Ian McEwan's first novel, The Cement Garden, was called “darkly impressive” by the Times and “irresistibly readable” by The New York Review of Books. But I hated it.
I'm no stranger or enemy of the dark and/or twisted, but I found this slim novel not only unsettling, but downright ugly. It made me feel terrible after reading it but, unlike other books that induce a similar reaction, it didn't stay with me and make me think about anything, it just left a lump of unpleasantness inside my soul.
The story, about a family torn apart by the death of both parents and the subsequent mayhem and incest that follows, is not an easy one. Unfortunately, in my opinion, it's not handled with grace or skill by its author.
But what do you think?