If you like being spoon-fed a plot, this book is not for you. It's layered and "chewy," to quote Stephen King. It's definitely a story that you either "get" or not and it'll make you really think about relationships...both in general and about those in your life. Contrary to how it may be catergorized, this not a police procedural, nor is it a murder mystery. It's a brutally honest look at marriage, relationships and the love long-term couples may rediscover if it's not too late.
Be prepared to think and dive deeply into this amazing story...
Be prepared to think and dive deeply into this amazing story...
Helpful Score: 1
I was intrigued the hype around this book. Seems readers fall into two camps -- those who love it and those who don't care for it at all. I'm in the loving it camp.
This is as much a story about marriage as it is a mystery. There's a lot going on in this book. It takes a lot of twists and turns. There are really three (maybe four, actually...), stories within this story. The author is very imaginative though and does a great job of keeping you guessing while pulling it altogether nicely at the end. It was a very enjoyable read.
This is as much a story about marriage as it is a mystery. There's a lot going on in this book. It takes a lot of twists and turns. There are really three (maybe four, actually...), stories within this story. The author is very imaginative though and does a great job of keeping you guessing while pulling it altogether nicely at the end. It was a very enjoyable read.
Helpful Score: 1
This is the story of the married life of David and Alice Pepin. Alice has a number of allergies and has some health issues and David frequently contemplates her death. When Alice turns up dead, the story becomes a whodunit.... did David kill her? Was it suicide? Did something else happen to Alice? There is more than one story contained in this novel; the other being the story of Sam Sheppard, the detective investigating Alice's death and who was also charged with the death of his own wife in the past. The author has quite skillfully woven together the two stories in much the same way that MC Escher drew fanciful drawings of people, gnomes, birds, and fish on a continuum between black and white. This story is not to be read so much as it is to be experienced. Even now after finishing reading the story, I'm not entirely certain what happened to Alice and that is a testament to how well the author wrote this book. I enjoyed this book and it kept my interest very well although the chapters are very long; one chapter is well over 100 pages.
I really do not know what to say about this book. Some have said it is like 2 books in one. I would say 3 books in one. I would say that the main character appears to be Sam Sheppard and not David Pepin. David and his wife Alice Pepin have a rocky marriage to say the least. Alice Pepin is found dead with peanuts in her mouth. She has severe allergies too them
The Sam Sheppard is the one and the same from the fugitive fame. His story is about 1/2 the book and completely loses me. Because now he is a detective working Homicide cases in New York. And he is working on the Alice Pepin case. If he was alive he would be in his 80's which is way too old for a Homicide Detective and that really screws up my enjoyment of the book.
The author could of made the book happen earlier but it is clear that the story is happening in present time. Way too much back story here and the ending lets just say you get two ending in one book and I am not sure what one really happened.
2 stars out of 5
The Sam Sheppard is the one and the same from the fugitive fame. His story is about 1/2 the book and completely loses me. Because now he is a detective working Homicide cases in New York. And he is working on the Alice Pepin case. If he was alive he would be in his 80's which is way too old for a Homicide Detective and that really screws up my enjoyment of the book.
The author could of made the book happen earlier but it is clear that the story is happening in present time. Way too much back story here and the ending lets just say you get two ending in one book and I am not sure what one really happened.
2 stars out of 5
A strange and twisted story that examines different marriages/relationships and their meaning...love, hatred, or both. It is as much about the fictitious story of the real-life Dr. Sam Sheppard as it is about David Pepin, and the story of Detective Hastroll and his wife figures in as well. It jumps around, and can be confusing, but I liked it and thought it was a very interesting way to present a story. Not entirely lucid at times, but still interesting.
I did look up Dr. Sheppard. He was convicted of murdering his wife in 1954. He spent 10 years in prison (1956-1966). His conviction was overturned, but his name was never really cleared. He died in 1970 of liver disease. He would be approaching the age of 90 if he were alive today, so casting him as a modern day detective is very odd, though it does seem to work within the cloudy framework of the novel.
I did look up Dr. Sheppard. He was convicted of murdering his wife in 1954. He spent 10 years in prison (1956-1966). His conviction was overturned, but his name was never really cleared. He died in 1970 of liver disease. He would be approaching the age of 90 if he were alive today, so casting him as a modern day detective is very odd, though it does seem to work within the cloudy framework of the novel.
Adam Rosss debut novel Mr. Peanut is a moving exploration of the highs and lows of marriage. Alice Pepin is found dead from peanut-induced anaphylaxis in her New York apartment after she begins a mysterious, finally-successful weight loss campaign. Her husband David, a successful computer game designer trying to bring his novel to completion, is a prime suspect being investigated by two detectives with particular issues in their own marriages. Ward Hastrolls wife has suddenly and stubbornly stopped getting out of bed. His partner is the Sam Sheppard convicted of killing his wife in 1954 but later acquitted at a new trial. A shadowy figure called Mobius further complicates the picture. More than a mystery, this recursive story resembles the Escher drawings that inspire Davids games as it explores the depths of the marriage bond, love and hate. Rosss prose is inspired, although a couple of examples of sloppy editing made me worry how well the pieces of the story fit together. In the end the sections on Hastroll and Sheppard do not neatly tie in, except for the marriage theme. In short, I found this book to be a rich, arresting meditation on human faults and emotions, imagination and reality, partly inspired by Alfred Hitchcocks films.
An entertaining thriller of sorts. I enjoyed it very much.
I did not enjoy this book. It was confusing and after reading the whole dismal thing, I still don't know who killed the poor woman. Left me feeling like crap about marriage and life in general. Won't be reading anymore by this author.
