Welcome to Litsy!

This first installment of the Patrick Melrose novels was shocking in its swings from dry, laugh out loud hilarity to unthinkable domestic brutality. Proceed at your own risk, and I don‘t recommend for parents. There‘s no way I‘m not reading the next ones (and can‘t wait to watch the show with Benedict Cumberbatch).

Probably the most ghastly cast of characters you're likely to come across, headed by the awful David, the abusive father of Patrick who is 5 years old in this first volume. And yet, possibly the funniest, blackest novel I've ever read.

The #patrickmelrose novels open with Patrick staying in the South of France with his horrific parents. Some of this is admittedly difficult to read due to sensitive subject matter, but this is contrasted with the biting black humour used to depict the cast of unpleasant, snobbish characters.

I know the feeling... #PatrickMelrose

Very excited about the upcoming TV series, so I am about to start re-reading the books. #patrickmelrose

This is a book that punches you in the stomach. The characters are dissected to the marrow, with a merciless but still empathic pen. Morally repugnant they retain their humanity and are so much the worse for it. I will be thinking about this book for a long time to come. I wish I could give it 10 picks.

I wanted to dislike this book, I have no clue why. I didn't. Equally as funny as it is horrifying. That horrifying that on occasion I did find myself actually wanting to physically move away from the book but then by the next page I found myself being thoroughly amused! On to the next one....

This novel is by turns hilarious and horrifying--I was laughing one moment and cringing the next (wondering if I could possibly read on). It's a testament to the author that these transitions never feel clumsy or mishandled and that's what kept me reading. I can see the comparisons to Wodehouse and Wilde in the humour and observation of the privileged and wealthy but there's a dark edge to it in this book. An interesting read to start off 2018.

#unlikeablecharacters #aprilbookshowers
Im three books into this series of five novels about the life of patrick melrose- im still not sure if i am actually enjoying them but i will continue to the end however book 1 stunned me and i class his father David Melrose as one of the most dreadful characters ive met in fiction.

Boyfriend walked in with a huge book under his arm. Got all excited thinking it was for me.

Then I saw the cover.

🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼🙅🏼

#IMajoredinLiberalArtsForaReason

"at the beginning, there had been talk of using some of her money to start a home for alcoholics. in a sense they had succeeded."