Ah, if you haven't already guessed it's Wilful Blue by Sonya Hartnett.
Basically it's about a bunch of (male) artists commissioned to produce some work at a atelier by the seaside, where one of the characters dies. The story is told in retrospect by two protagonists to the dead artist's sister.
Wilful Blue is a wonderful character piece, extraordinary in the way it subtly illustrates the complex relationships between the artists. The things I found most interesting: the manner in which young adult males speak and interact with one another when female attention/sex is not at stake; and the secret life of artists.
And as I mentioned in my last post, the pacing in this book is absolutely superb. It isn't a long book, but there is certainly an unhurried, deliberate reveal of each of the characters' traits and behaviour and the events that occur.
The fact that the reader already knows about the death makes the amount of intrigue built into the novel an impressive achievement and the ending has a redemptive quality to it. At least, we feel the narrators have come to the end of their personal journeys.
Day 15 – Favourite male character
Day 16 – Favourite female character
Day 17 – Favourite quote from your favourite book
Day 18 – A book that disappointed you
Day 19 – Favourite book turned into a movie
Day 20 – Favourite romance book
Day 21 – Favourite book from your childhood
Day 22 – Favourite book you own
Day 23 – A book you've wanted to read for a long time but still haven’t
Day 24 – A book that you wish more people would’ve read
Day 25 – A character who you can relate to the most
Day 26 – A book that changed your opinion about something
Day 27 – The most surprising plot twist or ending
Day 28 – Favourite title
Day 29 – A book everyone hated but you liked
Day 30 – Your favourite book of all time
I'd like to thank Sarah Jansen for her tweet about this, as well as The Literary Gothamite and Confessions of a Book Lush for the good idea.
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