Fiction

Double Blind

Double Blind

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  • Create Date：2021-07-12 07:51:04
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Edward St. Aubyn
  • ISBN：0374282196
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Summary

Double Blind follows three close friends and their circle through a year of extraordinary transformation。 Set between London， Cap d'Antibes， Big Sur， and a rewilded corner of Sussex， this thrilling， ambitious novel is about the headlong pursuit of knowledge—for the purposes of pleasure， revelation， money， sanity， or survival—and the consequences of fleeing from what we know about others and ourselves。

When Olivia meets a new lover just as she is welcoming her best friend， Lucy， back from New York， her dedicated academic life expands precipitously。 Her connection to Francis， a committed naturalist living off the grid， is immediate and startling。 Eager to involve Lucy in her joy， Olivia introduces the two—but Lucy has received shocking news of her own that binds the trio unusually close。 Over the months that follow， Lucy’s boss， Hunter， Olivia’s psychoanalyst parents， and a young man named Sebastian are pulled into the friends’ orbit， and not one of them will emerge unchanged。

Expansive， playful， and compassionate， Edward St。 Aubyn's Double Blind investigates themes of inheritance， determinism， freedom， consciousness， and the stories we tell about ourselves。 St。 Aubyn's major new novel is as compelling about ecology， psychoanalysis， genetics， and neuroscience as it is about love， fear， and courage。 Most of all， it is a perfect expression of the interconnections it sets out to examine， and a moving evocation of an imagined world that is deeply intelligent， often tender， curious， and very much alive。

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Reviews

Jeana ，

3。5 starsI found the beginning section slow and hard to follow the many characters， but things felt a lot better once Part Two began。 Overall， there’s not a ton going on but it has some interesting discussions on nature and conservation。 This would definitely not be for everyone but overall， I’m glad I read it。

Nancy Wellinger ，

Such a facile writer， St。 Aubyn is， but his brain is so full of musings on everything from the ruthlessness of capitalism to the causes of schizophrenia to the rewilding of the planet that I just wanted him to slow down and breathe。 The audio book， read by none other than Benedict Cumberbatch （who starred in St。 Aubyn's brilliant but woefully dark Patrick Melrose series）， contributed to the rat-a-tat-tat Sherlockian pacing。 Lots of interesting threads， but， alas， no tapestry woven。 Such a facile writer， St。 Aubyn is， but his brain is so full of musings on everything from the ruthlessness of capitalism to the causes of schizophrenia to the rewilding of the planet that I just wanted him to slow down and breathe。 The audio book， read by none other than Benedict Cumberbatch （who starred in St。 Aubyn's brilliant but woefully dark Patrick Melrose series）， contributed to the rat-a-tat-tat Sherlockian pacing。 Lots of interesting threads， but， alas， no tapestry woven。 。。。more

False ，

Nicely written， quite amusing， but eventually it's superficial froth。 I heard the author on the radio promise that it treats the subject of consciousness - well it does in some passing remarks in dialogue， but any philosophy ends there。 I was disappointed。A few years ago， someone mentioned St。 Aubyn in passing， and I made a note to read his Patrick Melrose novels。 In the meantime， the books were turned into a television series， which was depressing enough， but the books could send you over the e Nicely written， quite amusing， but eventually it's superficial froth。 I heard the author on the radio promise that it treats the subject of consciousness - well it does in some passing remarks in dialogue， but any philosophy ends there。 I was disappointed。A few years ago， someone mentioned St。 Aubyn in passing， and I made a note to read his Patrick Melrose novels。 In the meantime， the books were turned into a television series， which was depressing enough， but the books could send you over the edge in contemplating dysfunctional family dynamics--and the damage done。I felt compelled to read this latest work， and while it is well written， occasionally amusing， eventually it's foamy froth and all of his creator's tricks fall flat。 I found the plot convoluted jumping from points A to B to C， and then back and forth through the personal histories。 The lectures on science， which is how they read， and the medical field， and I grew bored early on。 Bottom line？ As much as I can see the skill， I don't necessarily like what he's saying。 What I did like？ The dustjacket art。 。。。more

Emily ，

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this advanced copy。 I did not like this book at all。 It was way too much， way too dense， and I was bored to tears。

Jess ，

I listened to this on Libby because Benedict Cumberbatch narrates it。 He did a fantastic job， but this book is preachy and all over the place。 I can appreciate the author trying to shine a light on major societal issues， but choose a focus。 Also， billionaires will not be the saviors of the universe。

Alin Cristian ，

Exquisite entertainment grafted with unmatched subtlety on vigorous intellectual stimulation。 The book flies high， juggling state-of-the-art theories on the shaky--not to say wildly shaken--bridge between humanities and natural sciences。 It so defiantly brushes aside the crowd-pleasing requirements imposed nowadays upon literature that I fear for its commercial success。 For sure， though， a count of the copies sold will provide a very accurate measurement of the cultural sophistication the Englis Exquisite entertainment grafted with unmatched subtlety on vigorous intellectual stimulation。 The book flies high， juggling state-of-the-art theories on the shaky--not to say wildly shaken--bridge between humanities and natural sciences。 It so defiantly brushes aside the crowd-pleasing requirements imposed nowadays upon literature that I fear for its commercial success。 For sure， though， a count of the copies sold will provide a very accurate measurement of the cultural sophistication the English-speaking public has presently reached。 Warmest thanks to Rupert Sheldrake for having recommended this gem！ I wish I could get to know personally all the novel's fans; anyway， they could use their copy of it as valid passport to my République des Lettres， as the French say。 To ask if there's going to be a sequel to it， as with the Patrick Melrose novels， is a bit like asking， with Tina Turner， if there's still life after love。。。 。。。more

Steve Betz ，

St。 Aubyn turns his scrutiny of the well-to-do from the English aristocrats of Patrick Melrose to something a little closer to home for me: scientists， naturalists， tech workers， and the people that fund them。Double Blind follows the intersecting stories of two friends， Lucy and Olivia， and the men in their lives。 Olivia falls for a naturalist working to head off environmental disaster， while Lucy ends up working for a Silicon Valley titan who has his fingers in every sort of scientific pot （thi St。 Aubyn turns his scrutiny of the well-to-do from the English aristocrats of Patrick Melrose to something a little closer to home for me: scientists， naturalists， tech workers， and the people that fund them。Double Blind follows the intersecting stories of two friends， Lucy and Olivia， and the men in their lives。 Olivia falls for a naturalist working to head off environmental disaster， while Lucy ends up working for a Silicon Valley titan who has his fingers in every sort of scientific pot （think Elon Musk， but a little less crazy）。 With a sort of deadpan delivery， St。 Aubyn makes it clear that we're all royally f****d， but that doesn't stop the idealism of both the earnest and the ultra-wealthy。In medicine， if a clinical trial is "double blind" it means neither the clinician nor the patient know if they've received the treatment or a placebo -- essentially moving forward without knowing what's going on behind the scenes -- and there are elements of that idea threaded through the events of this novel。The book itself is worth reading for its prose and I found myself hoping that it had gone on a little longer and had a little more of a defined climax， but maybe that was part of the point here。 。。。more

Heidi Larson ，

Benedict Cumberbatch narrated this 。。 I was convinced that it would be epic。 I just never got it。 Maybe I shouldn't have listened to it at 2x speed。 Benedict Cumberbatch narrated this 。。 I was convinced that it would be epic。 I just never got it。 Maybe I shouldn't have listened to it at 2x speed。 。。。more

Joy ，

I loved this novel because it was witty， clever， modern and insightful。 It sidestepped the mediocre life and had interesting ideas and explored so many subjects with intelligence。 The end was beautiful too。 I read it twice！

Gabrielle Jarrett ，

Meh。 My first St。 Aubyn。 I will try another。 The one paragraph that spread to nine and a half pages should have been my first clue that the novel was not my cuppa。 I generally prefer narrative and inner processes to dialogue， but not in Double Blind。 When the author or rather， one of the protagonists is not on cocaine or another on mushrooms， the pace slowed to readable。 There are a few compelling characters， but unfortunately not enough to offset the vainglory and weak ones。

Caroline Zapert ，

Double Blind felt like a cruel tease。 If any other author had left me high and dry like this the star rating would absolutely not be so forgiving。 It's almost as if Edward St。 Aubyn did himself a disservice by carrying the weight of having published the masterpieces that are the Patrick Melrose novels – he set a literary bar so high that our friends in Double Blind failed to reach it even on their tippy toes。 With roots in linguistic genius that make even the mundane worth pondering – 'Outside， Double Blind felt like a cruel tease。 If any other author had left me high and dry like this the star rating would absolutely not be so forgiving。 It's almost as if Edward St。 Aubyn did himself a disservice by carrying the weight of having published the masterpieces that are the Patrick Melrose novels – he set a literary bar so high that our friends in Double Blind failed to reach it even on their tippy toes。 With roots in linguistic genius that make even the mundane worth pondering – 'Outside， a thin veil of cloud bruised the sunlight' （I mean， come on） – St。 Aubyn could write a captivating eviction notice。 Regrettably， though， the main issue I have with Double Blind is that in order to flesh out all of the major issues raised， the book would need to be at least twice as long。 Each character is intimately tied to their own theme: （view spoiler）[ Francis and global climate change， Olivia and her generational trauma， Lucy and the obvious devastation of a brain tumor diagnosis， Hunter's megalomanic tendencies， science research versus the Catholic church。。。 （hide spoiler）] We won't even mention Sebastian， who could narrate a book on his own with no complaints from me。 The point is that a nibble of every subject in Double Blind did not come close to satisfying my hunger for new St。 Aubyn。 He is certainly still deserving of whatever pedestal on which he currently stands， but where's the rest of the book？ 。。。more

Carolyn Drake ，

Stylish and ambitious， this Edward St Aubyn novel is an expansive exploration of ideas， wrapped around a set of characters seen through the barbed viewpoint of the author。 Themes of nature， capitalism， ecology and genetics are examined， and the book occasionally falls into the trap of sounding like a lecture。 The characters are dislikable but enjoyable for their skewered flaws: an amoral tech guy; his new employee who discovers she has a brain tumour， a schizophrenic who is being seen by her pys Stylish and ambitious， this Edward St Aubyn novel is an expansive exploration of ideas， wrapped around a set of characters seen through the barbed viewpoint of the author。 Themes of nature， capitalism， ecology and genetics are examined， and the book occasionally falls into the trap of sounding like a lecture。 The characters are dislikable but enjoyable for their skewered flaws: an amoral tech guy; his new employee who discovers she has a brain tumour， a schizophrenic who is being seen by her pyschoanalyst father， and a re-wilding gardener who is being doggedly pursued by a naked suitor called Hope。 We are dropped into their lives and plucked out again abruptly at the end of the novel， ultimately making Double Blind an interesting， but infuriating ride。 。。。more

Jennifer Elliott ，

Less a meditation on several themes such as wealth， technology， friendship， and the science and psychology of health than a story with a linear time line， this is an intriguing and thought provoking read。 It follows Olivia and her friend Lucy， who have been University pals， as Lucy leaves her previous life in the US to take a position with Hunter Stirling， an American investor who is looking for people who may assist with his voracious search for new business ideas。 He lives a fabulous lifestyle Less a meditation on several themes such as wealth， technology， friendship， and the science and psychology of health than a story with a linear time line， this is an intriguing and thought provoking read。 It follows Olivia and her friend Lucy， who have been University pals， as Lucy leaves her previous life in the US to take a position with Hunter Stirling， an American investor who is looking for people who may assist with his voracious search for new business ideas。 He lives a fabulous lifestyle， assisted by Saul who enables deals for Hunter and whose aim is to make enough to leave Hunter but who enjoys all the drugs and the lifestyle along the way。 Jade is another person aiming to get the most from Hunter。 There are many stereotypes in the tale， making it quite absurd at times。 Fa Gerard is an example， he is written as a foolish naive priest。I enjoyed the read as I have all his books。 I love his creative thinking process and his characters。 The sudden ending of the story on a positive note， with Sebastian ' meeting' his twin sister was a positive one， but many other strands were left up in the air。 As I said， a meditation not a standard story， nothing new there。 。。。more

Lissa ，

3。5⭐️

Anthony Crupi ，

Sooner or later， every St。 Aubyn enthusiast must come to grips with the fact that we've seen the last of Patrick Melrose。 Once that necessary adjustment has been made， we may allow ourselves to admit that the subsequent novels are fascinating hybrids of dissertation and freeform narrative that don't entirely cohere but are still synapse-crackling reads。 Double Blind is so overstuffed with dense passages about neuroscience and determinism， it's as if St。 Aubyn found himself unable to leave out a Sooner or later， every St。 Aubyn enthusiast must come to grips with the fact that we've seen the last of Patrick Melrose。 Once that necessary adjustment has been made， we may allow ourselves to admit that the subsequent novels are fascinating hybrids of dissertation and freeform narrative that don't entirely cohere but are still synapse-crackling reads。 Double Blind is so overstuffed with dense passages about neuroscience and determinism， it's as if St。 Aubyn found himself unable to leave out a crumb of research as he was pulling together his notes for the book。 Yes， no one speaks like this， but plenty think like this， presumably， and no matter how manic， cracked or just plain fucked the glob of electrified pâté， the language produced is always worth looking into once it's been processed by this writer。PS: For a guy who stopped doing hard drugs 33 years ago， St。 Aubyn renders the particulars of narcotics intoxication as if he's been continuously high since The Breakfast Club came out。 。。。more

Max Kondziolka ，

Best book of 2021。 It starts and ends here。

Priscilla ，

I was enjoying this book so much--terrific story， familiar locations， intriguing characters， snappy dialogue， and wonderful prose--and then it just quit。 It didn't end; it quit。 It's as if St。 Aubyn got to the end of a chapter， decided it was long enough， and turned it in。 He is one of my favorite authors， so I hope this is just a hiccup。 Maybe there's a second volume？ It's one thing to be sorry that a book is over and quite another to be deprived on an ending。 Very unsatisfactory。 I was enjoying this book so much--terrific story， familiar locations， intriguing characters， snappy dialogue， and wonderful prose--and then it just quit。 It didn't end; it quit。 It's as if St。 Aubyn got to the end of a chapter， decided it was long enough， and turned it in。 He is one of my favorite authors， so I hope this is just a hiccup。 Maybe there's a second volume？ It's one thing to be sorry that a book is over and quite another to be deprived on an ending。 Very unsatisfactory。 。。。more

Tom O’Leary ，

This fast-paced galloping novel is an absolute joy to read。 Packed with more scientific fact than I have ever allowed into my brain previously， these characters are so blazingly bright and beautiful and a pleasure to spend time with。 This is my first encounter with Edward St。 Aubyn but it will not be my last。 Perfection。

Leslie Ann ，

Not many of the narrative arcs are resolved by the end， but I enjoyed the ride because of the accurate description of cellular biology and sometimes sublime prose （narrated by the brilliant Benedict Cumberbatch）。 I also liked the shout-outs to Filipino nurses and Siddhartha Mukherjee。 Not many of the narrative arcs are resolved by the end， but I enjoyed the ride because of the accurate description of cellular biology and sometimes sublime prose （narrated by the brilliant Benedict Cumberbatch）。 I also liked the shout-outs to Filipino nurses and Siddhartha Mukherjee。 。。。more

Rachel ，

I have the Patrick Melrose novels on my radar， filed under ‘things I must get around to at some point， subtype modern classic’。 The fact that – going entirely by the zeitgeist – they’re a set of books about a Horrible Man that possibly romanticize drug addiction， means I’m in no hurry to move them out of a theoretical TBR。 My friend loaned me this book， which again， I probably wouldn’t bother with unless I’d already been blown away by Melrose。 'Double Blind' left me distinctly underwhelmed and e I have the Patrick Melrose novels on my radar， filed under ‘things I must get around to at some point， subtype modern classic’。 The fact that – going entirely by the zeitgeist – they’re a set of books about a Horrible Man that possibly romanticize drug addiction， means I’m in no hurry to move them out of a theoretical TBR。 My friend loaned me this book， which again， I probably wouldn’t bother with unless I’d already been blown away by Melrose。 'Double Blind' left me distinctly underwhelmed and even less keen to tackle that series。This is fundamentally a Thunberg-esque polemic， couched in the not-very-committed format of a novel about two friends – Lucy and Olivia – and their boyfriends。 Francis is a schroom-obsessed rewilding expert， and Hunter is a thinly disguised Elon Musk who hires Lucy and then starts dating her， which is extremely cool and normal and not at all exploitative， especially not in the context of （view spoiler）[her newly diagnosed life-limiting brain tumour。 （hide spoiler）] The fact that Lucy and Olivia， and to an extent the two men， have backgrounds in science， is used as a fragile excuse to dump a lot of explanatory finger-wagging into this ‘novel’。 It’s not that I’m against any of the issues St Aubyn is so riled about。 I too am in favour of rewilding， and not in favour of the replication crisis or the basic nature of scientific research and medical philosophy。 However， to get these topics out there in the way St Aubyn appears to want， he’s going to have to do what all literary fiction writers dread， and make his work ‘accessible’。 There’s no point writing a call to arms that no one reads because the writing is dense， the characters thin， and the plot non-existant。“It was amazing that a journal which stood for the highest standards of scientific rigour would publish such an incompetently devious sentence。 A more honest version would have been， ‘After decades of research， we’ve found almost nothing， but we’ve devoted our careers to this fruitless field， so please give us more money。’”Is he suggesting that a prerequisite of honest science involves precognition？ Because otherwise how could you tell from the start whether an area of research would be fruitful or fruitless？ It’s a bit like to figure that out you need to … do … research …？There’s also some other concerning stuff in the bedrock of the novel， like the happy servants who are frequently referred to but never have names or exist except to show what great employers all these mega-rich capitalists are。“[…] two gatehouses occupied by some of the adorable staff of whom it could truly be said that they were part of the family。”“[The radiology staff] were all very friendly and upbeat， dressed as if they were about to go out running， in sportswear and trainers， even though they spend most of their days filling in forms and pressing buttons。”God forbid that you wear comfortable clothes at work， or that these same clothes are marketed in ways that directly contravene their use in reality。 GOD。 FORBID。“ ‘I know you were just showing due diligence。’ He wanted to say ‘absurd pedantry’， but managed to swerve at the last moment。”This from a man collecting Class A benzodiazepines for a woman he’s just met， about the pharmacist expressing concern at how this is a bit irregular。 Fuck you， Francis， it’s absurd pedantry until someone starts selling the Xanax on the street and the pharmacist is arrested for supplying the black market。Then there's St Aubyn’s barely-concealed Elon Musk fanboy status。“ ‘The plane lands at Farnborough at seven a。m。 – isn’t it strange the way people more often say ‘my plane lands’ when they’ve rented a seat on a commercial flight and more often say ‘the plane lands’ when they own it？’”KILL。 ME。“ ‘The government says it’s pro-business， but when it comes to the secrets of life， capitalism is left begging on the sidewalk outside the party。’‘Especially when it gets daily results from a three-billion-dollar， publicly funded research programme while only publishing its own results once a year，’ said Hunter。’”This is such an irredeemably weird thing to put in the mouth of your Elon Musk analogue。 But then， it’s clear that St Aubyn buys into the ‘billionaires will save us all’ bullshit hook line and sinker。 Francis is seduced into helping Big Corp ‘rewild’ the Amazon and countering Elon/Hunter’s rampant capitalism with a few bees。 And check out this paean to white knightism:“Listen， William， ever since I heard a Google exec say， ‘It is our intention to manage the knowledge of the world，’ I’ve been longing to clip their wings。 That’s far too great a weight for a single corporation to take on。 Although you would clearly be a liability to any organisation that employed you， I can’t just pick up a rusty nail file from the pavement when I clip those giant wings， I’m going to need a chainsaw。”Far too great a weight for a single corporation， but not a single man？ Did a snake write this？ Also， because I think I’m supposed to read this as a victory for Lucy via Hunter， who takes down her old adversary for her， rather than a troubling case of Billionaire Fix-It， I suppose I’m meant to forget that this man is wildly successful at everything he’s done up until now。 ‘A liability to any organisation’ is textually incorrect given what St Aubyn himself told us about Moorhead until two seconds before this exchange。 It reminds me of this passage earlier on， also about Moorhead:“Despite her contempt for him， Olivia’s objective had never been to lodge a complaint， but to defeat him in his own field […]”That’s a choice。 Also， his professional defeat would not ‘fix’ his sexual harassing tendencies， so how could that be considered a personal victory for Olivia？“Jim and Hope were old antagonists in the uncivil war between liberal and conservative values that unfolded even at this high altitude of American society， but the basic solidarity of being rich meant that they could still have lunch together […]”This is indeed St Aubyn presenting a gun-toting Republican as a good guy because he wants to rewild his property in order to have more living things on it to shoot and kill。 Thanks， I hate it。There’s a few funny lines:“How an opaque giant like Complexity was supposed to sit comfortably on Occam’s Razor was another question。”“ ‘Some people even think that Blake may have written ‘The Tyger’ uder the influence of his cat’s toxoplasma。’‘Really？’ said Olivia。 ‘It’s amazing there isn’t more visionary poetry， given the number of people who own cats。”’However， he’s cripplingly awful at writing dialogue。“I felt they were all keen to get to their spinning classes， or to have a drink in the Queen’s Pantry， the pub on the corner of the square， named after the building where Queen Charlotte kept special provisions for George III when he was mad with porphyria。”Would you believe me if I told you this is a piece of dialogue， which St Aubyn is claiming came out of someone’s mouth？ Even for the sake of the bees， I could not like this book。 。。。more

Rebecca Davies ，

Challenging This novel is hard to rate。 It’s complicated in the writing， the subject matter is near term science fiction， but it certainly makes you think and I suspect will stick in my mind。 Quite different from other novels of this writer。

Masha Gurova ，

Disappointing to be honest。 As much as I love Patrick Melrose books and I really wanted to like this one， I had to drag myself through the non existing plot and bleak characters。 Meh

Ian ，

The discussion of science and dualities is great。 The plot is weak and unconvincing。 But very much worth the read and I enjoyed it 。 Felt a bit cheated at the end - all very unresolved。 Anyone who has any interest in the "science" of genetics， the process of capitalism and how it effects us and our mental and physical health will probably find much of this book very entertaining。 I certainly did and whilst it might have its shortcomings as a novel is is an interesting format for such a discussio The discussion of science and dualities is great。 The plot is weak and unconvincing。 But very much worth the read and I enjoyed it 。 Felt a bit cheated at the end - all very unresolved。 Anyone who has any interest in the "science" of genetics， the process of capitalism and how it effects us and our mental and physical health will probably find much of this book very entertaining。 I certainly did and whilst it might have its shortcomings as a novel is is an interesting format for such a discussion。 。。。more

Katie ，

3。5 Intelligent， unusual writing about many subjects I find deeply interesting， but ultimately the story is lacking some necessary cohesion which keeps the novel from being as good as it should be。

Victoria Kline ，

Although I sometimes missed the black humor of the Melrose novels， I was intrigued by St。 Aubyn's new found compassion especially as he describes the problems facing the two female character， Olivia and Lucy。 As for the male characters， St。 Aubyn seems overly intent on showing us how intelligent he is by allowing several of the male characters to drone on about altered and elevated states of consciousness theoretically possible through hypothetical technology。 Despite this flaw St。 Aubyn is so Although I sometimes missed the black humor of the Melrose novels， I was intrigued by St。 Aubyn's new found compassion especially as he describes the problems facing the two female character， Olivia and Lucy。 As for the male characters， St。 Aubyn seems overly intent on showing us how intelligent he is by allowing several of the male characters to drone on about altered and elevated states of consciousness theoretically possible through hypothetical technology。 Despite this flaw St。 Aubyn is so observant about psychological states and moral dilemmas that the novel is a gem for anyone wanting serious entertainment rather than mindless escapism。 A brilliant set piece at the end of the book concerning a schizophrenic waiter is worth the price of admission。 。。。more

Brian Hanson ，

I am not usually a great fan of novels which close with every single character paused at a fork in the road， with no resolutions in sight。 This one - despite such an ending - I loved。 No one is better than St Aubyn at the comic set piece。 Few still believe as firmly as he does in the novel of ideas （I was reminded of Aldous Huxley's 1920s output）。 It's hardly surprising that the author of the Patrick Melrose novels is haunted by questions of heredity。 If you are left wondering what to take away I am not usually a great fan of novels which close with every single character paused at a fork in the road， with no resolutions in sight。 This one - despite such an ending - I loved。 No one is better than St Aubyn at the comic set piece。 Few still believe as firmly as he does in the novel of ideas （I was reminded of Aldous Huxley's 1920s output）。 It's hardly surprising that the author of the Patrick Melrose novels is haunted by questions of heredity。 If you are left wondering what to take away from this book （as I was for a few hours） it is helpful to reflect on the title and on the two characters on which the novel closes。 。。。more

Trudy ，

It’s no surprise that one of the authors St Aubyn admires is James Joyce， although reading this book has brought me one step closer to wanting to try reading Ulysses again。 It delves into ecology， psychoanalysis and genetics， loyalty， courage， ethics， and more。 So it’s a very dense book。 What makes it accessible， in spite of the fact that there was much I couldn’t follow， was the writing。 While I enjoyed the book， I felt that there was a lot that eluded me， and even though I admire the mind that It’s no surprise that one of the authors St Aubyn admires is James Joyce， although reading this book has brought me one step closer to wanting to try reading Ulysses again。 It delves into ecology， psychoanalysis and genetics， loyalty， courage， ethics， and more。 So it’s a very dense book。 What makes it accessible， in spite of the fact that there was much I couldn’t follow， was the writing。 While I enjoyed the book， I felt that there was a lot that eluded me， and even though I admire the mind that could conceive and communicate all of this， my enjoyment was compromised by my inability to understand。 This leads to the problem of assigning stars。 To give it less than 5 acknowledges my inadequacy。 To give it 5 doesn’t represent my engagement with the book。 I’m not going to assign stars， I’m simply going to say the book is brilliant。 。。。more

Nicole Hanson ，

I didn’t get it… I listened to the audio version， and just didn’t really understand the themes。 I mean—it felt like there were so many sub-plots that went unresolved and I didn’t really see the purpose of them in the first place。 It was very disjointed with extreme themes—a severe medical diagnosis， adoption trauma， religious identity， fantastical seduction… it was all just so over-the-top without a resolution or even a way to tie everything together besides the fact that all the characters end I didn’t get it… I listened to the audio version， and just didn’t really understand the themes。 I mean—it felt like there were so many sub-plots that went unresolved and I didn’t really see the purpose of them in the first place。 It was very disjointed with extreme themes—a severe medical diagnosis， adoption trauma， religious identity， fantastical seduction… it was all just so over-the-top without a resolution or even a way to tie everything together besides the fact that all the characters end up at the same party eventually。 Maybe reading it would give a different experience。 But skip the audio for sure。 Also Benedict Cumberbatch’s American accent is not my favorite。 。。。more

Annarella ，

First thing first: the style of writing is amazing and the characters are interesting。 Unfortunately I felt like the plot was a bit disjointed and I lose interest in the second half of the book。I want to read the Patrick Melrose novel but this one is not my cup of tea。Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC， all opinions are mine

Lisa ，

I was going to rate this novel another star but I think that was my bias because I loved the Patrick Melrose series so much。 Honestly two stars is more fair for this volume。 The storyline of Sebastian as he struggled with schizophrenia was promising and the book could have been so much more had it been followed through， particularly as it related to another character （withheld to protect spoilers）。 But instead of creating a narrative that followed the characters， the author wrote mini essays abo I was going to rate this novel another star but I think that was my bias because I loved the Patrick Melrose series so much。 Honestly two stars is more fair for this volume。 The storyline of Sebastian as he struggled with schizophrenia was promising and the book could have been so much more had it been followed through， particularly as it related to another character （withheld to protect spoilers）。 But instead of creating a narrative that followed the characters， the author wrote mini essays about all the sciences - neuroscience， ecology， botany， entomology， cosmology… - for no reason。 I’m impressed that he could research so many topics but the material was presented as internalized monologues and detracted from the too many storylines。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Double Blind

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Double Blind&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Double Blind&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0