The translation into english by margaret jull costa was published by hamish hamilton in 20 it was shortlisted for the 2014 national. Hes a master of other things as well, i think, but definitely of first lines. Here are the finalists for fiction and nonfiction with excerpts and other links where available. Set in madrid, it concerns a woman named maria dolz who hears about the fatal, seemingly random stabbing of. From the awardwinning spanish writer javier marias comes an extraordinary new book that has been a literary sensation around the world. The infatuations vintage international kindle edition by marias, javier, costa, margaret jull. The infatuations by javier marias maria, a woman in her thirties who works as an editor in a publishing house where she dislikes and despises most of its authors has.
The storys literary underpinnings are macbeth as is usual in marias, balzacs colonel chabert and, more surprisingly, dumass the three musketeers. This is the story of a woman whose life changes in strange ways following the murder of a man she admired. Club best book of 20 each day before work maria dolz stops at the. There she finds herself drawn to a couple who is also there every morning. More than one infatuation is going on in this suspenseful, often dark story. The millions marias s novel operates on so many levels simultaneously, it becomes a piece of evidence itself, an artifact that proves its own argument. The infatuations is a metaphysical murder mystery and a stunningly original literary achievement by javier marias, the internationally acclaimed author of a heart so white and your face tomorrow. The infatuations is a book on the often destructive power that love and desire has on some. The infatuations, containing the qualities of marias s best work, is an important addition to his oeuvre. Reviewed in the united kingdom on september 8, 2014.
The plot is well thought and although theres not much happening, much has been said. The infatuations hardcover the elliott bay book company. The plot is well thought and although theres not much happening, much. His earlier book tomorrow in the battle think on me left an indelible imprint and a desire to want to read more of his works. Spanish novelist javier marias is wellknown in europe, but not as popular in the united states. Javier mariass haunting murder mystery, embracing all the big questions about life, love and death, is an instant spanish classic, writes robert. The classical themes of love, death and fate are explored with elegant intelligence by marias in what is perhaps his best novel so far. The infatuations vintage international kindle edition.
Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Critic john powers says marias latest work an unsettling, slightly sinister twist on the mystery novel ought to raise the authors profile here in america. The infatuations by javier marias spanish novelist javier marias is wellknown in europe, but not as popular in the united states. Download for offline reading, highlight, bookmark or take notes while you read the infatuations. This way to the gas, ladies and gentlemen, by tadeusz borowski in short. The narrator of javier mariass new novel carries on a friendship with the widow and the best friend of a murdered man.
The infatuations, written by spanish writer, javier marias. The infatuations javier marias margaret jull costa, trans. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading the infatuations vintage international. The infatuations is a critically acclaimed novel by the great spanish writer javier marias. Is there such as thing as chance, asks javier mariass masterly new novel. The narrator, the widow and the best friend spend much of the book engaged in conversation, or imagined. Every day, maria dolz stops for breakfast at the same cafe.
I am reading a book from every country in the world. Over the events in the the infatuations, this other. And every day she enjoys watching a handsome couple who follow the same routine. Its more of a metaphysical thriller closer in spirit to the michelangelo antonioni film blowup than to the girl with the dragon tattoo. The fiction list includes one of the biggest fiction releases of last year and a book in translation. As often tends to be the case, the nbcc is offering up what may be the most wellrounded fiction shortlist youll find.
The book club click to join in the discussion about this months book, harvesting by lisa harding. As the title promises, the infatuations is about impetuous, sudden and fierce preoccupations among people, based upon little if any knowledge but rather on the role into which one person casts another, and what happens when the subject refuses to fulfill the casting. Its protagonist intrigues from the start, when we dont. He has published fifteen novels, including the infatuations and a heart so white, as well as three collections of short stories and several volumes of essays. The infatuations is a difficult book to summarize without giving away the plot. Maria dolz is the narrator in javier marias new novel and begins the book by describing her voyeuristic enjoyment of the couple whose life is to be upended by a tragedy about to take place the husbands brutal stabbing by a vagrant whose mental stability has been threatened as a result of abandonment by his two grown daughters. The infatuations takes you where very few novels doto dark thoughts and long passages of suggested theories or, at times, even to. The infatuations vintage international javier marias on.
With the infatuations, javier marias brilliantly reimagines the murder novel as a metaphysical enquiry, addressing existential questions of life, death, love and morality. The infatuations npr coverage of the infatuations by javier marias and margaret jull costa. Marias published his first novel in spain in 1971, aged 19. In the next two decades, he published four others, translated several from the english. Read the infatuations by javier marias book online,the. The infatuations is an extraordinary, immersive book about the terrible force of events and their consequences.
The infatuations vintage international paperback the. This book is not just another novel its outstanding. The infatuations is a metaphysical exploration masquerading as a murder mystery. Set in spain, it deals with death, desire and the effects of chance and timing on outcomes. The infatuations, by javier marias the new york times. The infatuations is a 20 mystery novel by spanish author javier marias. There is little denying that javier marias is a literary giant not just in the spanish speaking world. Not a book for everybody but i certainly enjoyed reading. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of the infatuations by javier marias.
1058 1466 195 1356 771 615 82 719 1196 941 1144 1643 507 193 750 1071 580 339 620 68 630 547 1383 920 499 275 1660 585 1645 1404 1496 138 1579 642 1458 1414 1353 1117 794 127 821 906 1267