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I loved this book when I was a teenager. Since then I have been surprised to discover that it is quite popular among grown-ups as well. It is just my hazy recollection, or is it really silly?

It is silly but it creates a trancelike effect like walking along a straight road in the softly falling snow for several miles.

I discovered I had this in my unread stacks today. Think it's going back to the bottom.

I read it about 5 years ago. Memorable enough so that I can't remember a thing about it.

silly but wonderful! i encourage everyone to read it!

I took a Greek & Latin lit. class in high school and this book became one of the standing jokes in it.

I've read Brideshead several times, but not this. Maybe I won't bother now.

Cecily wrote: "I've read Brideshead several times, but not this. Maybe I won't bother now."

I really like the Secret history - one of my favourite books! Perhaps the comparison from Brideshead is about a poor student who falls in whith a bunch of rich students, but it is nevertheless an absolutely gripping atmospheric read, entertaining and quite funny. I wouldn't skip it on the basis of this review.

A former coworker highly recommended this to me. I read it-- thought it was utter tripe. "Standing jokes" about it I can understand, but what's the appeal?
(My coworker said he liked it because one of the unsavory characters would remind me of another coworker we disliked-- but it didn't.)

I'll leave others to defend this one. I think it's a book you should only read when you have a bad cold.

I am truly shocked that anyone any age etc could tolerate reading more than a few pages of this empty vessel making a horrible noise.

It is one of my favourite books, and the bit about creating a trance like atmosphere is what I adore about it, like The Virgin Suicides. It is sad that you have to trash this.

Three stars is good! (For me, anyway)

Oh come now, it is not about the number of stars. You mention it is COMPLETE TRIPE!! For a book that you seem to have enjoyed quite much.

Also, since it seems to be an important issue on this thread, I am 32.

is it not possible to have a good time reading/listening to/watching complete tripe? I do this frequently...

Well gosh. Each to their own I suppose. I expect I hate some books you love, too. I found this a superbly well written, atmospheric, delicious delight of a book. It's still one of my favourites.
Why three stars for a book you appear to hate so much?

"Sometimes it's fun to be fooled." AB-SO-F%$$##-LUTELY!

"...that old song"?? Here's the rule on that: it's not an old song if you bought the album.
Some review, Paul.

Seriously - what did people like about this book? I felt the atmosphere lacked crucial elements like air. It was boring and stuffy and lacking originality.

Paul, your review caught my attention. Snidely written and well done. :)

thanks Nora!

Is it reminiscent of Dead Poets Society?

yes, and there's something else I particularly dislike... coincidence? No!

i'm currently reading this book, and however I cannot yet say if I do agree or not with your whole review, I have indeed seen a lot of Brideshead Revisited inspirations. Not only in the characters but in the whole theme of the novel. Guilt and human remorse.

I am maybe changing my mind a little bit about the copying-from-previou-classics aspect of this. I'm currently reading a book which advertises itself as a rewrite of The Old Wives' Tale - maybe this is becoming an acknowledged thing you're allowed to do.

As I was reading the first 91 pages, I kept thinking of Brideshead Revisited. Then I read the ending and some of the reviews here. It's not a book that I want to continue--I'd rather re-read Waugh. I read all of The Goldfinch, but I was tempted to abandon that one when I got to the section in Vegas.

Donna is divisive! No longer tempting to me, but I ought to go to Waugh again.

Louisa wrote: "I haven't read this particular book by Donna, but I did give The Goldfinch a go, thanks to many raving reviews it was getting, and I was severely disappointed. I do feel the woman loves the sound o..."

Yes, that's the problem I had w The Secret History.

I can't find the similarity with brideshead revisited. Obviously you haven't read it.

Hi Alicia - please take a look at my review of Brideshead Revisited:

/review/show...

Brilliantly said!

Actually someone from the Times compared the voice of the story to Brideshead Revisited.



Also, she wrote this while she was in college. Brilliant writing and excellent understanding of human interaction, in my opinion.

When you say tripe, do you mean it was entirely unimportant writing to you? As in it added nothing to your life? Or that the writing itself was nothing new/trite/banal? Im confused as to how important it is that I know you found this book unimportant on a personal level.

The newest post on this review has reminded me that when I wrote here the first time, I hadn't finished the book. Now, I've read The Secret History nearly as many times as I've read any of my other favourite books. It's filled with subtleties and connotations, a bit of research to those who are not familiar with the least bit of ancient greek and roman culture, and it's a tremendously fun reading, with a lot of space given by the author to allow the reader to come up with their own theories.

If it has inspirations on Brideshead Revisited? YES, it has. If you'll regret reading it if you've read Brideshead Revisited? NO. If you've enjoyed how the characters sunk deep in guilt and their personalities became decadent and twisted and you are able to see some really dark pits of the human soul, in any of the books, then you'll like the other. If you've loved to hate either Charles or Richard, then you'll love to hate the other.

Agreed, T. I studied Latin in high school and for a bit in college. I thought it was just excellent! I love well informed Tartt is on any subject about which she writes.

Wish I had read this review before spending a weekend (with a bad cold, though)trying to figure out why the book has to hide the fact that it is complete TRIPE behind some rather lame references to Dante and others. I can't even say I hadn't read Brideshead Revisited before, because I had. And I loved that one, for sure.

hmmm... this is a very mean review. But so justified!

thanks Sabah - you're in luck, there's a million of em right here!

This reveiw had me LOLing. Could not agree more. I couldn't NOT finish it, and yet I really wanted it to be over almost as soon as it started.

like a literary Big Mac then!

You had a Ritchie Valens reference and a Big Bopper reference; you really should have had a Buddy Holly reference to complete the trinity.

There's not many things that can provide for great entertainment, time and time again, the way your reviews do. And most of them are spot on, too.

wow, thanks! in 2 hours I have to be at the dentist but you have cheered me up

I called a friend and said, "I'm on about page 25. I have no background in philosophy and this is extremely tedious. She is such an intellectual show-off. Will it EVER go anywhere?"
"Stay with it," my friend suggested, so I read another ten pages.
I think not.

quite so. You may however wish to read Brideshead Revisited instead.

After reading other's reviews here, I wanted to add that I read and reviewed "The Goldfinch (up to the last awful 100 pages), which I thought was Dickens' "Great Expectations" updated. Does she do this intentionally?

well, Clueless was an update of Emma, and A Thousand Acres was an update of King Lear, so people do like to reboot old stories. But they usually say that that's what they're doing.

Paul wrote: "quite so. You may however wish to read Brideshead Revisited instead."

I'm not great at "revisiting" especially having seen the show speeded up. Smoke/drink/smoke/drink/smoke/drink... It can never be the same again!

Paul wrote: "well, Clueless was an update of Emma, and A Thousand Acres was an update of King Lear, so people do like to reboot old stories. But they usually say that that's what they're doing."

Thought perhaps she said she "reboots" in an interview. I might be more forgiving.

Hi Dianne - it appears you're objecting to my mockery "Tickle my tootsies and call me something Latin". I do admit this is a rather high-handed review. But I did read this book all the way through and later read Brideshead Revisited all the way through too and even later saw the brilliant dramatization of BH which I recommend to everyone.

I think your reference to novocaine made me think of this.

THE CHURCH
Turn down the gravity, this is all too heavy
I'll show you how the ancients once traveled
They used to call this a Chevy
Just before the continents sank, you could still go outside
I was sitting on a hot off ramp
She pulled up and asked me if I needed a ride

Terra Nova Cain, I need you again
Deep space jam on an alien terrain
Terra Nova Cain, I need you again
Some for the little boys who live down the lane

I should have known there was something amiss
She had unearthly eyes
She had a way of sifting through your mind
Like she'd done it to a million guys
She said, "Will you help with our research?"
I said, "Take me to your leader."
She put her foot down on the oscillation pedal
She was a transdimensional speeder

Terra Nova Cain, I need you again
Protect me from the meteor rain
Terra Nova Cain, I need you again
Put your exploratory probe right into my brain

They brought me back after thousands of years
I hadn't aged at all
We used to float around her weightless bedroom
That drove me right up the wall

Terra Nova Cain, I need you again
You dropped me off and you've left me quite drained
Terra Nova Cain, I need you again
Help me break these telekinetic chains


And thanks for the Chuck Berry tribute. "Ding-a-Ling" may be a stupid song; but if it was released in 2017 it would be classified as alternative folk; and people would write interpretations of it.