Backstory: I’ve had this book sitting on my shelf for at least eight months now. (Confession: there are books that have been sitting on my shelf unread for years. I’m an impulse shopper. Further confession: by the shelf, I mean the floor.) The reviews are fantastic–it was a New York Times Notable Book. But the description on the back, which includes phrases such as “irreversibly damaged,” “extreme paranoia,” and “catastrophic results,” indicated that this wasn’t going to be a light read. So the book kept getting pushed to the back of the pile, but I’m glad I finally unearthed it.
One-Sentence Plot Summary: A prisoner, Ray, narrates the story of Danny’s reunion with his cousin, Howie–whose death Danny was nearly responsible for as a child–at the medieval Eastern European castle Howie is attempting to turn into a hotel.
Review: The best thing about this book is its originality. So many books are predictable because you’ve read a thousand just like them (ahem, see my previous post on The Associate). But with The Keep, though I was able to guess at a few of the book’s twists, the ultimate conclusion was a mystery–perhaps partially because Egan refrains from the impulse to wrap everything up in a neat package with a bow. Because of these twists, one review compared the book to Russian nesting dolls, which seems accurate. There is a story within a story within a story, and the degree to which they are interconnected is only revealed as the book progresses.
Like The Shadow of the Wind (read more about this here), the book contains Gothic elements. Obviously–a medieval castle in Eastern Europe may be the very definition of Gothic. But The Keep is more postmodern. Though some of the danger is real, much of the terror is psychological and self-inflicted. The castle seems to be a place that releases what is already inside the characters, forcing them to confront their fears and the past. Because of this internal focus, the lines between reality and fantasy are blurred; the reader is often wondering along with the character if something is real or imagined.
The only real negative to the book is that it’s not easy to relate to the characters. They’re certainly colorful. Danny dresses like a Goth and has his own personal vocabulary; Ray has a wide range of personalities alongside him in prison. None of them are particularly sympathetic, however, leaving the reader sitting on the sidelines without an outcome to root for. But fortunately, that motivation isn’t necessary to pull a reader through The Keep.
Conclusion: The Keep is intriguing, unique, and can appeal to a variety of demographics. And, as an added bonus, it was a quicker read than I’d initially anticipated.
Available at: Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Powell’s. Also available in Sony eBook, Kindle, and audiobook formats.
