‘Brilliant . . . I couldn’t stop reading’ Jo Spain ‘Exceptional . . . Deeply chilling’ Jane Casey ______________Des is a good husband, a good father – a good man.He encourages his wife’s artistic endeavours, reads bedtime stories to his children every night, and holds down a well-paid, if unfulfilling, job.But appearances can be deceptive. Lately, his wife seems to be forgetting that her art is … is for his eyes only. And rumours at work are threatening his reputation as a devoted family man. And he can’t help but feel that his kids don’t seem to need him as much as they once did.Des is afraid.Afraid of the world encroaching on his home.Afraid of past mistakes catching up on him.So afraid of losing control over his family that he is contemplating the unthinkable.A Good Father is a dark and gripping psychological suspense novel that will take you into the twisted mind of a man on the edge.’This intricately made novel marks the debut of a writer from whom, and of whom, we shall be hearing much in coming times’ John Banville ‘Captivating . . . Readers will come for the premise and stay for its clever unpacking’ Irish Times ‘A devastating new voice in Irish fiction . . . Magnificent’ Joe Duffy’A great read, it’s gripping, at times disturbing’ Miriam O’Callaghan, RTÉ Radio 1
more
“By the end of next summer, before the kids go back to school, I will kill my family.”
Based on the strength of the first sentence, I felt confident I would enjoy reading this book. Despite the wow factor of the opening line, I would quickly come to realize it was a mistake to assume the rest of the book would be equally captivating.
I have certain expectations for domestic thrillers; the main expectation being that it evokes the usual emotions one has when reading thriller novels. This book, for me, was akin to a lengthy character study that either left me feeling bewildered or bored—and I’ll do my best to explain why without spoiling anything important in the overall story.
The story is narrated entirely by Desmond (Des), whose focus (with few exceptions) is on his wife, Jenny, and their three children. The story is told in two timelines: one shows how they became a couple, while the other focuses on their family life and deteriorating relationship.
I typically enjoy reading stories told from a single point of view. In this case, however, it rapidly became tedious. Des isn’t simply narrating the story, he’s telling us every random thought that comes to mind, whether it has anything to do with current situations or not. The disjointed thought process may well be used to indicate Desmond’s disturbed frame of mind, but it’s mind-numbingly dull to see his thoughts wander aimlessly about through so much of the book.
Another thing I didn’t care for is the lack of traditional dialogue one expects to see in a novel. Instead, Des tells readers what happened. ‘I told Jenny this, and she said that, so then I said another thing, then Jenny said something else.’ No tone attached to it, no emotion (other than Desmond’s). Nothing but a recitation of what was said.
As it became clear where things were headed near the end, Desmond’s aforementioned disjointed thoughts became even worse. While that is absolutely a believable consequence of his actions at that time, I felt it dragged the story down. Rather than the strong emotions I should have been feeling, I felt impatient and looked forward to finishing the book.
In my opinion, the story would have benefited greatly by being narrated by both Desmond and Jenny—and, indeed, would have made it feel more like a novel than a peek into a disturbed man’s mind. I truly would have liked the opportunity to see her point of view regarding the things Desmond said and did. Not having her side of the story made their entire relationship feel one-dimensional to me. If I could have seen things through her eyes, perhaps that wouldn’t have been the case.
Maybe this simply wasn’t the right book for me. The majority of early reviewers on Goodreads have only positive things to say about The Good Father. I seem to be the only one feeling dissatisfied with it, so this review is definitely full of unpopular opinions.
I received an advance reading copy of this book courtesy of Penguin UK via Netgalley.