I had to give a more robust review of At Dark, I Become Loathsome as I was very taken with this book. Did you like it? Have you read it?
Without giving anything away, I’ll say I loved the premise, the tone, the ritual itself. I liked the repetitious nature of the “paperwork” that serves as our library scene or exposition about the ritual hinted at in the back jacket copy, as well as the mantra that the words “at dark I become loathsome” becomes. LaRocca uses it frequently throughout.
Lutin reminds me of a character we meet near the end of the film Haunt: heavily tattooed, pierced, and implanted with horns. Having friends and fascination with body modification I was doubly drawn to him. I can see why his clients never seemed to shy away.
Thank you so much to Blackstone Publishing for sending me a beautiful review copy! While my opinion is honestly my own, this is a perfect addition to my shelf.
Why did you choose this book?
The cover held promise! Fonts used on cover is Futura – an amazingly resilient font and a very good standalone font. The photo is of a sculpture by artist Sarah Sitkin, if you are interested in very lifelike effects in unsettling art.
I was instantly drawn to the morose character Ashley Lutin. If you’ve ever lingered too long over the bloodied, discarded wings of a mourning dove on the concrete steps of your office—pondering, maybe even admiring—you might be too.
Lutin reminds me of a character we meet near the end of the film Haunt: heavily tattooed, pierced, and implanted with horns. Having friends and fascination with body modification I was doubly drawn to him. I can see why his clients never seemed to shy away.
What is the overview?
We are introduced to Ashley Lutin and right away we know he is shy, strange, and off putting. This is mainly because he tells us this.
I was instantly drawn to the morose character Ashley Lutin. If you’ve ever lingered too long over the bloodied, discarded wings of a mourning dove on the concrete steps of your office—pondering, maybe even admiring—you might be too.
Lutin reminds me of a character we meet near the end of the film Haunt: heavily tattooed, pierced, and implanted with horns. Having friends and fascination with body modification I was doubly drawn to him. I can see why his clients never seemed to shy away.
There is a saggy bit of the story for me. Ashley spends a lot of time on line and when he gets into a more personal conversation with one prospect, the man tells him a story and I am not sure if it is because it is told in italics or just because I cared more about the ritual of Lutin’s and wanted to get back to it; I found his story incredibly boring.
The story parts, at the beginning and end, that have to do with his older female client are so dark, so quiet, and so sinister I just looked this as a book end to this story. It could not have ended any other way.
The Shining star here is…
The interstitial entries form the contract Lutin has with his clients is such a nice bonus. We have an idea how his mind works form the document he has drawn up. It also serves as a ticking clock as we are fed the stages of th ritual through his terms and conditions. I liked the use of this extra prop quite a lot.
The Theme and Setting
Some people may think the main character lacks an arc within the story we are presented. I’d disagree in that we are given so much backstory, and this being the most poignant crossroads in the life of a man who has had trial after trial.
I could see people wanting to have read the buildup but not me. This could be placed in any town and I really enjoy that. There is great care given to describing the town at night and I think that helps with the this could happen anywhere feeling.
The Characters and Writing Style
Ashley Lutin of course is the only character we can really care about here. His wife, clients, child, all of this is set dressing. The writing is simple and paced so deliberately; never too slow or fast, never too full of action or introspection; we almost feel as if we are boing told this as a doctor form a patient.
There is a very calming and comfortable monotony to the timbre while all the other rules of good writing are adhered to. The reading level is appropriate, the sentence structure and length varies to keep it all interesting and lilting even. It is sort of a magical balance struck here that I liked a lot.
Conclusion and Comparisons
I found this was similar in mood to Lolita, Catcher in the Rye, or Mister B. Gone. Very different books, but ones that have that same kind of hypnotic storytelling tactic. There is very little I can think of that reads like this in theme though.
Snag a copy here : https://amzn.to/4iLUMnk
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