You Should Have Left
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Average rating3.2
From the internationally best-selling author of Measuring the World and F, an eerie and supernatural tale of a writer's emotional collapse "It is fitting that I'm beginning a new notebook up here. New surroundings and new ideas, a new beginning. Fresh air." This passage is from the first entry of a journal kept by the narrator of Daniel Kehlmann's spellbinding new novel. It is the record of the seven days that he, his wife, and his four-year-old daughter spend in a house they have rented in the mountains of Germany--a house that thwarts the expectations of the narrator's recollection and seems to defy the very laws of physics. He is eager to finish a screenplay for a sequel to the movie that launched his career, but something he cannot explain is undermining his convictions and confidence, a process he is recording in this account of the uncanny events that unfold as he tries to understand what, exactly, is happening around him--and within him.
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Rating: 1.7 leaves out of 5Characters: 2/5 Cover:.5/5Story: 1/5Writing: 3/5Horror: 2/5Genre: German Lit/Horror/ThrillerType: AudiobookWorth?: EhhHated Disliked Meh It Was Okay Liked LovedWhat a damn mess... before reading the comments I would have gone lower in rating. The horror aspect was pretty creepy but it just wasn't it. When people in the comments pointed out what the book was (or what they thought it was) it made sense, made it a bit more touching.
One of the most atmospheric stories I have read, and at a little over 100 pages, one leaving you wanting so so much more. It leans far more into psychological thriller more so than horror; I got immediate A Cure for Wellness vibes blended with some Back Rooms, making this a perfect story to be adapted by Gore Verbinski. You can easily get through this in one sitting—ideally alone in the dim light with just your house/apartment creaks to keep company—and I strongly recommend it to those who loved House of Leaves.
I will absolutely be diving into more from Kehlmann, as I really enjoyed his style.
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