The Western Wind - BookWyrm

Hardcover, 304 pages

Published March 1, 2018 by Jonathan Cape.

ISBN:: 978-1-78733-059-7
OCLC Number:: 1028992327

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(2 reviews)

8 editions

RoxxiG@bookwyrm.social reviewed The Western Wind by Samantha Harvey

Review of the Western Wind

4 stars

Just finished the book (the Western Wind by Samantha Harvey) i’m seeing a theme with her books that when they end, they just end as if they could keep going on forever. This one had a bit of a twist that I did not see coming. very enjoyable read. I especially liked the history woven in around the Catholic Church and village life at this time. And using the device of the confessional to add to the plot and the depth of the characters was very clever.

Trevor Burrows reviewed Western Wind by Samantha Harvey

Ridiculously good

5 stars

A mystery told backwards set in early modern Britain. The narrator and one of the main characters is a priest, John Reve, who has to deal with the fallout of a death in his small village. As the story progresses, every piece of it grows more rich and complex, with special attention paid to themes of time, adaptation in a changing world, mortality, and faith. The whole book has the feel of a good ensemble film or tv show, where even small characters become important and the village itself - with its daily work, its gossip, its petty and not-so-petty dramas - is a key character.

The backwards structure might sound gimmicky on paper, but it serves the plot well and reflects one of the book's central themes (the nature of time). You could easily pick the book right back up after finishing it the first time, and re-read it …

A mystery told backwards set in early modern Britain. The narrator and one of the main characters is a priest, John Reve, who has to deal with the fallout of a death in his small village. As the story progresses, every piece of it grows more rich and complex, with special attention paid to themes of time, adaptation in a changing world, mortality, and faith. The whole book has the feel of a good ensemble film or tv show, where even small characters become important and the village itself - with its daily work, its gossip, its petty and not-so-petty dramas - is a key character.

The backwards structure might sound gimmicky on paper, but it serves the plot well and reflects one of the book's central themes (the nature of time). You could easily pick the book right back up after finishing it the first time, and re-read it to try and connect certain dots. I'm not going to do that right away, but I'm already looking forward to reading it again someday. Hits all the right buttons for me: 100% recommend.