When Adam Woods takes a job as the assistant to the reclusive bestselling author Gordon Crace he unearths a secret that takes him from the dank canals of Venice back to England, and his own murky past. What follows is a deadly game of cat and mouse, involving deception, blackmail and the cold lust for fame. But it is not until Adam returns to Venice and the two men confront each other that it transpires all is not as it appears to be . . . The Lying Tongue is a deeply atmospheric thriller that will grip you until its shocking climax.
Andrew Wilson wrote Patricia Highsmith's biography, and his debut novel The Lying Tongue is appropriately about a young man who decides to write the biography of a reclusive elderly author. I'm not going to reveal any more about the plot, because part of the awesomeness is the way Wilson slowly deals out information about the characters, bit by bit. It's a work of masterful plotting, the way things unroll at just the right pace.
If you're looking for a relatively quick (300 pages), eerie read with a kickass ending, I recommend this book. I'd say more, but it's best experienced without having any knowledge of what's in store.
Reading updates
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1 October, 2007:
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1 October, 2007:
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