A Ladder to the Sky: A Novel

by John Boyne

“A satire of writerly ambition wrapped in a psychological thriller . . . An homage to Patricia Highsmith, Oscar Wilde and Edgar Allan Poe, but its execution is entirely Boyne’s own.”—Ron Charles, The Washington Post

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST AND MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE

Maurice Swift is handsome, charming, and hungry for fame. The one thing he doesn’t have is talent—but he’s not about to let a detail like that stand in his way. After all, a would-be writer can find stories anywhere. They don’t need to be his own.
 
Working as a waiter in a West Berlin hotel in 1988, Maurice engineers the perfect opportunity: a chance encounter with celebrated novelist Erich Ackermann. He quickly ingratiates himself with the powerful – but desperately lonely – older man, teasing out of Erich a terrible, long-held secret about his activities during the war. Perfect material for Maurice’s first novel.

Once Maurice has had a taste of literary fame, he knows he can stop at nothing in pursuit of that high. Moving from the Amalfi Coast, where he matches wits with Gore Vidal, to Manhattan and London, Maurice hones his talent for deceit and manipulation, preying on the talented and vulnerable in his cold-blooded climb to the top. But the higher he climbs, the further he has to fall. . . .
 
Sweeping across the late twentieth century, A Ladder to the Sky is a fascinating portrait of a relentlessly immoral man, a tour de force of storytelling, and the next great novel from an acclaimed literary virtuoso.

Praise for A Ladder to the Sky

“Boyne's mastery of perspective, last seen in The Heart's Invisible Furies, works beautifully here. . . . Boyne understands that it's far more interesting and satisfying for a reader to see that narcissist in action than to be told a catchall phrase. Each step Maurice Swift takes skyward reveals a new layer of calumny he's willing to engage in, and the desperation behind it . . . so dark it seems almost impossible to enjoy reading A Ladder to the Sky as much as you definitely will enjoy reading it.”—NPR

“Delicious . . . spins out over several decades with thrilling unpredictability, following Maurice as he masters the art of co-opting the stories of others in increasingly dubious ways. And while the book reads as a thriller with a body count that would make Highsmith proud, it is also an exploration of morality and art: Where is the line between inspiration and thievery? To whom does a story belong?”—Vanity Fair

• ISBN10: 1984823019
• ISBN13: 9781984823014
• Publish Date: 13 November 2018 (first published 9 August 2018)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Vintage Publishing
• Imprint: Hogarth
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 384
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9781984823014

Reviews

[Bianca]

“It’s not as if anyone could just take someone else’s story and write it themselves, is it? These things need to form in a writer’s mind over time. After all, a novel is about a lot more than just plot, right?”

“Right. So, what you’re saying is that if someone did do that, they’d have to be… what? Actually, what are you saying?”

“Well, they’d have to be really talented. But also a complete psychopath.”
 

An utterly brilliant and fascinating book about a mediocre but cunning and manipulative writer who would do whatever it takes to achieve literary fame, even if that means stealing other people’s stories or lives. WHAT 👏 A 👏 BOOK 👏. I particularly loved its examination of literary ownership. Who owns a story? If we write a narrative based on a conversation we overheard, or from a personal story someone shared with us, how much do we own of that narrative? Where do we draw the line between inspiration and theft? I’ve never read anything as literary as this and yet works so well as a psychological thriller too. I am truly blown away. Easily my favorite book so far this year 👏

[rohshey]

There's a thin line between a finely crafted piece of literary fiction and a cheap throw-away psychological thriller. And throughout the entire book, my thoughts swayed on both sides but I'd be lying if I say it wasn't goddamn enjoyable!

Just as Patricia Highsmith made us complicit in the actions of the murderously sociopathic Tom Ripley, one of Boyne's achievements here is to make his own psychopath so outrageously intriguing that we're as fascinated as we're appalled by the terrible things he does.