Riven Rock

"The two things Boyle has been unable to do with any sustained success is create a sympathetic, three-dimensional character and tell a story that engages feelings other than laughter, horror, superiority or contempt....With 'Riven Rock,' he has apparently decided to try, as he once put it, 'to do emotions,' rather than embrace his more antic comic talents....The results are...mixed: a long, meandering and fluently written book that has some truly affecting moments but that ultimately reduces two of its three main characters to caricatures. It is an ambitious, laudable effort that falls short of being a fully satisfying novel....By the end of 'Riven Rock,' we feel pity for Stanley and Katherine. It's a far cry, certainly, from the contempt we feel for so many of Boyle's earlier characters, but it's also a poor substitute, in the end, for sympathy, insight or understanding."Boyle, T. C. is the author of 'Riven Rock' with ISBN 9780140271669 and ISBN 014027166X.