I had mixed feelings about this book when I began to read it. I had The Handmaids Tale stuck in my mind, and contrary to popular opinion, I hadn’t liked it. I thought the premise was excellent and I honestly can’t say anything negative about the writing; there was just something that I couldn’t put my finger on that I didn’t like. Perhaps it was because I listened to it on audio and maybe I should have read the physical book instead. But that’s neither here nor there. So when I joined a lovely book club (my first ever!) and was told their book for May was Alias Grace, I groaned inwardly. However, I had nothing to fear.
I was happily surprised by how much I enjoyed AG. It was an interesting fictional telling of a historical crime and I was intrigued by how Atwood told the story. I particularly enjoyed the formatting and the change of style depending on the character narrating at the time. For instance, when reading Grace’s chapters, it was as if you’d been thrown into her train of thought. At first I was
uneasy but as time went on, I actually found that I preferred to read Grace’s chapters because they were different than what I am used to.
I would say that this novel is fairly gentle considering the subject matter. There are a few instances within the book that are a little iffy but as the story line is based over a hundred years ago, racey to the characters is completely different than racey is to us these days. Overall, I’d recommend this book to someone who wants something a little different, a little mysterious, and something that’s very interesting.
I know this review was short and sweet this time! Sometimes I find that a straight forward review is the best kind.
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