The Secret History: From the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Goldfinch

This book is truly incredible. I loved it and, having finished it missed it so much that within a few days I had started reading it all over again! Having now completed the second reading, I have had to wean myself off it, before 'The Secret History' becomes the only story I will ever be able to read! I still open it at random from time to time though and read a little bit, and I think I always will, because the writing is so incredible; certain passages take my breath away. I have never been obsessed with a book in the way that I am with this, and I have been trying to work out just why I love this book so much. I do not really know how to categorise this novel; it doesn't fit into any particular genre (I wouldn't exactly describe it as a thriller and it's certainly not a murder mystery) and doesn't particularly remind me of anything else I have read. There are loads of books out there about someone having some kind of a secret in their past, but 'The Secret History' is so much more than most of these. For some reason it put me a little in mind of Siri Hustvedt's 'What I Loved', but I think this is only because Hustvedt's is the only book I've read in the last few years that has come anywhere near impressing me as much. `The Secret History' is that elusive mix of a satisfying, literary work combined with an intriguing storyline, which makes it an absolute pleasure to read. It is not a quick, easy read with a surprise on every page; I found that the more I thought about it the more I appreciated it for the masterpiece it truly is. It is largely the great characterisation which makes 'The Secret History'. The characters, love them or hate them, are fascinating ones. They are so skilfully portrayed that I feel I know these people and have been spending time with them, in their world. Passages such as the following (which I have read and re-read over and over, because it impresses me so much) are part of what sets this novel in a league of its own: the night after Bunny's murder, Richard says of one of the others, `All of a sudden I found myself able to see him as the world saw him, as I myself had seen him when I first met him - cool, well-mannered, rich, absolutely beyond reproach. It was such a convincing illusion that even I, who knew the essential falseness of it, felt oddly comforted'. I do not feel, as some people do, that the characters are completely unlikeable, unbelievable, or merely caricatures; I found them to be complex characters who are constantly developed throughout the novel, Charles being the only main character who is maybe somewhat under-developed. Camilla remains somewhat mysterious throughout; she has to as we are seeing her almost entirely through the eyes of the smitten Richard. We are learning more about Henry, Francis and the twins at the same time as is our narrator, the `stilted mannequins' of our initial acquaintance soon start to come to life for us just as they do for Richard. For me, the early chapters, where the characters are introduced, developed to a point, and the scene is set, are among the best in the novel. Of course our prior knowledge that these privileged young people are doomed serves to greatly increase our interest in them. I found my opinion of each character frequently shifting throughout the novel, indeed Donna Tartt is adept at manipulating her reader's sympathies. The way in which she successfully makes Bunny so repulsive in the weeks leading up to his death, while simultaneously painting the others in a fairly sympathetic light, makes it seem plausible that `five reasonable people' (to use the words of our narrator) plan and carry out the murder of their `friend'. Julian Morrow is a fabulous invention. The fact that he is present in very few scenes adds to the sense of mystery which envelops him. I don't think I will ever forget his "I hope we're all ready to leave the phenomenal world, and enter into the sublime?" at the start of his classes, the irony of course being that by the second time we hear him say this, the real world has become the sublime! The novel also boasts an impressive array of supporting characters, who are very well drawn, believable, have important roles to play and in many cases are very aptly named: Judy Poovey, Cloke Rayburn, Marion and Sophie Dearbold, for instance. I quite liked the way that, by telling us what virtually all even the minor characters are doing now, eight years on, the author neatly wrapped up her story. I felt that the references to Ancient Greece, the classics and the Greek language, as well as the peppering with little bits of Latin and pertinent lines from French poems helped to make the book what it was. No doubt a person who in `real life' constantly made such allusions would seem horribly pretentious, but in this book it works, it seems perfectly natural that Francis, rather than telling us simply that he is going to bed, should quote some Charles Baudelaire! The idea of fate too, of events moving inexorably towards a pre-ordained conclusion, is an interesting one in `The Secret History'. At the very start of the novel, Richard ruminates on his `fatal flaw'. Later, reflecting on the Greek language, he describes it as `a language obsessed with action, and with the joy of seeing action multiply from action, action marching relentlessly ahead...in a long straight rank of cause and effect towards what will be inevitable, the only possible end'. The story he is in the process of telling us is clearly moving towards tragedy, its only possible end. Donna Tartt is able to convey an atmosphere to perfection, whether this is the breathtaking scenery of Vermont and Hampden College, seen through the eyes of a young man who hitherto doesn't seem to have experienced much beauty in his life; the fragrant, floral intoxication of Julian's room (I could smell the roses, the bergamot and the tea); the eeriness of a room late at night, lit only by a tiny circle of lamplight, where, over a bottle of whiskey, the group's awful secret is revealed to the narrator; or the claustrophobia of the Corcoran house the night before Bunny's funeral, with the torrential rain outside, all sorts of disparate groups and individuals forced to stay under the same roof and be civil to one another, the distraught father veering between despair and forced jocularity, and bored children bickering and getting under everyone's feet, in the midst of which Bunny's `friends' are busy raiding Mrs Corcoran's drug cache. There is a great deal of humour in the book, albeit most of it of a dark or ironic kind. I really could discuss `The Secret History' for ever and a day; there is so much that could be said about it and so many questions to ponder. It's interesting to consider how close to the truth is the story that our narrator is telling us, in light of the fact that not only do we see lies simply roll of his tongue right from the start (his fictive childhood, telling Bunny that the jacket he has just got from Judy was his grandfather's), but he even warns us, `If there's one thing I'm good at, it's lying on my feet. It's sort of a gift I have'! Of course, Richard's version of the story is the only one we will ever have, so in some respects this is a pointless question, although an intriguing one! If you haven't already read this marvellous book, read it - you're in for a treat, but be warned: it may just take over your life!

I know this book is beloved and it was good, but there were some sections that were pretty uneventful. It was pretty slow paced, so it needs some patience. I can’t say I enjoyed it massively, but I can’t say it was bad either. I think you’d probably have to be a dark academia superfan to love this

Donna Tartt can scarcely be called prolific - last year saw the publication of her third novel [The Goldfinch] after a gap of ten years since its predecessor "The Little Friend"and twenty years after "The Secret History". I read "The Secret History" shortly after its publication and thought it was extraordinary. Having just re-read it I think that "extraordinary" falls rather too short of the mark! After all, who would have thought that a novel about a group of students studying the Greek and Roman classics could be so gripping? The story is narrated by Richard Papen, who recounts the events he experienced as a twenty year old student from a modest background in California who had enrolled in Hampden College, an exclusive institution in Vermont (apparently modelled upon Bennington College where Tartt herself studied during the 1980s). After a false start at his first college where he had started to study medicine, he embarks upon a humanities course but transfers to Classics, basically because he has become intrigued (almost to the point of obsession) with a small group of students who stand apart from the rest of the campus. This group consists of Henry, an extremely erudite, wealthy and rather aloof character who seldom seems aware of his immediate surroundings as he ponders aspects of Greek philosophy, Francis Abernethy, a flamboyant flanneur, twins Charles and Camilla McCaulay (as the book was published in 1992 there was no particular resonance of that pairing of names!) and the slightly dysfunctional Edmund Corcoran, known as Bunny. Together they study under the unorthodox and inspiring tutor, Julian Morrow, who encourages them to read widely and to immerse themselves in their subject. This encouragement to explore the classical world to the full proves unfortunate as an experiment to recapture the sensations of a Bacchanal go disastrously awry, and tensions within the group reach extreme levels. Richard Papen is an immensely likeable character, and his financial struggles merely to survive among his generally affluent fellow students are depicted very plausibly. The individual member of the group, and their tutor, are very clearly drawn, and the internal conflicts are all too readily believed. (Possible spoiler alert - I don't think this really constitutes a spoiler as it covers something that is referred to in the opening sentence of the Prologue of the book, but I thought I had better play safe and mention it.) The novel opens with Richard recalling the discovery of Bunny who "had been dead for several weeks", and it soon becomes clear how he had died, with the bulk of the novel left to cover the reasons why that had to happen. However, although the denouement comes at the start, the tension and excitement of the novel is maintained deftly, and the reader's attention never falters. What I find most amazing about this novel is the fact that it was Tartt's debut, and that she was only nineteen when she started writing it. She manages to blend a huge amount of classical erudition with a tautly-crafted suspense novel with a great deftness of touch.

I did like those book. It was well-researched and well-considered. However, it's not the classic or life changing read that other Reviews suggest. Perhaps the biggest challenge I have is that none of key characters have any likeable traits. They all seem too entitled, too ungrateful or too smug and patronising with their elite intellect. On that basis, you have little or no sympathy with any of them as the drama unfolds. This next comment may also say more about me, and I'm OK with that, but the version I read was 629 pages long. The story rambled on and on and in hindsight, all that could have been said and should have been said, could have been better wrapped up, in 400 pages. Everything that happens after that, just seems excessive and self indulgent. Bit like a 3 hour movie, when you just know that the last 45-60 minutes represents either the Director's indecision or artistic indulgence, to the detriment of the weary audience. Lastly, and once you realise this, it's so difficult to "unrealise" this and not stiffle a laugh, but I've read a book with so many scenes or references to sleeping, dozing, bed and dreaming. I know that they're students, but the sleeping references could form a separate book of their own. One of the characters actually mentions how much one of the others sleeps on page 250. You're not wrong, sister!! So, it was a good read, but boy did the last 200 pages drag on, all spent in the company of some fairly irksome and selfish characters.

الكتاب تحفة وصل سليم وبدون أي خدوش

The Secret History is a slow unspooling of beauty, intellect, and moral decay wrapped inside an almost hypnotic narrative voice. From the outset, it establishes an enclosed world—rarefied, aestheticized, and psychologically insulated from ordinary life—then gradually reveals the fractures beneath it. Tartt’s strength lies in atmosphere: the book feels densely lived-in, with a kind of classical elegance that makes the descent into ethical collapse even more disorienting. The characters are rendered with a detached intimacy that keeps the reader both close and slightly off-balance. What resonates most is the tension between admiration and unease. The group’s intellectual allure never fully fades, even as their actions become increasingly difficult to reconcile. That ambivalence is the engine of the novel. A compelling, immersive read that lingers not because it resolves its moral questions, but because it refuses to simplify them.

I didn't read it myself but the recipient was happy with it.

Have you ever felt you’re going to miss characters from a book? Well, that’s how how I feel… just finished it and I already miss them. No book has hooked me so quickly. From page 1 I was already captured. I didn’t want to stop reading, all I was thinking for days was the book (I even dreamed about it). The story is not too fast (she definitely doesn’t rush it) but not too slow either. It takes you through it at the perfect pace to want to know but enjoy each moment at the same time. You feel the spaces, the ambient, the places. She writes in a way that absorbs you into the story. The way she writes in the 1st person you are not reading it, you are living it. And you feel connected with Richard (the main character), instantly. And the end!! There’s only one way to describe it: WHAT!! Find a nice corner, dimmed light and a calm playlist (classical is a perfect match if you ask me)… and enjoy it.

Sad. Long. But definitely worth the invested time. For some reason, I couldn't put this book down. Enjoy and reflect.