I just finished “The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair” and I don’t really know what to say, If you read it too I really want to hear your opinion because upon looking I read very polarized reviews. This is a rant + some alternative suggestions for the plot. (Also this is my first post, I’m very opinionated hehe but please be nice ;3)
\>!spoiler here!<
>!At the beginning it was really hard to get through the narrators bloated ego and incredibly out of touch comments, but since I was suggested to read it, I pushed through. Every character seems to be completely one dimensional and reduced to a trope or a stereotype (all described ironically by the narrator that is the most archetypical character of them all). The casual racism, sexism and homophobia were completely unnecessary, useless for character development and not funny at all. Once I saw the plot form, I was intrigued, but I soon felt cheated as a reader because I was constantly thrown in and out of extremely long anecdotes and tangents that were ultimately not as necessary for the book’s ending. One thing is to give the reader context and possible clues and red herrings, another is to milk the plot so intensely that it becomes frustrating and exhausting. I know I’m being harsh, but I’m not done. The most disgusting aspect of it all was the complete and utter justification and romanticization of the so-called “relationship” between Harry (34) and Nola (15!!). He’s a pedo/phile, period. I feel like the final reveal in which it’s discovered that Harry actually wanted to leave Nola, “used” her for his writing only and Luther was the “worse pedo/phile”, is actually very lazy. I didn’t expect that elaborate set of letter-exchanges that happened between Luther, Nola and Harry, but ultimately it was used to, once again, alleviate Harry of his crimes against a minor. The reveal that he stole Luther’s book condemned him, that’s sure, but not of the right crime. I found the police brutality twist to be disappointing but not surprising. Rather than talk about the potholes there are, I wanted to give a couple plot points that I would have made this book a bit more interesting.!<
1. >!If it was revealed that Harry found love again in Marcus: The respect and love between the two is made very clear, and it was a good foundation for Harry to develop the same admiration he did for Nola with Marcus in the same twisted way. It’s still icky and has roots in grooming, and I believe it would have been a good representation of Harry’s patterns. Marcus is young (although not as young as Nola), full of passion, and blinded by his admiration for Harry, it would have been a great juxtaposition with Nola. Also, the writer didn’t shy away from gay (or bi) characters such as Elija Stern, so why not?!<
2. >!For Marcus to develop a love story of his own within the story: This would have added another dimension to Marcus and offered a parallel between his love story and Harry’s. There could have been interesting points of introspection such as “love doesn’t really work like that does it?” of Marcus realizing that Harry and Nola’s love wasn’t “pure and perfect” as it was described. It’s cute when he decides to pursue love in the end, but I would have liked to see more of it.!<
3. >!If it was revealed that Harry was in fact the killer: Maybe this is a stretch, don’t bash me please. But wouldn’t have been absolutely fantastic to actually hold Harry accountable? Imagine Nola realizing that Luther actually wrote “The origin of Evil” and going to Harry with it instead of Luther himself. Upon reading it and being entranced, Harry decides to claim it and leave Nola because she was no use to him anymore. Then faced with one of Nola psychotic episodes and her telling him that “he’s a wicked man” for stealing the book and leaving, he kills her. I know this would be a completely different story and it would have to be reshaped completely, but it would show Harry’s greedy personality and lack of care for the people around him. Plus, the reveal would have made Marcus and his conviction towards Harry’s brilliance and innocence, a completely unreliable narrator and it would have given opportunity for depth and grief. The reveal that he solely stole the book was just not enough.!<
That’s it! I know it’s a lot but I really want to hear what you thought of the book and of my suggestions! Much love reddit ;3
by lolly_bibidiboop