A 12-episode page-turner of a series from the world of books. I read the book in one day, devouring it, and so far no book has provoked in me such a strong urge to find out “What will happen next?“. Briefly, 10 people are lured to an island by deception, and they are accused of murders for which they were never punished. A gramophone declares that they must die, and they start dying — one by one, and the gist of the story is that they try to find the killer among themselves on the isolated island. The book is considered a masterpiece, and after reading it that’s exactly the impression you get, but still, for myself I found one small minus.
- I remembered all 10 characters in less than 20 pages. I think this shows how well they’re written and how real they seem. All the sins they’re “punished” for I completely understand; some did it out of love, out of revenge, out of selfishness, or simply out of carelessness. In this respect, it’s not like the Russian writers who would have spent 100 pages describing a side quest — here everything is short and clear.
- Another plus — the constant intrigue and tension. You kind of know that someone is about to kick the bucket, but it always catches you off guard. On top of that, the interesting narration, the meaningful dialogues, and their (almost) logical actions kept me glued to the book. There really were no idiotic decisions like in movies :)
But for me there is one minus in this story, and it’s fairly subjective. For me, a good detective story should be like a good physics problem — hard enough that I have to use my brain, while being solvable at the same time. Of course, this story isn’t in the detective genre, but it really resembles one and I would have liked at least some clues. However, finding the real killer here is almost an impossible task, because there are simply no clues. Of course, after reading the epilogue the picture becomes clear and there’s an “Ahaaa” moment, but on your own there’s no way to figure it out. Probably I say this because at one point I really liked Sherlock Holmes and the narrative from the genius detective’s point of view. And it’s fair to note that the story isn’t about who the killer is, but about why he/she does it. But honestly, even the final reason for all these murders doesn’t excite that much, because it’s just
Spoiler
god syndrome + psychological disorder
Quotes
#1
Что ж, успех врача как раньше, так и теперь зависит, по большей части, от веры в него больного.
Well, a doctor’s success, now as before, depends, for the most part, on the patient’s faith in him.
#2
Ей умирать вовсе не хотелось. Она даже представить себе не могла, как это можно хотеть умереть. Смерть - это для других…
She didn’t want to die at all. She couldn’t even imagine how anyone could want to die. Death — that’s for other people…
#3
Прошлой ночью в нас не осталось почти ничего человеческого. Зверинец на этом острове - это мы.
Last night there was almost nothing human left in us. The menagerie on this island — that’s us.
#4
Я закончил писать. Этот документ я положу в бутылку, запечатаю и брошу в море. Зачем? Вот именно, зачем? Мне всегда хотелось сочинить такое убийство, загадку которого не сможет разгадать никто. Но, как я теперь понимаю, акт творчества сам по себе еще не служит удовлетворению художника. Существует еще жажда признания, не утолить которую невозможно. … есть одно жалкое в своей человечности желание, чтобы кто-нибудь оценил, как я был умен при жизни…
I have finished writing. This document I will put in a bottle, seal it, and throw it into the sea. Why? Indeed, why? I have always wanted to compose a murder whose mystery no one would be able to solve. But, as I now understand, the act of creation alone does not serve the artist’s satisfaction. There also exists a thirst for recognition that cannot be quenched. … there is one desire, pitiful in its humanity, that someone appreciate how clever I was in life…
Reading time: 4h 15m