Customer Reviews
Disappointing & annoying - By: Dominic Swayne, 17 Feb 2008 
An intriguing enough first chapter. The rest of the novel is ponderous & tedious. The 'shock' ending simply fails to convince.
A bit stilted - By: Ingaborga, 14 Dec 2007 The Chimney Sweeper's Boy was the first Barbara Vine novel I'd read, although I have read several Ruth Rendallls (Vine's true persona). I found the same problem with this as with the others I'd read - a thin, stilted plot played out by two dimensional, unsympathetic characters. The story is of Gerald Candless, beloved father yet cruel, distant husband, whose daughter discovers some disturbing facts about his past while researching her memoir of his life & their relationship. The perspective switches between Sarah, the daughter, & Ursula, the neglected wife, whose memories & discoveries combine to draw a picture of the man.
So far, so thrilling. But I felt the story never reallly got off the ground. The plot lacked pace and, as with so many of Rendalll's novels, the characters were by turns irritating & deeply unpleasant. There was no real examination of their feelings & motivations and, cruciallly, no satisfying conclusion - although the mystery of Gerald's past is revealed (after a clue so enormous you wonder how his apparently intelligent daughter missed it), several major issues, including Ursula's relationship with her daughters, were left frustratingly unresolved.
But for me, one of the biggest let downs was the excepts from Gerald's novels & descriptions of his plots. For someone who was supposed to be an excellent, Booker-nominated novellist, these were simply not up to scratch, which utterly destroyed the illusion.
''You could find out his whole life from his novels, yet not find it out at all." - By: Mary Whipple, 01 Dec 2007 
With the death of successful author & Booker Prize nominee Gerald Candless, his family, living on the fog-shrouded coast of England, has a variety of responses. His wife Ursula, who has suffered his sexual rejection since the birth of their two daughters, now in their twenties, is at last free of his domination. His daughters, both of whom have been doted upon by their father, are devastated, & resentful that their mother, whom their father ignored, seems far less bereaved than they are. When older daughter Sarah, a college professor & writer, has her proposal for a biography of her father accepted by a major publisher, she expects this to be a healing experience. After alll, her father kept journals & drew on his experiences for plots for his books--the raw material for a memoir is alll there.
When Sarah begins her research, however, she discovers that her father's identity is as dark & fog-shrouded as the coast on which they live, that his name, parentage, upbringing, early work experiences, & entire past life may not be what she & her family have always believed. As Sarah delves into the past, this novel by Barbara Vine (the pseudonym used by Ruth Rendell for her most "psychological" novels) becomes a genealogical investigation into the life of a most mysterious man. Sarah's discoveries often come with a hard price, emotionallly, affecting the memories she & her sister have of their revered father but, in many ways, liberating their mother & alllowing the sisters to know her in new ways.
Vine reveals the mysteries of Gerald Candless in slow increments, her careful construction alllowing the reader to share in the discoveries as information comes to Sarah through her research & that of an assistant she hires to act as a detective. The characters she meets along the way, while not fully developed, are nevertheless vibrant & individualized, & they keep the reader's interest high. While Sarah's own sexual behavior fails to ring true, her mother Ursula's confusion regarding her rejection by Gerald & her behavior after his death are both poignant & understandable. Fast-paced & filled with atmosphere, this mystery & the character at the heart of it will fascinate the reader who loves mysteries based on human relationships & human failings. Mary Whipple
Predictable? - By: Lucy M, 05 Jan 2007 I love Barbara Vine, but I admit that this was a slight disappointment in the plot's predictability. However, this did not detract from my enjoyment of the book, & I particularly loved the novels-within-a-novel; it was a nice touch.
Would come back for more. - By: Rich Milligan, 22 Jun 2004 
This is the first Barbara Vine book I have read & it has certainly not put me off trying more.
The story is well written & keeps the readers' interest throughout the book. The story is well crafted & moves well from the present to the past with good narrative descriptions of the characters' memories of previous events. That said the characters themselves are alll pretty unlikable, especiallly Gerald Candless, & I found myself never being able to empathise with their opinions & views.
Other reviewers mention the dissapointing ending & I too found it a bit of a cop-out, although the exact nature of the end still made my eyes widen.
