Our reviews of
Mistaken by Neil Jordan
Genre
Literary Fiction (View all)
Synopsis:
'I had been mistaken for him so many times that when he died it was as if part of myself had died too.'Kevin Thunder grew up with a double - a boy so uncannily like him that they were mistaken for each other at every turn. As children in 1960s Dublin, one lived next to Bram Stoker's house, haunted by an imagined Dracula, the other in the more refined spaces of Palmerston Park. Though divided, like the city itself, by background and class, they shared the same smell, the same looks, and perhaps, as he comes to realize, the same soul. They exchange identities when it suits them, as their lives take them to England and America, and find that taking on another's personality can lead to darker places than either had imagined. Neil Jordan's long-awaited new novel is an extraordinary achievement - a comedy of manners at the same time as a Gothic tragedy, a thriller and an elegy. It offers imaginative entertainment of the highest order.
Ann's Review
Reviewed: April / May 2011
Set in Ireland in the 1960s, this is the story of two boys from very different backgrounds and class who experience odd instances where they are recognized by unknown people and falsely accused of misdeeds. A chance meeting reveals they are doppelgangers, which solves the mystery and opens the door for an exchange of identities as a lark. Their reluctant attraction seems macabre and their role reversals out of control, culminating in a shocking event. Dublin is faultlessly drawn and the lesser characters have a wonderful depth. This is a well rounded compelling read, and if you love Ireland as I do, it’s even more enjoyable.