Whatever You Love
and over 900,000 other books are available for Amazon Kindle .
Learn more
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Visit the Amazon.co.uk Trade-In Store for more details. |
Frequently Bought Together
Product details
|
More About the Author
Product Description
Review
'Beautifully constructed and rawly emotional, this is a starkly brilliant and moving investigation of the depths of human despair.' --Financial Times
'Brilliantly defies expectations to the very last page. Unsparing, challenging and terrifically compelling.' --Daily Mail
'At once gripping and tender ... A brilliant and brutal novel that continues to unsettle long after the final page has been turned.' --Observer
'Brilliantly defies expectations to the very last page. Unsparing, challenging and terrifically compelling.' --Daily Mail
'At once gripping and tender ... A brilliant and brutal novel that continues to unsettle long after the final page has been turned.' --Observer
Book Description
An astonishing novel of love, loss, and revenge from highly acclaimed writer Louise Doughty.
Inside This Book
(Learn More)
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
31 of 31 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoyable read with much to think about,
By
This review is from: Whatever You Love (Paperback)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Programme (What's this?)
"Whatever You Love" is the first Louise Doughty book I've read and I really enjoyed it. The novel is ostensibly about the loss of Laura's daughter, Betty, whose death we learn of in the first page of the prologue and the impact that it has on Laura's life and the people around her. After the prologue the book is structured into 4 parts which alternate between "before" and "after" the events of Betty's death and provide detailed insight into the life of Laura with a final short epilogue.The book synopsis on the jacket focusses on the vengeance that Laura wants to take against the man who killed Betty. While this is certainly a strong element of the story, it's somewhat misleading as the story is really about the relationship between Laura and her husband David. Although the book isn't quite what the jacket blurb suggests, it is still a riveting read and I stayed up late one night to read the last 100 pages. It's a book that made me think - why were people behaving as they were, how do people deal with grief and loss, how perspective changes how a relationship appears to be. Doughty has a lovely realistic feel to her writing; there's a line where she describes a scene where a jar of mayonnaise is thrown and smashes and Doughty writes "Why does mayonnaise go translucent when it gets warm? Am I the only one who finds that sinister?" I just loved that simple observation (and I also think it's sinister!). There are other lovely simple observations that make the characters seen more real. I'll definitely be looking at Doughty's other books. A recommended read if you like psychological thrillers/suspense that don't follow a standard plot.
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Captivating read overall,
By
This review is from: Whatever You Love (Paperback)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Programme (What's this?)
I was quickly captivated by this book - a story of Laura and the loss of her eldest daughter Betty in a hit and run. Very much an interior monologue, it explores the feelings and emotions and numbness that she experiences as she tries to make sense of the life she has left.The blurb though, indicates it is a story of revenge. Indeed it is, but the story convolutes into the story of her relationship with David (Betty's father / Laura's husband). This confused me a little - I felt both stories were told well but neither developed fully - I found other details clumsy and difficult to reconcile (I don't want to say what as it would spoil the plot); the end felt rushed and for me, unsatisfying. Intelligent prose, shocking in places, with a flash forward / flash back timeline makes this a genuinely captivating read though, and one I would recommend.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Should have been a contender.,
By Tamara L (North West England) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Whatever You Love (Paperback)
Narrated in the first person, the story opens with the death of Laura's nine year old daughter. It backtracks to Laura's relationship and subsequent marriage to David, then David's relationship with another woman. Reading this was like a punch in the stomach. The grief is so raw, the betrayal so bitter.I'm not generally a fan of thrillers but this is so much more. Intelligent and well-written, it drags you kicking and screaming into its angry passionate heartbroken maelstrom. It would make a great TV adaptation - and I'm guessing that's why it didn't make the Orange shortlist - it does have that made-for-TV feel. Most likely it didn't come across as literary enough for the judges. All I know is I didn't want to go to bed I was so gripped by it, and it was the first thing I thought of when I woke in the morning. A fantastic read and I was on the verge of giving it five stars (I award this accolade rarely) but thought I would reflect on it a bit first. This was a useful check because after a week or so it had lost a lot of its effect and it didn't stay in my head. Its power is in its urgency and immediacy. I would definitely recommend it though. An absolute page-turner.
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Would you like to see more reviews about this item?
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews |
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
|
