggled with, in particular the... Read more
A group of 40something friends on a weekend away - what will go wrong?
Admittedly there were parts that I struggled with, in particular the... Read more
Published 2 months ago by M. E. Cole
An easy read with a psychological twist
Ollie and Ian became friends at University. Ollie comes from a relatively privileged background, Ian from a more working class background. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Alison McVey
Just truly awful.
This book is one of the worst I've ever read. There isn't even a developing story to it! I don't mean to sound harsh but honestly, the review on the front of the book describes it... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Miss R W
A brilliant depiction of a forty something LOSER. Definitely not my...
Ian, the narrator, is a 44 year old school teacher in a childless and failing marriage to Em, a social worker for disadvantaged children. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Kiwifunlad
Great read!
I really enjoyed this book. I had read about it when it first came out in a weekend newspaper and it had received good reviews. It keeps you gripped until the end. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Mrs. R. H. Bingley
Well written and truly gripping
I really enjoyed Blake Morrison's non-fiction books 'And When Did Last See Your Father' and 'Things My Mother Never Told Me' and I looked forward to reading this. Read more
Published 10 months ago by T. North
Great little read
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The well-developed characters and the unfolding story kept me gripped. Read more
Published 11 months ago by J Weanie
Excellent Read
This book was quick/easy to read and hard to put down. From reading the other reviews, I was worried that I would get to the end of the book and be left disappointed but actually... Read more
Published 11 months ago by bookworm
A really readable novel packed with rivalry, jealousy and delusions
This tense but highly readable novel focuses on a weekend reunion between two couples, written from an interesting perspective: one that is full of self-justification,... Read more
Published 11 months ago by Ms. R. Burns
A compelling read
I read Blake Morrison's previous novel, 'South Of The River' a few years ago. I enjoyed it, but am now struggling to recall much about it. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Lilysslave
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