AIDEN- a tale of love, hope and tragedy about broken people healing each other
Ricocheting between dreams and fantasy and cold, harsh reality, this novel highlights the stories of young people lured or snatched from their home to reside in a big house in the English countryside. They are part of a grand design by wealthy businessman, Peter Wilshaw. One of his captives, Aiden, feels he is special to Peter and needs to find out why. Eventually the truth is revealed, which leads to earth-shattering events. A strange tale about lost families, the power of fantasy and the need for love. An intricate patchwork of histories leading to a tense, revelatory finale.
Reviews
This is my third book by Patrick Murray and I have to say this is yet another really enjoyable and enthralling book and as ever well written.
This novel is chiefly concerned with a character called Peter. He seems to be unbelievably wealthy and spends most of his life travelling the world trying to identify and track down people he has seen in Google maps (other map applications are available). Aided by a Columbian with certain "special skills", they seem to have a wonderful life travelling the globe, staying in the best hotels and flying first class from one exotic location to another.
We are then taken to a large house in the English countryside. Inside we first come across a young lad called Aiden, locked and chained in the basement for a reason we find out later. We are then introduced to one of his jailers, a young European woman called Monika, who treats him with kindness and brings him food, drink and even comfort.
The question is who are these people, why are they in prison, are some of them even jailers, what has this to do with the enigmatic Peter? Through a series of vignette chapters we gradually find out more until the big denouement, which is more surprising than you can imagine.
Brilliantly written, with prose that drags you in to learn more this is yet another wonderful and as ever, different novel from the pen of Pat Murray
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First of all, thank you to Pat for providing me with an ARC for this book. Now, let’s get into the review:
Murray’s novel Aiden unites many unique narratives to tell a story of unfortunate people who find themselves in similar circumstances. It is a book that will keep you wondering who the bad person is, who has what motives, and how it will ultimately be resolved. With a multitude of perspectives, this novel explores themes of crime, trust, obedience, and jealousy.
The main character and namesake of the novel, Aiden, is an intriguing character. As a reader, you will never get a full idea of who he is and what his thoughts are actually like. We meet him shackled and ultimately not at home. Murray does very well in writing from the boy’s perspective; relatively easy words are used, which contribute to the feeling of an adolescent voice. As the only character written in first person perspective, we can always understand how Aiden is feeling and understand why he is acting the way he does. It furthermore makes one think about how isolated he is, confined to his mind and the thoughts that form his everyday experience. In accordance with his adolescence, the reader is able to experience his jealousy, fury, and sometimes even happiness thanks to the frank language and easy train of thought. Is Aiden a likable character? To be honest, no, but he is definitely an interesting one that I was wanting to find out more about throughout reading the novel.
Another person I would like to mention is a young woman called Monika. She lives with Aiden and takes care of him. Through her, the reader is able to meet a character that is morally grey and keeps raising the question as to why she would be taking part in this situation. As with the other perspectives in the book, her story is slowly unraveling, and that is exactly what will keep you reading. I was genuinely surprised by how well written her perspective is, since the author is male and I have been disappointed by many male authors who write female characters before. Even while the reader might see Monika in a critical light, she continues to be an interesting person, especially as the story develops and another female character is added. You will keep guessing and wondering how much of a choice she had or has to keep up the facades and her part in the plot. Overall, she has to be my favorite character in this book. I would have loved to learn even more about her.
As in his book The Trips, Murray uses an intriguing mix of flashbacks and storytelling to keep the reader on their toes. Every character seems to have secrets and their own agendas, especially the character of Peter. Since I do not want to spoil anything, let me just say this: I kept changing my mind about him. Murray wrote an excellent dark character in him; every time you almost feel sorry for this man, he will do something that opens another door to a life of crime. That is all I can say about it, and I hope more people will be able to follow in my footsteps of being confused and intrigued at the same time.
What really pulled me into the book is the exploration of what I would see as Stockholm Syndrome. Throughout the novel, Aiden is going through feelings of belonging and understanding, as well as anger at the situation. Building a family of people who did not choose to be together is, of course, a horrible crime, but it is nevertheless interesting to read about it. As someone who is very interested in crime and the psychology behind it, sentences like “You are now part of a small team, a close knit friendly group and we live in a big house in the country,” simply made me want to keep reading and finding out what would be happening in future chapters.
The only critical points I would like to raise are that, first of all, this story will obviously not appeal to everyone. It can be a confusing read at times, maybe even repulsive. Some descriptions of a sexual nature are quite detailed, and the language can also be crude at times. I can fully understand that this might be off-putting for some, and if you are one of these people, I would advise you to look for a different book.
In conclusion, I would say that this book is written for people who have an interest in the dark side, psychology, and the way people will react to confining situations. I definitely had a slow start with this, but I was flying through the last few chapters. The writing style is straight forward and clear while also keeping you on your toes for what is to come next. Once again, Murray wrote a novel that unexpectedly kept me reading and dreading the end of my lunch break. It is not a long read, but it will captivate anyone who is ready to dive into complex storytelling and multiple perspectives.
