Not sure if this is a 2* or a 4* book. Don't feel it deserves a bland 3 - sometimes a 2 is better than a 3.

On the positives, the book is very engrossing. The two main characters (one the narrator) are nicely defined and complex. It's an interesting topic, and there is a good, page-turn-inducing sense of menace growing steadily.

On the downsides... Well, it's frankly unbelievable. Some of the reactions of people to the more... unusual events seem ludicrous, and that in turn makes other people's reactions to their reactions ludicrous. I feel that Shriver was trying to walk a line between foreshadowing, without undermining the plot, and I don't think she succeeded.

I think the book would have been more resonant, more powerful without the big school shooting. There is no suggestion that this is supposed to help understand why people commit such atrocities - each seems to be considered as sui generis (although banal in its unoriginality, and the predictability that they will reoccur). No, the book is more about bringing up a difficult and disturbing child, and I feel would have been better left at that. But, and this may be a trifle unfair no Shriver, that would have been less headline-grabbing.

I'm also not convinced of how realistic it is that Kevin's behaviour and psycopathic tendencies - kinda obvious as they are here - would have been undetected or ignored for so long. Again, Shriver seems to want to have her cake and eat it here.

Finally, I feel there's supposed to be a big reveal, but it was telegraphed so far in advance that it's not surprising when it happens (which I wouldn't mind, except it was built up so much). Again - I think I see the balance she was going for, but feel she missed it by a wide margin. Which, isn't a bad summation of how I feel about the book in general.

This book was, ...whew, well to say it was good or enjoyable doesn't quite fit, though it is stunningly well written in a technical sense. The reading certainly isn't "enjoyable", the whole thing extracts a toll on you even as you eagerly, apprehensively turn the next page, it is a profoundly searing, moving book, and as if by magic, the trauma on the pages wounds you as well. Lionel Shriver's prose is inspired and lambent and her skill for unsettling and unnerving, for taking a simple scene you're familiar with and turning it into a nightmare, is absolute. By all means read this book, but do not read it lightly, it will affect you, it will make you consider the worst case scenarios of parenting and relationships in general. ( )

What causes a child to be evil? Is it the fault of the parents or a genetic mistake? Can a mother love a child who is a monster? This book tackles these questions with an unsettling ferociousness that will chill your bones. The horrors that take place in the novel will haunt you. Written over twenty years ago, it still resonates. ( )

There's a reason why this book is so popular. Its the subject matter.

No doubt you’ve read the reviews about how the author hasn't met a pretentious adverb or adjective she didn't like. This is true. But I also think this is in character with the narrator. It’s the style of language she would be most likely to use.

It's a disturbing book. Terrible things happen. Hideous things. I'm not sure that all the school shooters in America start out as demon seeds right out of the birth canal, but it fits with the auhtor's narrative.

The narrator is an unreliable narrator to some degree. She's responsible for more than she lets on.

In the end, it’s worth a read because of the subject matter. You pick up this book for the same reason you stay glued to the cable news after a school shooting. It's difficult to avert your eyes from the car wreck. ( )

I made it about half way through this book and I can honestly say it is NOT for me. It was so hard to read with how brutal the Mother sees her son and how evil he seemed to be. Lionel's writing is so incredible, but the story itself made me feel sick.

And I'm sure you can pick apart this book. There's no way a kid is evil from the get go in a "realistic" book (this isn't sci-fi or fantasy). The Mother herself could be putting this image on the kid since she is all about herself. There's so many options, but I just couldn't do it.

So this is a one star/DNF book for me. I tried, I really did. I'm sure any other readers will enjoy it, but I know when to stop for my own sanity and mental health. ( )