The Blind Assassin
Margaret Atwood
This book begins with the suicide of Laura Chase. An inauspicious beginning you might think, but it grabs your attention from the start. It then proceeds to unravel its story through several different converging narratives.
Iris Chase, an old lady recalling the depths of her past, is a spirited and cantankerous guide, while excerpts from The Blind Assassin, a book penned by the deceased Laura Chase, aids your journey. This is interspersed with newspaper reports from the day.
What results is a story seen from all angles, the central characters and the on-lookers. The characters are strong and alive, you find yourself loving and hating them with vehemence and experiencing the events alongside them. This provides opportunities for some interesting social comment as the lying, intrigue and betrayal behind the socialites facade of 1930's Toronto is revealed.
Although the excerpts from The Blind Assassin at some points feel a little irrelevant to the story, they create the atmosphere of the book and provide an insight into the minds of the characters. This book keeps you guessing, it doesn't feed you the story but expects you to do a little work for yourself. The tale doesn't resolve itself until the very last moment, but that keeps you hanging on right to the end. As a result this is one of those annoying unputdownable books which you finish all too quickly. I totally recommend this, but not if you've got too much work to do and don't want to be distracted!
Virago Press; ISBN: 1860498809
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