Eyes

by Felice Picano

Its protagonists are a young woman whose vision of life is a voyeur's, and a young man whose readiness for life makes him the object of her profoundly mixed affections. - from the blurb.

Genres: Horror, Fiction

249 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 1976

About the author

Felice Anthony Picano was an American writer, publisher and critic who encouraged the development of gay literature in the United States. His work is documented in many sources.

Reviews

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picano gives us here a very intense exploration into the human condition and relationships I found engrossing to say the least. Eyes begins with a prologue that briefly outlines Stu's new life in San Francisco and his 'phobia' of phone calls that reveals he is still haunted by something that happened in NYC years ago. Then, you guessed it, the story starts in NYC roughly in the late 60s (this was first published in 1975).

Our main protagonist, Stu, lives in a studio on upper 78th street; a quite street for the most part, with tenements and low rise apartment complexes. His 'career' as a social worker keeps him busy, and while he likes his job, it really is just a stop gap. Stu recently moved to his new digs from the Lower East Side with his girlfriend, but this starts with her away on some tour (she is a professional dancer). Alongside introducing Stu, Picano takes us into the mind of a woman who lives across the street from Stu, who is something of a voyeur. She does not see herself as a peeping tom, as she takes no pleasure in witnessing sex and such, but rather, she is trying to find a new boyfriend and looking at what is out there. And yes, she sees Stu.

Johanna lives alone and works as a free lance copy editor from her apartment. From her diary, we learn that she 'stalked' someone named Colin who lived where Stu is now, but that ended badly. You see, Johanna starts the 'relationship' by calling Stu, just like she did Colin. She tells him she just wants a friendship, but she cannot see him in person. Well, things start to develop, largely based on fantasy from both parties (although Johanna has done some background digging on Stu)...

Not you typical voyeur novel by any means, Picano explores what makes relationships work and fail, and how they can give us meaning. Eyes is something of an oddball to be sure, and I am not sure who I would recommend this to, but it is intense and proved to be a thoughtful read. 4 peeping stars!

[André · Rating 4 out of 5]

A slow-burning thriller about voyeurism and split-personality, Eyes is a precisely written, uncluttered tale that effectively moves you from plot-point to plot-point. Stu, a handsome young social-worker in Manhattan begins to receive phone-calls from a mysterious woman named Joan. With her clipped British accent and vast knowledge of art and literature, it's obvious Joan is a sophisticated person of higher learning. It's also soon clear that she's been spying on Stu as he sleeps, eats and makes love. Where is she? Who is she? And why does she hate his new girlfriend Johanna so much?
The novel works by making every flawed character seem real, sympathetic and understandable. You end up caring as the action veers towards it's frightening, chilling, and yes, inevitable climax.

[Sophy H · Rating 1 out of 5]

Bad bad bad bad bad.

Just no Picano. This was utter drivel. Just why would you even?!

[Luchito Luconi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Me cuesta un poco calificar este libro porque no ha terminado como yo imaginaba pero aún así me ha entretenido bastante. La historia comienza con Stu un joven que es asistente social, el tiene una vida dentro de todo tranquila, con su amante Jennifer una joven que vive lejos de él por tiempos ya que es bailarina (un personaje bastante detestable). Luego en el segundo capítulo se nos presenta a Johana una joven que vive en el departamente de enfrente de Stu, esta chica está totalmente obsecionada con el joven. A tal punto de anotar toda la información que sabe de el.
En un punto de la historia Johana cambia su acento por uno más británico y comienza a tener breves llamadas con Stu, y el libro comienza a dar un giro un tanto romántico. La joven tiene un gran complejo con sus ex amores ya que nunca ha estado en una relación sin un teléfono de por medio. La verdad el final es medio estúpido y me quedé con ganas de saber que más podría llegar a pasar entre estos dos personajes. Este libro me lo vendieron como un libro de suspenso, cosa que yo no diría así.

[Harrison Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another oldie from the "cigarette-smoking" novel era, when no novel was complete without multitudinous unnecessary references to smoking. I found this novel to be a slow starter, but with the last quarter of the book being good suspense writing. The edition I read -- a 1979 British "New English Library" edition - contained a review snippet on the rear cover referring to the novel as "totally terrifying," in my view a bit of overstatement. Suspenseful, yes; terrifying, uh no.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

An odd book, but interesting story. Not crazy about the ending, though it does make sense, to some degree.