Want a NOOK? Explore Now
Vienna, 1913. Lysander Rief, a young English actor in town seeking psychotherapy, is caught up in a feverish affair with a beautiful, enigmatic woman—until she goes to the police to press charges of rape. Only a frenzied getaway plotted by two mysterious British diplomats saves him from trial. But after Lysander returns to a London on the cusp of war, the traumatic ordeal haunts him at every turn. The men who coordinated his escape recruit him to carry out a brutal murder. His lover shows up at a party, ready to resume their liaison. Suddenly plunged into the dangerous theater of wartime intelligence—a murky world of sex, scandal, and spies—Lysander must unravel a secret that threatens Britain's safety.
Moving from Vienna to London's West End, from the battlefields of France to hotel rooms in Geneva, Waiting for Sunrise is a mesmerizing journey into the human psyche, a beautifully observed portrait of wartime Europe, a plot-twisting thriller, and a literary tour de force.
“Always a smooth and expert storyteller, Boyd effortlessly combines historical detail with a sexy, galloping narrative that proves irresistible.”
Anonymous
Posted February 26, 2013
I really had high hopes for this despite the mixed reviews. The other reviewers alluded to a bit of a slow starter which turned into a great spy novel. I never caught the pick up I guess. The early portion was very slow, yes, I agree. I'm sure someone who is way more into critical literary analysis will argue that his whole "performance issue" is a metaphor for his life, or some such nonsense, but honestly, I wasn't in to it. Once the story picked up, I still didn't really get that it was some kind of thrill ride. And then in the end, I just couldn't even believe it was over because I was still waiting for the story to take off.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.I really enjoyed this novel of Europe during the period of the 1910's.
Lysander Reif is a British actor in Vienna looking for a Psychiatrist to
help him cure his sexual dysfunction. While visiting the doctor he
encounters another patient (Hettie) who he then get involved in a very
tempestuous relationship with. The problem is that Lysander is engaged
to Blanche back in London and has to figure out what to do. The
situation gets more complicated when Lysander is jailed for a crime
against Hettie and even though he knows he is innocent, he cannot defend
himself because to do so would hurt Heddy. Lysander get help form some
British operatives in the Embassy in Vienna, but having their help means
he will be indebted to them for the rest of his life. The author does a
marvelous job of developing Lysander's character and though he makes a
lot of bad choices, the reader sympathizes with him and wants him to be
happy. As was pointed out by some of the other reviewers, the story
started out with Lysander trying to cure his issue and find happiness
and then it turns into a political mystery/ thriller than Lysander finds
himself in the middle of. There still remains little tidbits of
Lysander's evolving psyche throughout the story that continue to pop up.
I felt that this book had a great feel, like the recent Carlos Zafon
books(Shadow of the Wind, The Angel's Game), without the mysticism. If
you enjoyed those books you will really like this one!
Anonymous
Posted August 7, 2012
Spiritstars den
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted July 20, 2012
Love, friendship, and relationships... totally worth your while.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.blacksaltire
Posted June 26, 2012
Waiting for Sunrise, by William Boyd. The first third of the book began to explore Bergson's idea of "fonction fabulatrice", but then it turned into a Le Carre type of spy novel. Also, at several points it hinted at plot lines that were never followed up upon, and introduced characters who initially played a significant but who then made only a cursory appearance. Neither of these issues undermined the story but merely left me wondering if the author was not able to tie these elements back into the story. However, the story is told from both a third and first person point of view, and also from the point of view of an observer right at the beginning and the end; so, is the hero a fabulist? Nevertheless, it was a good summer read.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 28, 2012
Great read!
0 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted May 8, 2012
Get anything else.
0 out of 3 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.Anonymous
Posted August 19, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted November 19, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted January 12, 2013
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted December 20, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted January 30, 2013
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted April 22, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Anonymous
Posted April 20, 2012
No text was provided for this review.
Overview
Vienna, 1913. Lysander Rief, a young English actor in town seeking psychotherapy, is caught up in a feverish affair with a beautiful, enigmatic woman—until she goes to the police to press charges of rape. Only a frenzied getaway plotted by two mysterious British diplomats saves him from trial. But after Lysander returns to a London on the cusp of war, the traumatic ordeal haunts him at every turn. The men who coordinated his escape recruit him to carry out a brutal murder. His lover shows up at a party, ready to ...