Fall

by Colin McAdam

Two things: I like like stories that feature multiple points of view. I dislike unreliable narrators. This novel has both.

Noel and Julius are roommates during their senior year at St Ebury, an exclusive prep school in Canada. Julius has it all: good looks, athleticism, charm, wealth, and, of course, a gorgeous girlfriend. Fall (Fallon) is perfect, and Noel seems a bit jealous. Noel is a strange bird, to say the least. When it comes to Julius and Fall, Noel is oddly obsessive and possessive.

When Fall disappears midway through the school year, the roommates are torn apart. The novel then transitions from a school story to a sort of mystery. What happened to Fall? We'll never know because it is never revealed to the reader.

In addition to unanswered questions, the reader is plagued by totally annoying narration. Noel tells the story from the POV of a 30-year-old. He is looking back on the events. Julius tells his story in the present, and he uses a technique that I loathe--stream of consciousness.

So, in the end, I can't quite recommend the novel. The disparate narration styles and ultimately unsatisfying plot overwhelm any of the novel's good points.

8/3/10