The Prince of Tides by Pat Conroy

I have a friend who absolutely adores Pat Conroy and everything he has written, she has long encouraged me to read the Prince of Tides and after 5 attempts at starting it and having bought 3 different copies over a 5 year period, 2 weeks ago I picked it up off the bookshelf and it clicked.

What can I say about Conroy`s magnificent, gripping page turning saga that hasn`t already been said, probably nothing, after all I was terribly late to the party.

The book was beautifully written, skillfully plotted, set in a South Carolina that came alive before your very eyes, loaded with characters that were sprung from tightly wound cages and with unbelievable twists and turns that defied belief but fitted perfectly within the context of these characters, their times and their lives as they live them, there are no easy lives in this book in fact most of the characters are seriously flawed in one way or another, with the author being able to make each characters flaw a point of difference.

The book flows along, the descriptive narrative simply carrys you with it and it becomes easy as to be ensnared with the characters and the trajectory they follow, you find yourself quite unable to let them go when you finally close the book.
Not always a pretty read, in fact quite the opposite but never the less the book, its tale and its writing are magic and I would encourage you to read it if you haven`t beaten me to the party.

Available from good Second Hand Book Shops and the Library System.