This was a weird book but I liked it.

October 2021
Audible Owned
Driving for FFE ( )

Een dystopische roman over een schrijfster die in haar appartement wordt bespioneerd om redenen die voor haar lang onduidelijk blijven. Er zitten wat losse eindjes in, maar het is best een spannend boek. Goed voor een paar dagen amusement. ( )

I was intrigued at the first part of the book. Clarissa has just left her second husband and happy to be approved to live in a building with other artist in Paris. She's residing in a building with a state-of-the art robot in her living space communicating every need she has and watching every move. After awhile, her paranoia sets in and she's frustrated with the lack of privacy.

The second half was okay - just not as interesting - as it was more of the same without enough suspense to keep me from drifting. However, it makes you think about how much we rely on robots which can have an affect on holding back our creative minds. ( )

A fascinating tale in near-future Paris, de Rosnay brings the sense of place and atmosphere that she’s known for in spades. I was utterly fascinated with this Paris of the future and in unraveling the multiple mysteries layered throughout the novel.

I was particularly absorbed by how this novel is so much like, and also yet so different from one of my favorite novels, de Rosnay’s Sarah’s Key. While Sarah’s Key takes us back to Paris of World War II, Flowers of Darkness takes us about 15-20 years into the City of Light to come, as de Rosnay envisions it.

It is a world where an unnamed catastrophic event has decimated the city, as well as other national capitals, not to mention the decimation of the Earth’s climate due to global warming. Yet, the main crux of the story centers around a mystery for the reader, as to why main character Clarissa recently left her husband of 20 years, along with a riddle that Clarissa is trying to solve for herself.

If I had a complaint about this tale, it would be that while intriguing, I didn’t feel like the story wrapped up all the loose ends by the conclusion; and the imaginative future that pulled me through the story with ease, didn’t wrap-up with an obvious lesson for the reader.

Yet, de Rosnay is an excellent novelist, who writes finely crafted and compelling prose that makes you think, and for that I do recommend Flowers of Darkness for anyone who enjoys a bit of spooky suspense or a touch of a post-apocalyptic future.

A big thank you to Tatiana de Rosnay, St. Martin’s Press, and NetGalley for providing an advanced reader copy in exchange for this honest review.

Tatiana de Rosnay is the author of over ten novels, including the New York Times bestseller Sarah's Key, which has sold over 11 million copies in 44 countries worldwide. Together with Dan Brown, Stephenie Meyer, and Stieg Larsson, she has been named one of the top ten fiction writers in Europe.

Flowers of Darkness is available February 23, 2021 in Hardcover, Audio CD, Audible Audiobook, and for Kindle. Please consider buying from BookShop.org, the online bookstore that has donated over $8 million to independent bookstores since starting operation in early 2020.

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#WomensFiction ( )

Strange story with no ending. It just stops! Nothing resolved or explained. ( )