Reviews for The Horizontal Man

The average rating for The Horizontal Man based on 2 reviews is 3.5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2020-06-21 00:00:00 Raymond Seward �See how avidly we devour all accounts of crime, or detective stories!.... The pleasure of vicarious violence, and the pleasure at the detection and punishment of the crime of another. In the first we can enjoy the emotional outlet without undertaking the penalty, and in the second we can shiver deliciously with the knowledge that we cannot be found out, since our share in the business was secret, and of the mind.� Kevin Boyle, the handsome, young professor at the girl�s school Hollymount College, is found murdered in his apartment. Suspects include a lovesick student and several of his fellow professors. Trying to solve the case are the newspaper reporter Jack Donelly and student Kate Innes. But the case winds up being solved by a psychiatrist. This book was originally published in 1946 and won an Edgar Award. It feels very dated now, but might be of interest to people who really love 1940s entertainment. You know, the time when wisecracking young reporters and plucky gals met cute. After some sparring, true love ensues. The only wrinkle here is the number of times the author points out that the plucky gal is �dumpy�, or as the reporter refers to her, a �fat cookie�. The book held my interest, but it was really pretty strange. It felt like the author had taken a clinical psychology class in college and tried to work every chapter into her mystery. The book was a little hard to read because there were no chapter breaks, so you had no warning when the scene changed. I don�t know whether this is the way the author wrote the book or it is a defect in the ARC that I read. I just know that it was very jarring. The book held my interest but I don�t think that I will read more by this author. I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.

Review # 2 was written on 2020-07-27 00:00:00 David Bowling A really interesting campus satire / murder mystery / Freudian examination of the American psyche. The multiple points of view in the novel showcase the deep inner worlds of all the characters, and the academic satire was funny. And it was great to see how my perception of each character shifted as I got to live inside of their head - Eustis writes great characters with varied voices, motivations, and styles. But (not surprisingly for a book that's nearly 75 years old) the gender roles have really dated and the core psychological mechanisms are quite outdated. **Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.