Perverse
Larry Rodness
Data aparitie: 31 decembrie 2012
Numar pagini: 354
Sinopsis:
Emylene Stipe, in varsta de 19 ani face parte din a doua generatie Goth si ca fiecare adolescenta, incearca sa isi gaseasca locul in lume. Intr-o noapte da peste o pictura veche intr-un magazin de antichitati si se nu poate rezista sa nu o cumpere. Atunci cand o aduce acasa, imaginea unei tinere femei apare in schita, iar apoi aceasta se materializeaza in mod magic in apartamentul eroinei. Emylene o numeste Poinsettia iar cele doua devin in scurt timp prietene. Insa Poinsettia are o motivatie pentru intruziunea brusca si stranie in viata gazdei sale, motivatie care o determina pe Emylene sa isi puna sub semnul intrebarii intregul sistem de valori si toate lucrurile pe care le-a crezut pana atunci.
Parerea mea:
Perverse a fost o lectura cu adevarat surprinzatoare. Nici o grija, nu e nimic pervers in cartea aceasta 🙂 Recunosc, nu ma asteptam la prea multe atunci cand am inceput romanul. Sinopsisul parca nu imi inspira mare lucru, iar titlul mi se parea ca se vrea a fi parca prea socant. Impresiile nu mi s-au schimbat semnificativ atunci cand am inceput cartea si de-a lungul catorva capitole, Perverse mi se parea o lectura ok, dar care nu ma impresiona in mod deosebit. Actiunea incepe destul de lent si chiar privind acum in urma, am in continuare senzatia ca cel putin cateva capitole de la inceput nu si-au avut rostul. Usor, usor, insa, am inceput sa descopar ca lucrurile se indreptau intr-o directie neasteptata, ca ceea ce se intampla in roman nu se mai potrivea cu ceea ce credeam eu ca se va intampla. Iar din acel moment, intreaga poveste capata un ritm diferit, devine tot mai surprinzatoare, mai antrenanta, iar interesul si curiozitatea cititorului cresc rapid. Rasturnarile de situatie se succed una dupa alta, tensiunea creste, personajele devin alunecoase, intentiile lor neclare, iar autorul reuseste sa te ia prin surprindere de nenumarate ori.
Avem in prim plan o protagonista aflata la limita dintre adolescenta si viata de adult, care se straduieste inca sa se descopere pe ea insasi. Ceea ce e intr-o oarecare masura chiar mai dificil decat pare la prima vedere, tocmai pentru ca parintii sai sunt genul de oameni extravaganti, care au incercat cam tot ce se putea incerca de-a lungul vietii. In plus, conflicte majore nu exista intre ei si fiica lor, asa ca revoltele adolescentine si crizele de identitate ale eroinei isi pierd parca din importanta, iar Emylene nu pare sa isi gaseasca drumul, oricat ar incerca. Suntem martori ai unor intamplari mai importante din viata sa, o prietenie pierduta, cateva incercari de a lua viata in piept de una singura, o relatie fara prea mari sorti de izbanda si aparent destul de lipsita de importanta. Nimic special pana aici. Insa un gest banal schimba totul. Achizitia unui cadou se dovedeste a fi in scurt timp factorul declansator al unui intreg set de evenimente iesite din comun. Apare un personaj nou, invaluit in mister, iar imaginea acestuia oscileaza intre una pozitiva si una negativa. In prima faza, o serie de suspiciuni planeaza asupra noii prietene a Emylenei, insa aceasta incepe apoi sa iti castige increderea. Totul se precipita inca o data, iar intreaga poveste de pana atunci pare sa aiba parte de un final brusc, total neasteptat.
Urmatoarele capitole aduc in prim plan un protagonist nou, o lume noua, iar pana la reintalnirea cu Emylene cititorul ramane in ceata, neavand nici o idee despre ce va urma. In continuare, povestea capata nuante dark fantasy, impletite cu unele horror si mystery. Se contureaza un scenariu tot mai complex, extrem de original, suntem martori ai unor povesti din trecut care se continua pana in prezent, tabloul devine tot mai atragator si mai captivant. Iar in final, ultimele piese ale puzzle-ului ofera o perspectiva cu adevarat surprinzatoare, intreaga carte fiindu-ti dezvaluita intr-o lumina noua si aproape fiecare fir de la inceput fiind acum reintregit si fiecare mister dezvaluit intr-un mod pe care nu il banuiai. Povestea este construita intr-un mod surprinzator, te tine curios de-a lungul intregii carti si nu urmeaza aproape nici unul dintre tiparele clasice.
Nu vad neaparat rostul anumitor aspecte pe care se pare ca s-a pus accentul. Apartenenta Emylenei si a parintilor sai la o cultura Goth nu este de fapt atat de importanta pe cat lasa impresia initial. Cartea ar fi fost la fel de interesanta si daca personajele ar fi fost unele obisnuite, asa ca sunt inca nelamurita in privinta scopului autorului. Nu stiu daca mentiunile despre cultura Goth sunt menite sa atraga atentia cititorului si sa diferentieze cartea intr-un ocean de carti fantasy sau YA sau daca autorul a vrut sa scrie o carte despre persoanele care adopta aceasta moda si a realizat ca de fapt nu sunt prea multe de spus despre asta, transformand apoi cartea intr-una cu subiect diferit. In orice caz, per ansamblu, rezultatul este unul foarte bun, asa ca daca aveti ocazia sa cititi cartea, nu ezitati sa o faceti.
Desi personajele nu sunt neaparat extrem de usor de citit, mai ales cele secundare, mi-a placut accentul pus pe rolurile pe care le jucam adesea fara sa ne mai dam seama de mastile pe care le purtam, de modul in care ne schimbam doar ca sa multumim o societate mereu nemultumita, ajungand sa ne ratacim pe noi insine. Mi-a placut curajul unora dintre personajele secundare de a se reinventa atunci cand au ajuns la limita si mai apoi, de a se reintoarce la drumul initial cand se dovedeste ca noua abordare e una gresita. De asemenea, am fost incantata sa descopar ca autorul nu ofera un happy end clasic, in care absolut totul se rezolva ca prin minune. Intr-adevar, principalul dezastru este evitat – pe moment cel putin, insa problemele cotiniene raman, relatiile personajelor nu se schimba, iar personalitatile lor nu sufera transformari lipsite de realism. Autorul ofera doar sugestia faptului ca lucrurile par sa inceapa sa se miste incet in directia care trebuie, iar asta este de ajuns.
Epilogul e similar cu scenele fulgeratoare din ultimele secunde ale unora dintre filmelor de groaza, surprinzand cititorul tocmai atunci cand acesta respira usurat ca totul s-a rezolvat.
Multumesc autorului, Larry Rodness, pentru ca mi-a oferit romanul in schimbul unei recenzii sincere.
Bile albe:
– In ciuda inceputului foarte lent si aproape anost,intoarcerea la 180 de grade, intriga deodata antrenanta, tensiunea crescanda si abordarea atat de interesanta a unor mituri clasice ofera o lectura captivanta, care surprinde in mod placut.
Bile negre:
– Desi la final cateva fire aparent nesemnificative se dovedesc a fi de fapt aspecte extrem de importante, raman totusi cateva capitole carora nu le vad rostul. Mai mult, este vorba exact de pagini de la inceput, care ar putea descuraja un cititor mai putin rabdator sa continue lectura, inducandu-i senzatia ca nu va avea parte de o lectura indeajuns de interesanta.
***
English version:
Perverse was a really surprising read. Don’t worry, there’s nothing perverse in this book 🙂 I admit, I wasn’t expecting very much when I started it. The synopsis didn’t make me really, really curious and I was thinking the title was meant to be too shocking. My thoughts didn’t changed much when I started the book and even through the first few chapters. Perverse seemed to be a nice read, but it wasn’t impressing me that much. The action starts a bit too slow and even now, thinking about the beginning, I still have the sensation that at least some of the initial chapters weren’t necessary. But slowly, I started discovering that the things were moving in an unexpected direction, that what was happening in the story wasn’t matching with what I thought would happen. And from that moment, the whole story gets a different rhythm, it becomes more surprising, more compelling and the reader’s interest and curiosity keep growing. The action twists at every few pages, the tension is growing, the characters become slippery, their intents blurry and the author manages to surprise you frequently.
We meet a heroine at the border between teen age and adulthood, who’s still struggling to find herself. And this is even harder considering that her parents are that kind of extravagant people, who already tried almost everything you could try in a lifetime. Moreover, there are no major conflicts between them and their daughter, so the teen age revolt and the identity crises somehow lose their importance and Emylene seems to be still far from her path, no matter how hard she’d try to find it. We witness some of the most important moments of her life, a lost friendship, some attempts to do something important with her life, a relationship that’s apparently unimportant and that seems to go nowhere. Nothing really special until now. But an ordinary thing changes everything. The acquisition of a present proves to be the trigger to a whole new set of unexpected and unusual events. We meet a new and mysterious character, whose portrait oscillates between a positive and a negative image. At the beginning, there are some suspicions around Emylene’s new friend, but later, you begin to trust her. And just when this happens, everything precipitates once again and the whole story narrated until than seems to have an abrupt and unexpected ending.
The following chapters bring to the forefront a new protagonist, a new world and until the reunion with Emylene, the readers have no idea what’s coming. Further, the story develops some dark fantasy shades, laced with some horror and mystery accents. The author outlines a scenario more complex, highly original. We are witnesses of some stories from the past that continue to this day, the whole picture becomes more appealing and exciting. And finally, the last piece of the puzzle provides a really surprising perspective over the entire book, which is revealed in a new light and almost every thread from the beginning is now completed and every mystery is revealed in an unexpected way. The story is built in a surprisingly manner and keeps you curious throughout the whole book, as the author is not following almost none of the classical patterns.
I don’t necessarily see the point of some of the accentuated issues. The membership of Emylene and her parents to the Goth culture is actually not so important as it might seem in the beginning. The book would have been just as interesting even if they were some ordinary characters, so I’m still confused about the author’s purpose. I don’t know if the mentions about the Goth culture are meant to attract the reader’s attention and differentiate the book in an ocean of fantasy books or if the author wanted to write a book about people who adopt this culture and he realized that there’s not too much to say about it, so then he turned the novel into a story with a different, more complex topic. However, the overall result is endearing, so if you have the opportunity to read the book, do not hesitate to do so.
Although the characters are not very easy to read, especially the secondary ones, I liked the way the author uses them in order to make you see the roles we often play without realizing, the masks we wear, the way we just change for a society that’s always unhappy, losing ourselves because of this. I liked Emylene’s parents’ courage to reinvent themselves when they have reached their limits and then, returning to the initial ways when the new approach seems to be wrong. Also, I was thrilled to discover that the author doesn’t offer a classic happy ending, where everything is magically solved. Indeed, the major disaster is avoided – for now at least, but some ordinary problems remain, the relationships between the characters don’t change and their personalities don’t suffer unrealistic transformations. The author offers only the suggestion that things seem to start moving in the right direction, and that is enough.
The epilogue scenes are similar to the flashing endings of some horror movies, surprising the reader just when he was breathing relieved that everything was finally solved.
I have to thank the author, Larry Rodness for offering me the novel, in exchange of a honest review.
PROs:
– Despite the slow and almost dull beginning, the story is having a 180 degrees turn, the plot is suddenly entertaining and the suspense is thrilling. Also, the interesting approach of a classical myth offers a compelling story that will surely surprise you.
CONs:
– Although in the end some of the initial aspects actually prove to be extremely important, some chapters still don’t seem to be really significant. Moreover, those pages are exactly in the beginning, so a less patient reader could feel discouraged to continue reading, feeling that he wouldn’t get a story interesting enough.
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