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From the New York Times bestselling author, a first novel as spellbinding as her acclaimed nonfiction
At thirty-four, Nick Walsh is a broken, deeply cynical man. Since the violent deaths of his parents thirteen years earlier, he has been living alone in his childhood home in the suburban Midwest, drinking, drugging, and debauching himself into oblivion. A measure of solace is provided by his newly found relationship with Monica, a mysterious woman who seems to harbor as many secrets as he does.
Obsessed with understanding the circumstances surrounding his parents’ deaths and deranged by his relentless sorrow, Nick begins a campaign of spying on his neighbors via hidden cameras and microphones he has covertly installed in their houses. As he observes with amusement and disbelief all the strange, sad, and terrifying things that his neighbors do to themselves and to one another, and as he, in turn, learns that he is being stalked, he begins to slowly unravel the shocking truth about how and why his parents died.
At once unsettling and moving, humorous and horrifying, Thy Neighbor explores the nature of grief, the potential isolation of suburban life, and who we really are when we think no one is watching. What readers and critics have admired in Norah Vincent’s nonfiction is completely unleashed in this vivid and provocative novel.
Review:
"Thy Neighbor" by Norah Vincent was some read from the start to the finish. There is a lot to absorb in this read from Nick Walsh. I found him truly a sad person...why? Well apart from the fact that he was jobless, his parents had died in a apparent murder-suicide at home....with him now spying on his neighbors with via spy cameras that he installed in their homes...only to discover that he is also being watched. Then there is his drinking..at home or in the local bar...why is that? Nick has a friend Dave only if you can call it that and then there is a woman who enters his life...Monica...but was she a real girlfriend..what did he know about her?
"Thy Neighbor" moves at a very slow pace until you are able to uncover just how these tragedies are put together with these weird characters and there will be a whole lot of strangeness going on but in the end I thought it was different and definitely a original. I found it a hard novel to enjoy in that how this character was so unlikeable.. due to his cynical, disillusioned and so deeply flawed. However, why was he like this....this is where I say you must pick up this read and find out what this novel is all about. Be prepared to be disturbed from the read that could make one uncomfortable...and some of the scenes were somewhat disgusting. This is not a quick read so be prepared. I am not saying this in a negative way...for it took me a while to get into this storyline of its development of this particular human behaviour.
Now if you are interested in a different type of read you have come to the right page. I must say due to the subject matter I would only recommend this to the adult audience due to its foul language and scatological content.
Anonymous
Posted October 8, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
From the New York Times bestselling author, a first novel as spellbinding as her acclaimed nonfiction
At thirty-four, Nick Walsh is a broken, deeply cynical man. Since the violent deaths of his parents thirteen years earlier, he has been living alone in his childhood home in the suburban Midwest, drinking, drugging, and debauching himself into oblivion. A measure of solace is provided by his newly found relationship with Monica, a mysterious ...