Status
Available
Call number
Genres
Publication
Penguin Books Ltd (1992), Paperback
Description
Fiction. Mystery. HTML: From an Edgar Award�winning author: Murder intrudes on a student's secret history of the London Underground in this "brilliantly unexpected" mystery (The Times, London). Jarvis Stringer is a young man of many peculiarities, but no obsession has taken hold quite like that of writing the strange and twisting history of the London Underground. To finance his project, he rents out cheap rooms in the long-disused West Hampstead schoolhouse he inherited�a crumbling monument to morbid local lore. The boarders, each eking out their invisible lives above�and beneath�the city's surface, are a collection of strays, waifs, subway buskers, and loners, who are raising the concern of Jarvis's relatives and more proper neighbors. But even Jarvis has become suspicious. One of his outcasts may be a killer who's plotting something unforgettable and catastrophic�and Jarvis himself has unwittingly become a conspirator. "A jolting novel of psychological suspense," King Solomon's Carpet was the recipient of the Crime Writers' Association Gold Dagger Award (The New York Times Book Review)..… (more)
User reviews
LibraryThing member Bookmarque
Another Vine I couldn’t really get into. The inclusion of text from a fictional book about the distinctly real London Underground was distracting and to me, didn’t help with the plot or atmosphere. Ditto for some of the scenes showing how dangerous it could be for the uninitiated (the rich
It starts out by introducing Jarvis, train nut and inheritor of a dilapidated former primary school. He has just enough money to keep himself, but decides to supplement his income by ‘renting’ rooms to folks who appear to be needy. He gathers a group of down-and-outs and borderline losers around him. All are quirky, damaged and at times at odds with each other. On an extended journey out of the country to research his book, an enterprising Axel Jonas worms his way into the household and begins manipulating people at close range. His real target was Jarvis himself, but will make do with the ones who are left. His efforts coalesce around gaining access to parts of the underground that are normally off limits. Reports of bombs and other disturbances are peppered throughout the narrative. It’s clear that Axel and his pal Ivan are responsible.
Through a subtle reign of terror, Axel succeeds in putting the entire household into an uproar. Alliances and romances are broken. Children are frightened. Underlying psychological weaknesses are exploited. Overall that is a disturbingly interesting thing to read about. Axel was a very nicely written sociopath. I understood how people either fell under his spell or were instantly (and sometimes inexplicably) repelled.
But nothing much ever really happened. What did was presented as mundane and trivial. People are robbed. Mothers acknowledge their daughter’s lies and manipulations. Children defy adults and put themselves at great bodily risk. Old women have strokes and come to realize that they have always been in love with their best friend. It’s all sort of interesting, in a voyeuristic way, but none of it touched me at all. These people were just actors giving me a show. Weird since I usually connect more with Vine’s characters.
The ending is fairly tense, but again, things seem disconnected and the wrap up is ambiguous as usual. That didn’t bother me, but the dispassionate presentation did.
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woman at the beginning who is trampled to death) or the stupid (Jasper’s train roof riding). It just didn’t convey anything for me since the essential plot seemed to be the manipulative useage of the unwary innocent.It starts out by introducing Jarvis, train nut and inheritor of a dilapidated former primary school. He has just enough money to keep himself, but decides to supplement his income by ‘renting’ rooms to folks who appear to be needy. He gathers a group of down-and-outs and borderline losers around him. All are quirky, damaged and at times at odds with each other. On an extended journey out of the country to research his book, an enterprising Axel Jonas worms his way into the household and begins manipulating people at close range. His real target was Jarvis himself, but will make do with the ones who are left. His efforts coalesce around gaining access to parts of the underground that are normally off limits. Reports of bombs and other disturbances are peppered throughout the narrative. It’s clear that Axel and his pal Ivan are responsible.
Through a subtle reign of terror, Axel succeeds in putting the entire household into an uproar. Alliances and romances are broken. Children are frightened. Underlying psychological weaknesses are exploited. Overall that is a disturbingly interesting thing to read about. Axel was a very nicely written sociopath. I understood how people either fell under his spell or were instantly (and sometimes inexplicably) repelled.
But nothing much ever really happened. What did was presented as mundane and trivial. People are robbed. Mothers acknowledge their daughter’s lies and manipulations. Children defy adults and put themselves at great bodily risk. Old women have strokes and come to realize that they have always been in love with their best friend. It’s all sort of interesting, in a voyeuristic way, but none of it touched me at all. These people were just actors giving me a show. Weird since I usually connect more with Vine’s characters.
The ending is fairly tense, but again, things seem disconnected and the wrap up is ambiguous as usual. That didn’t bother me, but the dispassionate presentation did.
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LibraryThing member Goodwillbooks
This was an enjoyable book by Barbara Vine (alter-ego of Ruth Rendell). It's well-written, without a false note (as they say), and takes its time coming to conclusion; meandering, circuitous, like the London Underground, which is a central part/theme of the story. The ending is particularly
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satisfying, happy for some characters, yet sad for others. It should be read with patience. Show Less
LibraryThing member Jaie22
Wonderful London atmosphere. Similar in ways to Gaiman's Neverwhere, but, to me, better. Genuine favorite.
LibraryThing member veracity
This was a 2nd hand pick up, but I really couldn't get in to it. I'm just not that in to mysteries and this one definitely didn't grab my attention.
LibraryThing member jayne_charles
The blurb on the back of this book stated that 'towards the end the tension is almost suffocating'. Absolutely true - I was experiencing considerable tension as I wondered if I had spent £7.99 on a book in which nothing was actually going to happen. So much time was spent creating 'atmosphere'
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that the plot was all but forgotten. A bit too arty and up-its-own-backside for my liking. Show Less
LibraryThing member Lukerik
Dire. Remarkably boring and a waste of my time. I bet she phoned this one in. She rang her agent and dictated it to the secretary.
LibraryThing member leslie.98
I should have trusted my instinct (which was that I wouldn't like another Barbara Vine book) but I was fooled by the blurb saying it was a modern-day take on Conrad's Secret Agent which I enjoyed immensely. Now that I have finished, I can somewhat comprehend that description but while Conrad's Why did Axel want to bomb the tube? Did it have something to do with his sister or was he driven by some anarchist philosophy or what?
Disappointing...
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story thrilled & fascinated me, this one mostly bored me. It is a "psychological thriller"; apparently that means it is about people's thoughts & emotions with very little action (and most of that occurring off-stage). The one person in whose thoughts I would have been interested was of course the one whose thoughts and motivations are not given. And that is one of my biggest complaints of all -- in the end, there is no resolution or explanation. I could have put up with all the character-driven stuff if the plot had had some point! Disappointing...
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LibraryThing member jennannej
I didn't really get into this book. It took me a while to figure out who all the characters were and how they all fit together. Once I did that, the book flowed much better for me as it switched from character to character.
Alice's character really annoyed me. She had no resolve, dedication, or
There were parts of this book I really enjoyed. I thought Jasper was a very interesting character. I really enjoyed the bits about the London Underground and all the little stories that were included-however, they almost seemed to be teasing you with them and not telling the whole story.
I was disappointed that we never really discovered what Axel's motivation was. It was this question just dangling there at the end of the book. An interesting read, though not my favorite.
Alice's character really annoyed me. She had no resolve, dedication, or
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personal strength. She gave up on every single decision she ever made. She couldn't rely on herself; she was always looking for someone else for direction, strength, encouragement, fulfillment...basically for everything. Very NON-self-sufficient.There were parts of this book I really enjoyed. I thought Jasper was a very interesting character. I really enjoyed the bits about the London Underground and all the little stories that were included-however, they almost seemed to be teasing you with them and not telling the whole story.
I was disappointed that we never really discovered what Axel's motivation was. It was this question just dangling there at the end of the book. An interesting read, though not my favorite.
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Subjects
Awards
Crime Writers' Association Awards (Winner — 1991)
Language
Original publication date
1991
Physical description
368 p.; 6.93 inches
ISBN
0140156917 / 9780140156911