Transgresiuni

by Sarah Dunant, Carmen Daniela Ciora (Translator), Domnica Drumea (Translator)

O casa somptuoasa, in stil victorian, intr-unul din cartierele elegante ale Londrei. O femeie proaspat traumatizata de o despartire dureroasa, incercand sa-si refaca existenta. O serie de intamplari stranii ce se petrec mai ales noaptea, numai intr-o anumita aripa a casei. Un criminal in serie, inarmat cu un ciocan, ce bantuie imprejurimile. Elizabeth Skorvecky se izoleaza complet de lume, refugiindu-se in muzica si in traducerea unui thriller despre lumea interlopa din Cehia. Banuindu-se mai intai de episoade psihotice, apoi temandu-se de prezenta unui spirit malefic in casa, Elizabeth va descoperi ca pe urmele sale se afla un agresor periculos. Jocul pe care-l initiaza pentru a-l ademeni pe acesta in capcana devine diabolic si totul se transforma intr-o lupta morbida, din ce in ce mai sangeroasa, pe viata si pe moarte, de-a lungul careia victima se converteste in calau, iar calaul in victima.

Un roman tulburator, plin de un erotism sumbru si de rasturnari spectaculoase de situatie, explorand relatia dintre atractie si repulsie, placere si teroare si dezvaluind semnificatiile profunde ale violentei si fragilitatea psihicului uman.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Contemporary, Historical Fiction, Horror, Mystery Thriller

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Sarah Dunant is a cultural commentator, award-winning thriller writer and author of five novels set in Renaissance Italy exploring women’s lives through art, sex and religion. She has two daughters, and lives in London and Florence.

Sarah’s monthly history program and podcast on history can be found via the BBC website.

Reviews

[Kat · Rating 1 out of 5]

If the the back flap blurb writer had written the actual book, Trangressions might not have resulted in such trashy, tacky crap.

Okay, listen..

"Elizabeth is a modern woman. Smart. Independent. As sexual as she wants to be-with whomever she wants to be. But a breakup with her academic boyfriend has hit her harder than she cares to admit. And while her latest gig, translating a glitzy Czech thriller into English, offends her literary sensibilities, it arouses others with its steamy scenes of eroticism, violence, submission, and dominance (...) In the dead of night, she will suddenly come face-to-face with her tormentor. She will smell him, she will touch him, and she will make a choice. Then the real haunting will begin."

I don't know about you, but I thought that sounded pretty intriguing. However, Trangressions is not only poorly written, those excitingly presented ideas on the back flap cover are executed astoundingly tasteless. As a matter of fact, it's been a while since I read a novel this trashy and - as harsh as this may sound :-( - unworthy of publication.

What bothers me most is the fact that Dunant's definition of "dark sexuality" and "steamy scenes of eroticism" is so different from mine. or should I say...so much ickier? Under the guise of translating a Czech thriller, she tears open a can of disposable women and has them raped and butchered by faceless men, in the meantime plastering "crotches" and chopped off female body parts all over the pages, in a deliberate attempt to create a violently horny(!) atmosphere.

Oh boy.

When translating those uneasy and mostly irrelevant scenes into English, the highly unlikable heroine (and fruit loop) Elizabeth continuously comments on how blase and disturbing that Czech thriller is, how it offends her literary sensibilities. Yet somehow she manages to get aroused by it.

Of course, the parallels with her own life are obvious. In between completely irrelevant scenes and ridiculously bad sex scenes, she starts missing stuff from her house and odd things happen. After having accused herself, her cat, ex-boyfriend and even a poltergeist, she realizes something may be wrong....there may be a rapist on the loose! So what does Elizabeth do when she wakes up at 4 am and finds the culprit in her room? She has terrible, cringe-worthy sex with him. After which, believe it or not, the story spins even more out of control.

What a mess.

[joyce g · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this, but didn't love it. The story is an interesting one with plenty to keep you very anxious.

[Erica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every time I read another book by this author, Sarah Dunant, I love her more. She’s fast becoming one of my favorites. Why? Because she touches upon topics that most authors, especially female authors, wouldn’t go near with a ten-foot pole, such as stalkers and rape in this novel. And it’s not even just that—she always adds a twist, and her characters are so realistic and multifaceted that they jump off the page and dance.

[Loredana (Bookinista08) · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was AMAZING! I sincerely don't know why the rating is so low, because I enjoyed every single page of it. I loved the story, the heroine, the stalker, the ending, everything. But most of all, I loved Dunant's style, her way of somehow forcing you to immerse yourself in her story. Yes, I was hooked! I read some reviews about how it fails to portray reality and what a real woman would have done in the given circumstances. Yeah, but it's fiction, it's supposed to play games with your mind and eventually win! Real life is boring, you already know the ending, there are no real heroes in real life. It's paradoxically true. No REAL heroes in REAL life. But this novel... is simply delicious. Definitely recommended read!

[Richard · Rating 1 out of 5]

Well...I persisted with this as it was well written in parts and had a scene where the main character refuses to be controlled by a sex attacker....but it was very unrealistic and to my mind was revelling in rape as being erotic.

An ugly and disturbing book.

[Sherryl Wynne · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is one of the worst books I have ever read and if I can save one other person from suffering through it I will. I've enjoyed other of Ms. Dunant's books and the concept for this one is good, but the story was horrific. I am far from prudish, but the language, the descriptions, the bulk of the story itself were so fulled with crude, offensive, disgusting, truly gross scenes and language that the only reason I finished it was so that I could write this review and honestly say that the story has not one redeeming quality. I give it one star because all of the words were spelled correctly. If I had been Ms. Dunant's editor, I would have been concerned for her mental health. She must have been in a very bad place when writing this one. Spare yourself. I'm throwing my copy in the trash.

[Laura Rittenhouse · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was a tacky book in my opinion. I may be being a bit harsh here because after 1/3 of the book, I realized it wasn't my cup of tea and started skipping over half of each page. The reason was twofold: One, a serial rapist becomes part of the story and I don't like reading about serial rape. Two, the protagonist is a translator and is working on a rather offensive novel which contains misogynistic (the protagonists opinion and I back her up on that) sexual scenes. For some absolutely inexplicable reason, large swathes of this novel within the novel are transcribed as the protagonist translates it. She is apparently disturbed by the writing. I wasn't as disturbed as irritated that this sort of misogynistic titillation was plastered throughout the book while the author implied that it was wrong.

I "finished" by skimming - skipping all of the novel within the novel because it was so irrelevant - just to see if it in any way redeemed itself. In fact, it got worse. The protagonist at first tried to take on a man she was sure was a serial rapist herself and then involved the police in some bizarre fabricated story that she thought would get them to help more than the simple truth would have. No idea what was up with that.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a book that I would usually pick up, but the story seemed so interesting that I had to buy it.

I read it in less than a day! The entire story had me trapped. Once I finished a chapter, I had to continue reading and find out what happened next. The main character is very likeable, and multi-faceted. You find yourself rooting for her the whole way through.

The story is fast paced and very entertaining. The only problem I had with the book is that when you find out what is going on and find out "whodunnit" it is not very thrilling. I did, however, find what happens after the climax to be just as exciting, and I felt as if I were watching a movie toward the end.

I would reccomend this book to anyone who likes a fast-paced, modern mystery. Very well written and wonderful character development.

[Gwen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm rather amused by some of the very negative reviews... I'm glad I didn't let them put me off reading this book.
I've read quite a few of her other books & enjoyed them- this one was a departure from her historical tales, being set in London in the present day.
I got very caught up in the story, reading into the early hours... The only element which slightly bothered me was the main character's plan to deal with her situation- it didn't strike me as terribly plausible or realistic. But then I was reading for fun & escapism so was able to suspend reality.
She raises some thought-provoking questions about sexuality but I don't really understand why that offended so many other readers. I didn't find it a scary read either but that may just be me.
Worth reading as a good thriller with a bit if a twist.

[Denise Stephenson · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not a favorite. The premise of the translator finding herself in a similar story to the novel she's translating and then learning from it was promising, but the execution became tedious and predictable. Maybe if she'd been translating something better than misogynistic police fiction it would have worked better for me. I think in the end, the only thing that intrigued me was the concept of how relationships can become intimate ones even when it's not what we desire.

[Tory · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't think the book was easy to read at all, and while the plot was gripping (I guess) it wasn't something I wanted to read in one sitting, skinny as the novel might be.

I liked it. It was new, I haven't read twelve other books just like it. And the writer's got a great style, am looking forward to reading more by her.

[Leslie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Trashy nonsense, with one of those stupid heroines so common in thrillers who does all the stupid things and none of the obvious things because the stupid things spin the plot out further and the obvious things would bring it to a screaming halt. I'm tired of supposedly titillating woman-in-peril stories. There's nothing sexy about them. This one was more distasteful than most.

[Sushipink]

Disgusting, creepy, freaky. Skipped most of it as implausible, irritating, and frankly insulting to survivors of rape and sexual assault. A really horrible book. The author clearly thinks she's being 'provocative' when she's really just regurgitating misogynistic rape fantasies. Some work to do in therapy I think.

[Minou Jolie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Oh dear, I sooooooo loved In the Company of the Courtesan and enjoyed Blood & Beauty: The Borgias that I was really looking forward to reading this book. But I just can't finish it. It is too disjointed and the characters are too mercurial. Please read Ms Dunant's other books as she is a really good author. Just skip this one.

[OT · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got me hooked. Read it into days. After having read all her historical novels, I am not disappointed in this trailer, quite the opposite.
What I liked:
- The pacing of the story; the right amount of building up of tension, followed by insignificant sidetracks, to get your mind completely off it, and then again taking the tension a step further. These straight and curved lines working themselves up until the climax at the end.
- The layer by layer deepening of the characters. They are all deeply human and have rich histories.
- The alternation of witty, intelligent reflections, confronting conversations, out-of-the-box solutions to unsolvable problems, humor, solid psychological grasp, fear, courage, friendship, raw sex, good music, etc.

What I didn’t like: the first two chapters seem to revolve around and around a lost or missed placed CD and it almost throw me off of reading further.

Conclusion:
In general I find her books interesting and multi layered. Very often during the reading I find myself asking the question: “how would I have done it?” “ how would it have affected me?” “ what is my opinion about this or that subject? And how did the reading change my point of view?”

[Sezin Koehler · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last time a book scared the shit out of me this badly was roughly 26 years ago when I first read Silence of the Lambs. Transgressions starts out as one kind of story, and by the time the changeover happens it's a total blindside. Phenomenal and horrifying. Once again the current of female rage in this novel resonated with me, and there were so many ways I related with the main character. I also loved how there was a novel within the novel since Elizabeth was a translator working on a book project. So fascinating. If I ever have a chance to chat with Sarah Dunant I'm going to ask her which came first, Transgressions, or the novel in the book, and what the process was to create that narrative within the main one. Brilliant stuff. Highly recommend this one.

[Marta Palma · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was obsessed with the first third of this book. It made me so intrigued and interested that I constantly had to stop myself from reading further, just so that I could enjoy the mystery and the "not knowing".
Then it went in a direction that would not have been my preferred, but I guess that's the magic of reading.
I got a bit less invested towards the end, but I still strongly recommend this book. I read it mostly at night time before sleep, and I enjoyed feeling spooked out.
The first part of this book made me feel great chills that I can only hope to find again in another reading.
Any recommendations?

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was pretty visceral and graphic and at times hard to read, which is why it took me so long. It became really uncomfortable at points and I had to stop and think about it, or stop and NOT think about it, depending on what was going on. I loved the late 90s vibe and reading about CDs and landlines and pay phones and that added to much to the creepy factor - the old unreachability, almost isolated by today’s standards. At times I wished there was less of the translated novel. While it did mirror the “real” story, when it got too long I was anxious to get back to Elizabeth, who I was super invested in even if I didn’t agree with her choices.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

este un thriler psihologic intens, dar caruia ii lipseste ceva.
este o.poveste interesanta, despre putere, violenta, jocuri de forta. dominare. cu toate acestea, scriitura este terna, pe alocuri plictisitoare.
subiectul si constructia nu sunt proaste. mai ales povestea din poveste, suspansul, trairile personajului.
in acelasi timp parca e lungita, parca ii scapa ceva din constructia personajului lizzie, e ceva ce nu se leaga.
am fost incitat sa o citesc, mi-a placut twistul, ideea, dar am trait tot timpul un srntiment ca este ceva nu imi place, ceva ce scapa sau e prea mult.

[Sandy Brandes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written edge of the seat reading. Not always a fan of the "book within a book" style, but this one made all kinds of sense in the telling. If I could do one thing differently, i"l'd read this one with Van Morrison playing in the background of the entire book. I put on "The Healing Has Begun" while reading the epilogue and was blown away by the addition of his voice and the track to the final words of the book.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading many Ruth Rendell books I found this just a little too uncomfortably similar. Sort of a mix of 50 Shades of Grey and Ruth Rendell/Barbara Vine. It was written as if it was going to be a screen play. That always puts me off a book. Still I did get chills and frightening moments from the idiot main character.

[John F · Rating 5 out of 5]

Stunning

This was a prescient book in 1997. The interweaving of the two plots mirrors Elizabeth's mental and emotional state. If you are a woman read this book! The fightback starts here.

[Lily Winkler · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 ⭐️ I enjoyed parts of the thriller aspect of this book, but the portions where she was translating were irrelevant to me (I probably am missing the big picture) and this made a lot of the book drag on :/

[Randy Ladenheim-Gil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Started off well and ended with me a bit sorry I ever began. Had this in the house for years, picked up from Amazon UK, where I got hold of other early Dunant books that I liked much, much more.

[Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

not her best work

[Nikki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well written but really not to my taste.

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

unsettling, creepy. sexual power dynamics.

[Penny G · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hard to believe this was written by the same author who wrote The Birth of Venus.

[Megan · Rating 1 out of 5]

Recommended by someone, didn't finish, would not recommend.

[noise hello kitty · Rating 2 out of 5]

Di trasgressivo ha ben poco, non capisco le tizie scioccate.