Review : The Farm by Tom Rob Smith
The Farm by Tom Rob Smith
Pages : 352
Genre : Mystery
Stand alone
My Rating : 4/5
About the Book :
Daniel believed that his parents were enjoying a peaceful retirement on a remote farm in Sweden. But with a single phone call, everything changes.
Your mother…she’s not well, his father tells him. She’s been imagining things – terrible, terrible things. She’s had a psychotic breakdown, and been committed to a mental hospital.
Before Daniel can board a plane to Sweden, his mother calls: Everything that man has told you is a lie. I’m not mad… I need the police… Meet me at Heathrow.
Caught between his parents, and unsure of who to believe or trust, Daniel becomes his mother’s unwilling judge and jury as she tells him an urgent tale of secrets, of lies, of a crime and a conspiracy that implicates his own father.
My Thoughts :
I am surprised – and honestly, a little disappointed – that this book didn’t receive more attention. I didn’t know much going into it. I have never read the author’s better know series, though I had heard plenty of good things of the first book, Child 44. So I went in almost blind, and maybe that’s why I enjoyed it so much.
What I felt the most as I read The Farm was uncertainty. I didn’t know whether to believe Daniel’s mother or not; her discourse is vague yet weirdly precise, and her proofs are less than convincing. I never knew what to think of her, yet her paranoia got to me too, enough to doubt Daniel’s father too. Like the main character, I had no idea what to believe.
The mystery itself is slowly, meticulously crafted. The clues are there but it’s subtle, and the predictable and unpredictable elements of the story support each other really well, making it a difficult guessing game for the reader. There’s sort of a dual narration, too, with Daniel leaving space for his mother’s story. That, in itself, was very interesting; dialogue with her was narrated through him, but her personal story was separated, sometimes in weird places. I’ve never seen it done quite like this, and it worked to great effect.
Much of the story is almost narrated in real time; we’re in the room with Daniel and his mom, listening to her story (I feel this would be a great book to try on audio, maybe), feeling annoyance at the interrupting calls, and there’s a definite sense of urgency compelling us to turn the pages. And yet, nothing really happens until very far into the novel. It’s a psychological thriller, no doubt about it!
I also appreciated how the secrecy aspect played into the story. The fact that the narrator has his own secret (he’s gay and living with his longtime boyfriend) only adds to our uncertainty. I kept wondering “is there something he isn’t telling us? what else do we not know?”
I think it’s safe to say I really enjoyed this one. I hope it finds a larger public, because I think it strays just enough from the regular psychological thriller to offer something different to most readers. The author also did a great job of capturing Sweden and the weird atmosphere their mystery novels have; and I, happily, am left wanting more!
This does sound intriguing! Just the synopsis reels you in and makes you want to find out more. Thanks for putting this one on my radar!
The synopsis is what got me reading it too! I’m really glad I gave it a try. I really wish I could have listened to it though, I feel like it would have been a great book to do so!
Isn’t it funny how some great books go virtually unnoticed? I really liked Child 44 and look forward to reading this.
Yes, and I like to take the opportunity to point out books I greatly enjoyed that other might have missed! I’ve discovered many books thanks to bloggers who did the same.
I hope you enjoy this one; I plan on reading Child 44 too!