Spider Tie In: Amazon.ca: Books

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by Patrick McGrath

4.0 out of 5 stars (75) CDN$ 15.33

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Customer Reviews

16 Reviews

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
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Average Customer Review

4.2 out of 5 stars (16 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars Brooding, atmospheric and very disturbing, Sep 12 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Spider (Paperback)

Patrick McGrath's debut novel is in the spotlight once again more than a decade after its original publication, thanks to David Cronenberg's dark and deeply disturbing adaptation of "Spider" in which Ralph Fiennes delivers a finely calibrated tour de force in a virtually non-speaking role that shows us what great acting is all about. Except for its subtle timeline shift, the movie is uncannily faithful to McGrath's novel. I read the book after I watched the movie and scene after scene, it was almost identical, except that Cronenberg decided to leave out the scenes relating to Spider's period of incarceration in a nuthouse.

McGrath is a master of the dark, disturbing and macabre. He doesn't mess about and knows how to tell a good story. Brooding and deeply atmospheric, the reader believes what Spider tells him about his childhood, his relationship with his adored mother and hated father, his father's cheap and nasty affair with the neighbourhood barmaid and its fatal consequences. Although a little slow and repetitive when McGrath takes us through Spider's routine as he takes temporary refuge in a half-way house after his release, this is unavoidable and in fact a realistic depiction of the circular illusions in Spider's head. There's a twist - more than a little twist - at the end which isn't just clever but credible. Quite clearly, Spider didn't just turn loony from his father's beatings. There is just a whiff of a hint of the underlying cause in Cronenberg's movie - I won't say what it is - but I think it's a perceptive take on a less than pat ending.

Those who discovered McGrath through his later works like "Asylum" will find "Spider" an excellent novel. It deserves the attention it is now getting. Recommended.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Blowed away, Jul 29 2003

By	Celine (Lawrenceville, Ga United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spider (Paperback)

I picked this book up because it was part of a summer reading program and did not know what to expect. Surprise, I could not put it down. Thru books and movies we sometimes see the actions of the criminally insane but this story shows what is going on inside the mind. The thought precedes the deed, and what a tangeled web of thought does this Spider weave. A dark dirty spiral into total distortion.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Spider weaves creepy tale of darkness, May 16 2003

By	David Group (Buffalo, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Spider (Paperback)

Reading this book, it is easy to see why Cronenberg decided to film it-- it takes place in the macabre world of the mind of a mentally deranged man, a schizophrenic who obsesses over the mysterious death of his mother. Those looking for Stephen King-type thrills should look elsewhere, as this book's chills are much more subtle and realistic. I haven't seen the movie yet, but if any filmmaker could capture the twisted gothic atmosphere of the book, it is Cronenberg.

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Most recent customer reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Tread carefully in Spider's world
This is a compelling and disturbing little book that leaves the reader with a truly distorted sense of reality. Read more

Published on Mar 29 2003 by J. Fercho

3.0 out of 5 stars Mood Vs. Action
A novel of murderously dark mood but little to no action; and by action I do not mean what you'd expect to find between the pages of a David Morrell page-turner. Read more

Published on Jan 11 2003 by Kris

5.0 out of 5 stars Trapped in a Spider web
This is my third Patrick McGrath's novel and my favourite so far. I've read 'Asylum' and 'Dr. Haggard's Disease' . Read more

Published on Oct 17 2002 by Alysson Oliveira

2.0 out of 5 stars In The Mind Of Madness
There are some books that are so self-indulgent, that try so hard to be important that they suck the fun right out of reading. Spider is such a book. Read more

Published on Aug 2 2002 by Sebastien Pharand