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A review by bjr2022
Act of Passion by Georges Simenon
4.0
I read Act of Passion right after reading two of John Updike's "Rabbit" novels, which I described as "human soup." This book was more of that. Very tasty, chunky, multi-layered, and dark.
Simenon's protagonist Charles Alavoine joins the ranks of Updike's Rabbit Angstrom and Vladimir Nobakov's Pale Fire protagonist as men directed by their shadows--as written by male authors who insist on exposing our full human spectrum: from love to the opposite. (Ironically, Alavoine describes himself early on as a man without a shadow.)
A personal note, with a drop of self-promotion: It gives me hope that readers are intrigued by characters who wallow in so many flaws. I like such characters and am debuting a female one of my own in a couple of months (named Zelda McFigg). I hope people will accept and enjoy an equally scrambled and nuanced female character. I'm curious to see what happens.
Simenon's protagonist Charles Alavoine joins the ranks of Updike's Rabbit Angstrom and Vladimir Nobakov's Pale Fire protagonist as men directed by their shadows--as written by male authors who insist on exposing our full human spectrum: from love to the opposite. (Ironically, Alavoine describes himself early on as a man without a shadow.)
A personal note, with a drop of self-promotion: It gives me hope that readers are intrigued by characters who wallow in so many flaws. I like such characters and am debuting a female one of my own in a couple of months (named Zelda McFigg). I hope people will accept and enjoy an equally scrambled and nuanced female character. I'm curious to see what happens.