Many thanks to NetGalley, Hogarth Books and John Boyne for the opportunity to read and review his latest work. Wow - 4.5 stars for this one! I didn't read his big buzz book last year, The Heart's Invsible Furies, but I think I need to put it on my to-read list. However, at first, I wasn't sure about this book - be prepared for unlikeable characters and talk of gay sex. But as I got into it, I couldn't put it down.
Maurice Swift is a handsome young man who wants to be a writer; unfortunately, he doesn't have the natural ability and doesn't have the imagination to come up with his own stories. Working as a waiter in Germany, he meets an older, celebrated novelist, Erich Aukermann, who quickly becomes obsessed with the young man. When Erich divulges his past to Maurice, Maurice knows he found the story he can write. He does and it becomes a hit, although there are consequences for Erich. But now Maurice is on the hunt for more stories and ideas that he can use - so up he climbs the ladder of ambition, leaving others in his shadow.
The writing is wonderful and this is a true character study of a psychopath who will let nothing stop him from the success he feels is rightly is. This one deserves the buzz it's getting.
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