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tintenfrisch's review against another edition
4.0
Not as good as the first part of the trilogy. but still a thought-provoking, interesting read (and I ship everybody)
lucy_clay's review against another edition
2.0
The second book of Pat Barker's 'Regeneration' trilogy was the most underwhelming of the three. Following on from the story of Billy Prior after his release from Craiglockheart, we follow him and Rivers to London where Prior is working in the Ministry of Munitions and Rivers is still tending to patients of the war. Whilst this book wasn't terrible in any way, I found that I had no investment in the story or characters, and was turning the pages more to finish it and move to something else rather than because I was interested in the story. A definite disappointment!
Prior, working in intelligence, experiences numerous conflicts and difficulties in the book, from his duty as a soldier to his homosexual relations. Struggling with a grasp of what is right and wrong, his time in London sends him into fits of panic and long periods where he forgets what he has been doing. He begins seeing Rivers again to understand the nature of his episodes. Dealing with the government's view of and response to traitors, spies and homosexuals in the war, The Eye in the Door is a good idea, but one that goes nowhere and feels both lacklustre and pointless.
One of the most interesting aspects of Regeneration had been the focus on Wilfred Owen, Siegfried Sassoon and Robert Graves, but these characters are merely peripheral (or unmentioned) in the Eye in the Door, meaning that the largest success of Regeneration is completely eradicated from the second book. Instead of creating new stories for these interesting and engaging characters, Barker filled their void with smaller plotlines that often went nowhere, leaving the reader confused with a sense that they were missing something important as they turned the final page.
An underwhelming follow-up to a brilliant first book.
Prior, working in intelligence, experiences numerous conflicts and difficulties in the book, from his duty as a soldier to his homosexual relations. Struggling with a grasp of what is right and wrong, his time in London sends him into fits of panic and long periods where he forgets what he has been doing. He begins seeing Rivers again to understand the nature of his episodes. Dealing with the government's view of and response to traitors, spies and homosexuals in the war, The Eye in the Door is a good idea, but one that goes nowhere and feels both lacklustre and pointless.
One of the most interesting aspects of Regeneration had been the focus on Wilfred Owen, Siegfried Sassoon and Robert Graves, but these characters are merely peripheral (or unmentioned) in the Eye in the Door, meaning that the largest success of Regeneration is completely eradicated from the second book. Instead of creating new stories for these interesting and engaging characters, Barker filled their void with smaller plotlines that often went nowhere, leaving the reader confused with a sense that they were missing something important as they turned the final page.
An underwhelming follow-up to a brilliant first book.
gloria_molina's review against another edition
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
pickelll's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
solidsilken's review against another edition
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
jackieeh's review against another edition
5.0
December 23, 2021:
Still just so, so good.
April 10, 2020:
Upgraded my rating from four stars to five upon rereading. A classic that more than stands the test of time. Do people experiencing history happening around them stand around and talk about it? Yes they do, Prior, six feet away from each other.
August 4, 2009:
Quite an improvement over the first book in the trilogy, Regeneration. The humor was suddenly funny, Sarah suddenly not only had a point, but was a sympathetic character, Prior suddenly had layers, Rivers continued to be pretty darn cool, and best of all each character had a distinct voice.
There were some moments when I worried that in making these improvements Barker would be disrupting the continuity of her story, but everything worked out in the end and even the personality shifts had an explanation that served the plot, not just the characterizations.
Still just so, so good.
April 10, 2020:
Upgraded my rating from four stars to five upon rereading. A classic that more than stands the test of time. Do people experiencing history happening around them stand around and talk about it? Yes they do, Prior, six feet away from each other.
August 4, 2009:
Quite an improvement over the first book in the trilogy, Regeneration. The humor was suddenly funny, Sarah suddenly not only had a point, but was a sympathetic character, Prior suddenly had layers, Rivers continued to be pretty darn cool, and best of all each character had a distinct voice.
There were some moments when I worried that in making these improvements Barker would be disrupting the continuity of her story, but everything worked out in the end and even the personality shifts had an explanation that served the plot, not just the characterizations.
fifo_86's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
ancientolive's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
nocto's review against another edition
3.0
This is the second part of a trilogy; I loved the first volume and put off reading this one for a few months because I didn't want to race through the books too fast and get burnt out (it's happened to me too many times before!).
Initially I loved this book just as much but as it went on I became confused, I missed matching up characters with their previous appearances in the book, and therefore began to put it down more which just made things worse. I definitely lost the plot somewhere!
I'll certainly read the third volume, and I'm not really sure what was wrong with this one, but I hope for a better experience next time
karna's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75