Conflicted. Giving this a four even though for me, it was a 3. I think. At times I might almost have rated it a 2 for me but with a few weeks' distance, given how compelled I felt to think about it afterward, a 4 seemed more accurate to the total experience. This book caught my eye in my local independent, where it was tagged as a favorite read by one of the sales staff. The back copy ed me to expect something along the lines of a classic murder mystery but in a very timely setting. Given how curious I often am about the people I spot routinely in my neighborhood and commute, the set-up was very intriguing. It may disappoint you if you approach it expecting the same thing. I think in part, my own conflict is because of the distance between my expectations and the true nature of the book. It is a deep, deep exploration of one character's expression of the disconnection between the sense of intimacy we feel in this era of false links to essential strangers and an inherent distaste for getting involved in complex and messy emotions. Personally, because I tend to be very engaged with others, it became a struggle for me to relate to the narrator who is the only voice you "hear." Everything is filtered through this character. This would be an excellent teaching example in English classes of an unreliable narrator. The other stumbling block for me was that it took so long for me to lose myself in the voice, the very stream-of-consciousness flow of the narrator's thoughts. I can be a very conservative, classic-linear-narrative kind of reader at times, especially times of mild stress in my own life. Initially, I wondered if it was a translation quirk, but gradually became aware of how closely it hewed to the writer's overall approach to the story. You are in this women's mind in a more uncomfortably intimate way that she is engaged with anyone else or even the world and life as a whole. Very strange sensation at times. Once or twice I spoke to her out loud because of her very irresponsible choices. So...if you read books purely to enjoy them in a light-hearted way...No. If you want a true, classicly-styled mystery novel...No. If you are open to something a little skewed, and like to challenge yourself to raise questions about how you might behave in unusual and even extreme circumstances...then Yes. A 4. (I think the translator must have had a very difficult job and did very good work.) Javier Marías is a Spanish novelist more Americans should definitely be aware of. A sensation across Europe, his books are smart, funny and deeply meditative–with a reputation for using classic settings (a dinner party, breakfast in a cafe, a nightclub, etc.) for something else entirely. The plot is never quite the crux of any Marías novel–often the events take place over just a handful of scenes, but the true wonder comes in Marías’s seemingly endless digressions and complex sentence structures. The Infatuations is a metaphysical exploration of life, death, love and homicide disguised in a murder-mystery story. Pick it up today so you can tell others you read his work before he won the Nobel!
What do You think about Gli Innamoramenti (2011)?
Very easy read -- the story seems to suck you in before you perceive it.
—aragorn402
Good story but a very long time and a lot of rambling to tell it.
—ramat
aburrido, si hubiera sido escrito en 100 hojas hubiera sido bueno
—26003
Reminded me of the tunnel vision in Remains of the Day.
—Dejhanee
