This list of Novels I Don’t Understand, Not One Bit is getting longer by the week! I picked this one up primarily because of the title, but also because the jacket copy made it sound like it could be a long-lost cousin of the Thursday Next series, which I adore.

However, Finley (the heroine of this story) has nothing on Thursday. Nothing at all. Unless she does, which I wouldn’t know because I know next to nothing about Finley! She’s a detective, of some sort, and she may or may not be Russian, and she may or may not be an amnesiac, and she definitely does not like puppets except for tiny ones, and… that’s it, I think. That’s what I’ve got.

And I might have given up on this book, except that unlike The Quickening Maze, there seemed to be at least some sort of discernable plot line — specifically that Finley was meant to be investigating a guy who makes puppets. I don’t know why, even now, but it seemed like I might find out. But I didn’t. I got to the end and there was a “reveal” that revealed NOTHING and I really have no idea what happened in this book. Like, at all. It is possible that I went temporarily insane during the read-a-thon and forgot how to read and that’s why I don’t understand this book… but it’s probably actually the book’s fault. Can someone come explain this to me? Please?

Recommendation: Read this book if you’ve ever thought to yourself, “I like Samuel Beckett, but there’s just too much meaning in his works. I want something more abstract.”

Rating: 5/10
(A to Z Challenge, Support Your Local Library Challenge)

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Pass me yours, if you’ve got ’em.