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22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
believe the subtitle, April 25, 2002
The subtitle of Nicola Griffith's new book, Stay, is "a novel," but the cover illustration and flap copy suggest the usual ho-hum noir tale: an ex-cop PI riddled with grief and guilt over the death of a lover hiding in the woods to avoid the world, who, big surprise, is called back by a friend to find his missing girlfriend. Been there, done that I thought. But by the end of the first paragraph (woods as waterfall? a quinquireme of Ninevah?!), the subtitle started to make sense. By the time I reached chapter two, I didn't have any doubts: Stay is a novel, and a superb one. It's subtle when you don't expect it, and brutal -- shockingly so in places -- when you've let down your guard. It's a powerful exploration of grief, loss of innocence, and rage. And its power comes from the narrator, Aud Torvingden. In an interview for Bold Type (yes, I googled her name), Griffith says that Aud (rhymes with shroud) "embodies the long journey toward reconciliation of all those parts of our culture that have been artificially levered apart: mind and body, nature and civilization, art and science, man and woman, tenderness and brutality." It's an astonishing claim, but Aud is an astonishing character. She's larger than life -- insanely rich, and capable, and good-looking -- while being simultaneously, and believably, fragile, and vulnerable, and human. Because of a promise she made her dead lover (which sounds like a cliche, but Griffith makes it work), Aud agrees to track the missing girlfriend. To do that she has to leave the woods, which is where I started to understand that Aud's loss has pushed her over the edge. Or has it? The dead lover appears and disappears (which sounds like another cliche, but in Griffith's hands its not -- it reminded me of Toni Morrison's Beloved), and I alternated between heart-thumping tension and lump-in-throat empathy as Aud struggles with a decision. Can she keep the promise she made to her lover to "stay in the world, stay alive inside," or will she turn her face from the painful vulnerability that is her only hope of redemption? The beauty and suspense lies in the way Griffith describes Aud's inner turmoil. She blends a kind of hard and fast noir technique (tracking the missing woman in SoHo; riffling through a sociopath's loft) with quiet, lyrical passages (showing a stranger around the woods). Some of the juxtapositions are shocking: a brutal beating is described in gorgeous prose. A violent fight is described as a kind of ballet. And quiet emotions are given a visceral edge. It's appalling and exhilarating and moving, and I've never read anything like it. My world looks different.
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15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A novel of explosive, devastating power., April 22, 2002
The spectacular imagery of the remote southern Appalachian mountains, with its buckeye, jewelweed, basswood, and pileated woodpeckers, comes sensuously to life as a lone woman hacks out shingles for a roof on her cabin and hides from visitors. Suddenly, the woman reacts to this quiet, pastoral scene: "An owl screamed in the wood and I wanted to ride behind its eyes when it plunged its talons into living flesh, wanted to tear something warm and soft to pieces while it squealed." With this remarkable sentence, I was totally hooked--by the strong visual images, by the frightening responses of this damaged woman to the sights and sounds around her, and by the emotional desolation of her life.
Aud Torvingen, a former police officer who has killed more than once in the line of duty, has withdrawn from the world to her isolated cabin, grieving and guilt-ridden about the loss of her lover in a shooting she believes to be her fault. When an old friend asks her to find his missing fiancee, Aud journeys to Greenwich Village and a scene of such brutality the reader will not soon forget it. Devastated by the events, Aud understands that she must rebuild her shattered self from the ground up if she ever hopes to recover her life.
Griffith's imagery and psychological acuity are overwhelming. She sets up vivid, sensual contrasts between the pastoral life of Appalachia and the urban life of New York, provides total access to Aud's ravaged psyche, makes the reader truly care for this woman who has killed more than once, and encourages us to hope for her emotional rebirth. The book is stunning, and the writing is truly extraordinary! One caveat, however. While most of us willingly suspend disbelief when faced with excellent, compulsively readable fiction, this book, like some other recent books and films, also encourages us to suspend some of our long held values. Some readers may have trouble accepting the premise here that some people are above the law and that ad hoc, vigilante action is sometimes excusable. Mary Whipple
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
movement with purpose, April 18, 2002
Many so-called "thrillers" achieve their effects by constant movement, often to no purpose other than causing a rise in adrenalin. If that's what you want, go rent a movie with a high body count. When you open "Stay" its achievement is that it drives the adrenalin by virtue of its examination of the limits of responsibility, the development and application of a moral consciousness, and the costs of engagement in life--and the costs of withdrawal. This is not to say that all the movement is internal. On the contrary, "Stay" is filled with compelling action. But action without purpose, heroism without conscience, intervention without cost is a waste of time and ultimately a lie to the soul, a trap too many books fall into because it's easy. Griffith avoids this trap by making every move, every action, every choice, decision, and judgement matter. Aud must decide and it hurts; Aud must act and it's impossible to be absolutely certain; Aud must choose and it's hard. But in the end she does what all of us must do if we're to live lives that matter, that count for something--she grows. "Stay" is superior on every level and lives up to its title--it stays with you, long after you finish reading.
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