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“Whatever else we may
think is going on when we read, we are choosing to spend time in an author’s
company. In Javier Marías’s case this is a good decision; his mind is
insightful, witty, sometimes startling, sometimes hilarious, and always
intelligent…The masterly Spanish novelist [has] a penetrating empathy.”
— New York Times Book Review
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“A haunting masterpiece…The lasting challenge to literature is to achieve a satisfying marriage between high art and the low drives of a simple plot. The Infatuations is just such a novel.”
— Observer (London)
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“Uniquely luminous…Like
Beethoven, Marías is a brilliant escape artist…But Marías is original; he
cannot help it.”
— Times Literary Supplement (London)
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“What lingers in the
reader’s mind is not the murder mystery, compelling though it is. Rather, it is
the author’s examination of the ebb and flow of flawed relationships; the
chances that bring us together and the fates (in this case, murderous intent)
that pull us apart.”
— Finacial Times (London)
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“Extraordinary…[A] masterly novel…The classical themes of love, death, and fate are explored with elegant intelligence by Marías in what is perhaps his best novel so far…Marías has defined the ethos of our time.”
— Guardian (London)
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“Marías [is] a consummate stylist…The cadences of his exquisite sentences are preserved in translator Costa’s English, the clauses balanced like a loaded scale…It is magic, stupendous, and not done for effect.”
— Booklist (starred review)
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“Blindingly intelligent, engagingly accessible—it seems there’s nothing Marías can’t make fiction do. No wonder he’s perennially mentioned as a potential Nobel laureate…Marías’ rare gift is his ability to make intellectual jousting as suspenseful as the chase scenes in a commercial thriller. He’s tremendously stimulating to read; arresting turns of phrase enfold piercing insights.”
— Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
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“The Infatuations is
mysterious and seductive; it’s got deception, it’s got love affairs, it’s got
murder…Sheerly addictive.”
— NPR
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“Haunting…Evokes verbal puzzle makers like Borges, and Marías’
ingenious chessboard plots bring to mind the twentieth century’s grand-master
strategist, Vladimir Nabokov.”
— Los Angeles Times
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“An arresting story of love and crime.”
— San Francisco Chronicle
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“Marías has created a splendid tour de force…A luminous
performance.”
— Wichita Eagle
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“Marías’
novel weaves an intricate web…for one of his finest novels.”
— Los Angeles Review of Books
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“Javier Marías is a master of first lines. He’s a master of
other things as well …All Marías’ books feel like chapters in one much longer
book. And it’s one you should start reading, if you haven’t already.”
— Slate
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“The unspoken romance at the heart of Marías’ work is the
recuperation of old-fashioned adventure within perfectly serious, cerebral
contemporary fiction.”
— Daily Beast
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“Great art often emerges from breaking, or at least tweaking,
rules. A work that transcends its conventions can produce special results.
Here’s such a book…The Infatuations
takes you where very few novels do.”
— Paste.com
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“Beyond the interesting ideas his work draws on, Marías’
novels are simply a pleasure to read…The
Infatuations, containing the qualities of Marías’ best work, is an
important addition to his oeuvre.”
— The Millions.com
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“The natural pacing so
effortlessly applied by performer Justine Eyre lends this novel a tone of easy
storytelling that lulls one into book-listening bliss. Her soft, intimate tones
enhance the feeling of being read a tender, suspenseful tale, an approach that
contrasts sharply with Marias’ dark and mesmerizing saga but works well. The
author’s graceful prose and fluid cadences engross the listener.”
— AudioFile