I've been lax on reporting what I've been reading lately, so here goes:
I just finished Revenge by Stephen Fry. It tells the story of a privileged student in England who gets caught up in something much larger than himself and ends up kidnapped and hidden away for several years. He escapes, vowing revenge on all those who hurt him--and he gets it. The last third of the book requires a strong stomach, but the ending has a great ironic twist to it. I really liked it.
I also read two books by Ian McEwan: Amsterdam and The Innocent. Amsterdam, which won the Booker prize in 1998, is an excellent book of two friends and what happens when their friendship goes awry. It's short, a quick read, but worth your consideration.
The Innocent is a cold war thriller set in Berlin shortly after WWII. The innocent of the title is a British telephone technician recruited to participate in espionage. The climax of the novel is exciting and after the first half I could barely put it down. Classic McEwan ending as well.
Posted by Shelby at September 14, 2003 06:13 PM