The Secret History
Author: Donna Tartt
523 Pages (Kindle Edition)
Published: September 1992
Synopsis:
Truly deserving of the accolade Modern Classic, Donna Tartt’s cult bestseller The Secret History is a remarkable achievement – both compelling and elegant, dramatic and playful.
Under the influence of their charismatic classics professor, a group of clever, eccentric misfits at an elite New England college discover a way of thinking and living that is a world away from the humdrum existence of their contemporaries. But when they go beyond the boundaries of normal morality their lives are changed profoundly and for ever.
Review:
When Richard arrives to Hampden University he has the intention of continuing to study the Greek language a.k.a. the major, Classics. However, he is told that it is very hard to get into that study because the professor is extremely selective of who is allowed to study with him. The professor and his students are seen as an eclectic group, vastly different than their peers. This only intrigues Richard more, to become a part of them, and eventually he succeeds.
When the students get wrapped up in attempting to re-enact an Ancient Greek ceremony, things go awry, and there are consequences for their actions. Not only are there irreversible consequences, they snowball into something bigger and grander.
I was sucked in from the first couple of paragraphs of the prologue, and I was hooked until the very end. Donna Tartt gives you the main climax within the prologue, and then she uses the story to explain to the reader the events and reasons why what happened had to happen. After she explains this all, she shows us the aftermath of the group’s actions and how it emotionally and mentally affected them all differently.
The Book Cubby 