Fiction

Lapvona: A Novel

Lapvona: A Novel

  • Downloads：4517
  • Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
  • Create Date：2022-07-30 09:52:04
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Ottessa Moshfegh
  • ISBN：0593492951
  • Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary

In a village in a medieval fiefdom buffeted by natural disasters， a motherless shepherd boy finds himself the unlikely pivot of a power struggle that puts all manner of faith to a savage test， in a spellbinding novel that represents Ottessa Moshfegh’s most exciting leap yet

Little Marek， the abused and delusional son of the village shepherd， never knew his mother; his father told him she died in childbirth。 One of life’s few consolations for Marek is his enduring bond with the blind village midwife， Ina， who suckled him as a baby， as she did so many of the village’s children。 Ina’s gifts extend beyond childcare: she possesses a unique ability to communicate with the natural world。 Her gift often brings her the transmission of sacred knowledge on levels far beyond those available to other villagers， however religious they might be。 For some people， Ina’s home in the woods outside of the village is a place to fear and to avoid， a godless place。

Among their number is Father Barnabas， the town priest and lackey for the depraved lord and governor， Villiam， whose hilltop manor contains a secret embarrassment of riches。 The people’s desperate need to believe that there are powers that be who have their best interests at heart is put to a cruel test by Villiam and the priest， especially in this year of record drought and famine。 But when fate brings Marek into violent proximity to the lord’s family， new and occult forces upset the old order。 By year’s end， the veil between blindness and sight， life and death， the natural world and the spirit world， civility and savagery， will prove to be very thin indeed。

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Reviews

Ellie ，

Pour me a glass of whole milk

Amy ，

Rounding up， but this was so fucking bonkers I just can't get over it。 Rounding up， but this was so fucking bonkers I just can't get over it。 。。。more

Kata ，

it’s more like 3，5 stars。 i really enjoyed some parts， whereas other parts lulled me to sleep。

Chloe ，

Weird。 Every person in this story is terrible in a different way。

Alexis Outlaw ，

I mean Ari Aster would literally have a FIELD day making this shit into a movie。 That being said， like I loved it？ But I also feel like I need to go to church and/or go to therapy after reading it？ I think I really tend to lean towards books that there’s not necessarily a plot， but rather a profound analysis/storytelling aspect of a book that just focuses on the minds and lives of the people in the town of Lapvona。 I mean I would read another book that took place in the same town。 It’s also very I mean Ari Aster would literally have a FIELD day making this shit into a movie。 That being said， like I loved it？ But I also feel like I need to go to church and/or go to therapy after reading it？ I think I really tend to lean towards books that there’s not necessarily a plot， but rather a profound analysis/storytelling aspect of a book that just focuses on the minds and lives of the people in the town of Lapvona。 I mean I would read another book that took place in the same town。 It’s also very much so terrifying bc of how real it is - like people of that time period might have done similar things because of religion 。。。more

Itasca Community Library ，

Miki says:Ottessa Moshfegh’s newest novel， Lapvona， is set in a fictional medieval village run by the gluttonous and corrupt lord Villiam。 The book’s main character， Marek， is the thirteen-year-old son of the village shepherd。 Fragile， lonely， and consumed with spiritual delusions， Marek falls into Villiam’s web， where characters from his past and present are brought together。 The setting and themes in this book are reminiscent of a Grimm fairy tale: gloomy village， dark magic， and bizarre and u Miki says:Ottessa Moshfegh’s newest novel， Lapvona， is set in a fictional medieval village run by the gluttonous and corrupt lord Villiam。 The book’s main character， Marek， is the thirteen-year-old son of the village shepherd。 Fragile， lonely， and consumed with spiritual delusions， Marek falls into Villiam’s web， where characters from his past and present are brought together。 The setting and themes in this book are reminiscent of a Grimm fairy tale: gloomy village， dark magic， and bizarre and unexplainable events。 The bonus is that the reader gets to know the characters on a deeper level。 While I didn’t like this book enough to give it 5 stars， I found it captivating and a great book for discussion。If you’re a fan of Ottessa Moshfegh， you probably have a strong stomach， but Lapvona is （in my opinion） her most grotesque novel yet--and it comes with pretty much every content warning you can imagine。 。。。more

KL ，

Holy shiet

Niamh ，

This was incredibly polarising。 While the novel started off really strong with a promise of darkness and a crude， uncensored portrayal of human behaviour - it fell flat。 The plot lacked direction， I often found it meandering and pointless。 What had gripped me at the beginning had totally lost me by the end - I think Moshfegh relied too heavily on dark cliches which by the end I had become desensitised to。 I think to say the novel was bad would be unfair， it wasn’t bad - the writing was captivati This was incredibly polarising。 While the novel started off really strong with a promise of darkness and a crude， uncensored portrayal of human behaviour - it fell flat。 The plot lacked direction， I often found it meandering and pointless。 What had gripped me at the beginning had totally lost me by the end - I think Moshfegh relied too heavily on dark cliches which by the end I had become desensitised to。 I think to say the novel was bad would be unfair， it wasn’t bad - the writing was captivating in its own way， I just think it lacked meaning， like a constant building up to a climax that never comes （we’ve all been there）。 I often tried to read between the lines in an attempt to deduct some sort of subliminal message from the ruin of words， but it seemed very uninteresting to me。 People are selfish， life is unfair， society is dictated by an unyielding class system。 Like， yeah？ It seemed too glaringly obvious， and as much as I foraged for deeper meaning， I found none of importance。 The more I write this review the lesser I want to rate the novel， but alas I give it three stars for its initial lure and potential。 —— nope I changed my mind 2 stars sorry Otessa。 <3 。。。more

Melissa Serpa ，

Idk this book was not it for me。 I felt that there was no point？ Like it’s easy to be gruesome when the book is surface level

David ，

Very odd characters and dark imagery， that about sums up this entire novel。 I don't think I've ever read anything like it before but it was enjoyable in a weird way。 I legit belly laughed during the Villiam， Marek， Lisbeth grape scene at the dinner table。 Just completely weird but it kind of works to the point I want to read her other stuff。 Very odd characters and dark imagery， that about sums up this entire novel。 I don't think I've ever read anything like it before but it was enjoyable in a weird way。 I legit belly laughed during the Villiam， Marek， Lisbeth grape scene at the dinner table。 Just completely weird but it kind of works to the point I want to read her other stuff。 。。。more

Maddi McNevs ，

DNF at 170 pages。 This book is so sick and twisted， and the cannibalism in it made me throw up。 Literally

carney brecevic ，

this book is one that has， regardless of personal feelings about it as a whole， sat with me since i finished it a week ago。 it is not as simple as a like or dislike。 it is classic moshfegh in its utter nonchalance and detachment to its surroundings， taken to an entirely new， often graphic level。 regardless， one can only sit and read through so much of the grotesque before it fails to affect one to the desired level。 i assume that， as per moshfegh’s usual style， this detachment from the fantastic this book is one that has， regardless of personal feelings about it as a whole， sat with me since i finished it a week ago。 it is not as simple as a like or dislike。 it is classic moshfegh in its utter nonchalance and detachment to its surroundings， taken to an entirely new， often graphic level。 regardless， one can only sit and read through so much of the grotesque before it fails to affect one to the desired level。 i assume that， as per moshfegh’s usual style， this detachment from the fantastically hideous was intentional。 the real issue is that all of this violence serves no real purpose or meaning other than to exist， to prove that humans can be truly awful when left to their devices- something that the majority of people already consider a consequential fact in no need of further explanation。 i am not someone who is adverse to obscenities in literature， but its lack of meaning made it almost boring to read。 in this way， i suppose that feeling of apathy the novel instills in its readers may make it the most idiosyncratic of moshfegh of all her previous works。 however， violence for the sake of violence in this sense is ineffective， and the use of such shock values really deteriotes the quality of the story。 the characters were disgustingly compelling， and distinctively moshfeghian in their unlikeableness。 this is only an issue because， unlike similarly unlikeable characters in her other works， it becomes difficult for the reader to care much about them。 the setting itself seems a cheap， poorly researched parody of a history， which made it a bit hard for me to take seriously。regardless of all of these factors， i could not stand to pry my eyes away from this book。 i adored myorar， and i had such high hopes for lapvona。 though it fell short of my expectations， i find moshfegh captivating and interesting as an author， and i cannot wait to see what she does next。 overall， definitely not a bad read， but if you are looking to find any sort of meaning in it， i suggest you seek elsewhere。 。。。more

Catriona Griffin ，

Omg this is so fucked up。 Five stars。

yas ，

gross

Sofie ，

This was strange。 Will have to let it sit with me for a while before deciding what I think of it。 I

Dennis ，

Like Moshfegh books a lot。 Love her style。 This， though--WOW--this was Battlefield-Earth bad！ Hope she comes back with something， well， anything she puts more effort into: this book felt， at times， as if she had a deadline to meet or something; it was written extremely sloppily at points--and ridiculously （I get that it was a farce of sorts but maybe have less than 20 characters when none of them are even a little bit developed--Jesus！ was this bad）。 Nowhere close to what I'm used to when it com Like Moshfegh books a lot。 Love her style。 This， though--WOW--this was Battlefield-Earth bad！ Hope she comes back with something， well， anything she puts more effort into: this book felt， at times， as if she had a deadline to meet or something; it was written extremely sloppily at points--and ridiculously （I get that it was a farce of sorts but maybe have less than 20 characters when none of them are even a little bit developed--Jesus！ was this bad）。 Nowhere close to what I'm used to when it comes to Moshfegh。 I'll give her a pass here （maybe a consequence of the pandemic？）。 Hope this doesn't end her career。 It's that bad。 。。。more

Alexandra Schoenborm ，

I found this book through an excerpt published in Harper’s， a part taken from the beginning of the novel that made it seem very promising。 I was fascinated by the story as soon as I began reading it， immediately pulled into the world she created。 These high hopes that her writing in the initial part of the book set for me were unfortunately dashed as I read more of the novel。 While the characters’ flatness was at times incredibly humorous and I thought this was going to go somewhere interesting， I found this book through an excerpt published in Harper’s， a part taken from the beginning of the novel that made it seem very promising。 I was fascinated by the story as soon as I began reading it， immediately pulled into the world she created。 These high hopes that her writing in the initial part of the book set for me were unfortunately dashed as I read more of the novel。 While the characters’ flatness was at times incredibly humorous and I thought this was going to go somewhere interesting， it ultimately made the story feel very meaningless and left me feeling that the novel had little to say about the themes it introduces。 Marek， for instance， is an interesting character in the beginning of the novel with a fair amount of depth， but when he becomes adopted as Villiam’s son， his transformation into a character more similar to Villiam is confusing and difficult to believe。 It feels like the depth promised at the beginning gives way to the cartoonish and grotesque towards the end。 。。。more

Gerard ，

A truly terrible piece of writing。 And boring as hell。

Kyle Heiner ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 quite comedic actually！truly her most dizzying feat-grimy， gross， godless。 some sentences were so blunt and foul i was left dumbstruck。a parable destined to alienate。this is my song of achilles。

Clara （clarylovesbooks） ，

Uhm what-----

Lara ，

took me over a month to get through Lapvona not because it was challenging， but because it lost my interest at multiple points。 has its usual “shocking” Moshfegh moments that we so enjoy but ultimately， it wasn’t enough to satisfy me in the same way Eileen or MYOR&R did。 in other words， it was mid。 not Moshfegh’s strongest work but certainly one of her strangest。

Michael ，

Better than her previous novel （Death in Her Hands）。 I enjoyed the grisly humor and overall grim proceedings for about the first half， but when the book shifted to Lord Villiam and his court of lackeys， I dunno， it felt to me like the author was writing on auto-pilot。 The sentences were short， flat， and without voice。 And so on。 I was wondering all along if Lapvona is a satire of contemporary America set in a made-up medieval fiefdom。 As satire， it works。 So I did like it on that level。

al ，

fun medieval times （seriously， though， check TWs before reading）

Topher ，

This is a story revolving around a town called Lapvona。 Not sure what time frame this is set in， but I would say 15th or 16th century。 This tale reminded me of The Discomfort of Evening in its undercurrent of dread。 I feel like its a meditation on the grotesquerie of people and power dynamics。 Most of the characters if not all， are despicable in some way， shape or form。 I didn't mind this book， but at one point， it seemed to be a bit farcical。 Weirdly enough， the conclusion made sense to the ove This is a story revolving around a town called Lapvona。 Not sure what time frame this is set in， but I would say 15th or 16th century。 This tale reminded me of The Discomfort of Evening in its undercurrent of dread。 I feel like its a meditation on the grotesquerie of people and power dynamics。 Most of the characters if not all， are despicable in some way， shape or form。 I didn't mind this book， but at one point， it seemed to be a bit farcical。 Weirdly enough， the conclusion made sense to the over all theme of the book， which is basically people are horrible。 I give this one 5/5。 。。。more

Nicole qwerty ，

This was insane。 A24 adaptation coming soon

Tassnym Echchahed ，

Very disappointed…。

aurelie˚ ༘♡ ，

maybe it wasn’t the best idea for this book to be my first moshfegh…。it just didn’t leave me with that lasting impression i so badly wanted。 underwhelming。 still very entertaining！ so incredibly hysterical at times。 would certainly eat up some type of a24 film adaptation！

K ，

the cover was the most enticing thing about this absolute waste of time。 throughout the book， i was able to put myself in the shoes of the lapvonians by praying that "better things are coming。 they must be。" but they never did。 reading this felt like walking through a desert only to find that the puddle of water you hoped to drink at the end was actually camel diarrhoea。 if there was allegory or satire i was meant to collect here， it was flushed down the toilet like diluted， watered down piss。 i the cover was the most enticing thing about this absolute waste of time。 throughout the book， i was able to put myself in the shoes of the lapvonians by praying that "better things are coming。 they must be。" but they never did。 reading this felt like walking through a desert only to find that the puddle of water you hoped to drink at the end was actually camel diarrhoea。 if there was allegory or satire i was meant to collect here， it was flushed down the toilet like diluted， watered down piss。 in true moshfegh style！ 。。。more

athanasia ，

A despicable set of characters being subjected to a multitude of grotesque and disturbing situations that tick off every possible trigger warning out there for no seeming reason other than to shock the audience。 I can tell that the author is quite skilled in her craft but this trainwreck of a book needed more substance were it to actually be perceived as meaningful and worthy of one's time。 A despicable set of characters being subjected to a multitude of grotesque and disturbing situations that tick off every possible trigger warning out there for no seeming reason other than to shock the audience。 I can tell that the author is quite skilled in her craft but this trainwreck of a book needed more substance were it to actually be perceived as meaningful and worthy of one's time。 。。。more

Harry ，

Yes。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Lapvona: A Novel

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

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