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Rabbits
Tommo has just moved to a prestigious boarding school. A product of the middle class, and with new-found independence thrust upon him, he finds himself invited into fading crumbling country houses.
It's the early nineties and the elite he is now surrounded by is struggling for relevance. Alienated from the mainstream, and running low on inherited wealth, his peers have retreated into snobbery and fatalism. Initially awed by their poise and seduced by their hedonism, Tommo gradually becomes aware of sinister undercurrents and a suppressed rage that threatens to explode into violence.
In this world, half-remembered traditions mix with decadence and an awful lot of small dead animals. And sometimes, not just animals. When Tommo's friend Johnnie's brother is found dead, a shotgun at his feet, he realises there are secrets that everyone knows, but no one speaks about, or even acknowledges. And those secrets can no longer be hidden.
It's the early nineties and the elite he is now surrounded by is struggling for relevance. Alienated from the mainstream, and running low on inherited wealth, his peers have retreated into snobbery and fatalism. Initially awed by their poise and seduced by their hedonism, Tommo gradually becomes aware of sinister undercurrents and a suppressed rage that threatens to explode into violence.
In this world, half-remembered traditions mix with decadence and an awful lot of small dead animals. And sometimes, not just animals. When Tommo's friend Johnnie's brother is found dead, a shotgun at his feet, he realises there are secrets that everyone knows, but no one speaks about, or even acknowledges. And those secrets can no longer be hidden.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published June 6, 2024
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4565 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews
June 18, 2025
Hugo Rifkind partied as a teen, that's for sure. so did I, to an extent, who didn't, but maybe not to this book's extent. these Scottish teens party in crumbling castles and rambling estates; I partied in houses and dorms, sometimes on boats. but no matter the differences in settings: Rifkind remembers how a teen party feels. I recognized it all and it really brought me back. the mass and press of other bodies; the smell of booze, sweat, and smoke; the knots of people, little insular groups within the greater group, unknotting as the night goes on; the inability to recall who said what and to who and when, except for those parts that you remember exactly, the big moments that will stick with you, you'll replay them repeatedly in your head; the excited, nervous anticipation beforehand and the free-flowing quality during, like a blurred stream of consciousness made external; the am I having a good time - I'm having a good time! - do I maybe want to leave? - no I want this to go on all night, why can't it - okay I'm done - no way, I'm far from done of it all; the entropy at the end of the night. Rifkind gets the feeling of it just right.
partying is a big part of the book and so I was right there with it, on a nostalgic level. the rest was reading about an entirely different world. the kids of Scotland's fading aristocrats playing casual games of one-upmanship ... a gory death occurring before the narrative starts... a son dealing with the emotions and avoidances that come with having a dying mother. our first-person narrator is an outsider turned semi-insider, but one whom the real insiders - the teens' parents - view with a certain distance and maybe some disdain. he's the boy who always finds a way to stay the night, the weekend, the summer. Rifkind insulates Tommo from the idea that this is a grand plan or that he's a social climber. I'm not sure if that was the best decision - it was, in a way, playing it safe - but it does keep his protagonist relatable and sympathetic. Tommo usually has no idea how he's being perceived. the narration felt absolutely real, all stops & starts, bold declarations followed by hesitancy and ambiguity. the reader lives in this kid's head and it feels like an actual life. surely Rifkin must have drawn from his own life, his own experiences.
all around this story of Tommo entering a new world and Tommo growing up is an almost subterranean murder mystery involving various aristocratic power plays and complex plans involving real estate and who will inherit what. at the center of it all is a Charismatic Teen Rebel who Tommo has glommed onto, a sort of rural aristocrat who is heir to a rambling piece of land. the climax is shocking and sad but familiar. an upsetting ending but the path to it was very carefully set up - an unsurprising surprise. and no less tragic, despite its familiarity. but life must go on for Tommo, and so it does...
partying is a big part of the book and so I was right there with it, on a nostalgic level. the rest was reading about an entirely different world. the kids of Scotland's fading aristocrats playing casual games of one-upmanship ... a gory death occurring before the narrative starts... a son dealing with the emotions and avoidances that come with having a dying mother. our first-person narrator is an outsider turned semi-insider, but one whom the real insiders - the teens' parents - view with a certain distance and maybe some disdain. he's the boy who always finds a way to stay the night, the weekend, the summer. Rifkind insulates Tommo from the idea that this is a grand plan or that he's a social climber. I'm not sure if that was the best decision - it was, in a way, playing it safe - but it does keep his protagonist relatable and sympathetic. Tommo usually has no idea how he's being perceived. the narration felt absolutely real, all stops & starts, bold declarations followed by hesitancy and ambiguity. the reader lives in this kid's head and it feels like an actual life. surely Rifkin must have drawn from his own life, his own experiences.
all around this story of Tommo entering a new world and Tommo growing up is an almost subterranean murder mystery involving various aristocratic power plays and complex plans involving real estate and who will inherit what. at the center of it all is a Charismatic Teen Rebel who Tommo has glommed onto, a sort of rural aristocrat who is heir to a rambling piece of land. the climax is shocking and sad but familiar. an upsetting ending but the path to it was very carefully set up - an unsurprising surprise. and no less tragic, despite its familiarity. but life must go on for Tommo, and so it does...
November 24, 2024
This book has been described as "Saltburn with kilts" but in my opinion that's inaccurate. Yes, there are certain similarities (a guy from a different background hanging around with lots of posh people). But aside from that Rabbits lacks that interesting character obsession and drive. Instead, lots of this book feels like descriptions of parties and people drinking alcohol or taking drugs. This starts off as quite a fun, hedonistic vibe, but soon gets tiresome. In fact, I think this book would've been immaculate if it cut 70 Or 80 pages of party descriptions and instead honed in more on the mystery (well sort of mystery) at the core.
The last chapters are fantastic though, and I really loved the humour - it's a rare book that made me laugh out loud, so that definitely counts for something.
Not a book I loved, but one I'm glad I read and will certainly remember.
The last chapters are fantastic though, and I really loved the humour - it's a rare book that made me laugh out loud, so that definitely counts for something.
Not a book I loved, but one I'm glad I read and will certainly remember.
July 8, 2024
"When the shotgun went off under Johnnie Burchill's brother's chin, word had it, the top of his head came off like the top of a turnip lantern. Then it got stuck, by means of a jagged triangle of bone, into the upholstery of the roof of the Land Rover. A thing like that spreads around. The story, I mean. Not the head."
A hedonistic whirlwind of a novel, Rabbits so delightfully captures the testosterone fueled awkwardness of youth, the fierceness of loyalties tested, it captures so very beautifully the anxiety ridden ferality of being young and it does so with this blissful, drugged up numbness. It's aristocratic excessiveness in a novel, it's a hugely entertaining thing, a story of friendships, murder, danger and drug fueled stupefaction. It's a novel of being an outsider in a place where you do not belong, and, it's a highly self-indulgent thing, as perhaps all the greatest novels are. Knowing absolutely nothing of the author, or the novel itself, going into this, the only idea I had of it was "Saltburn with kilts" - what a fantastic surprise it was. It's a hidden delight, a gem shining amongst the dirt. The whole thing is slightly fuzzy around the edges, blurring and swirling, forever shifting what it's really about.
Certainly, this kaleidoscopic story deserves to be more well known than what it is. And, it's clear, that with this novel, Rifkind has written about what he knows most intimately - aristocratic success and posh boarding school experiences. Told to us by an only sometimes lovable, slightly unreliable narrator, Rabbits takes on the form of a fictional autobiography, one that's populated by extremely unlikeable, irritating, arrogant and at worst, utterly detestable people who only seem to sink lower as the story unfurls. Rabbits offers up a stark and shocking glimpse at a world fueled by parties, drugs, careless attitudes and far, far too many guns. It's all so very compulsively readable, a blazing blur, tinged with a smoky haze in which its mystery hides.
How lovely it was to experience a slice of Dark Academia that challenges typical convention by being cast not stateside, but in Scotland instead. Rabbits is part The Secret History, part Saltburn, part These Violent Delights, and part the best bits of a genre stretched all too thin and losing its meaning. It's a return to what Dark Academia should be, a murder mystery dedicated to the epicurean elite. Everything contained within Rabbits is about superiority, or at least, the fragile perception of it. In the end, it's a tale as old as time, the unhinged behavior of teenage boys with too much money, the discarding of empathy that comes with feeling untouchable.
Despite the drama of it all, it's in no way, a fast-paced story. In fact, everything stretches out in a rather slothful manner. By no means is this the perfect dark academia novel, in fact, perhaps it's much better described as a murder mystery suffused with academic undertones, regardless, it's an enjoyable, wonderful, soulful novel.
"Do long summer evenings ever make you depressed? I know they're not supposed to. They do me, though, and I think it started then, after Alan had gone. The warmer the night, the greater the scented potential, the bleaker I felt."
A hedonistic whirlwind of a novel, Rabbits so delightfully captures the testosterone fueled awkwardness of youth, the fierceness of loyalties tested, it captures so very beautifully the anxiety ridden ferality of being young and it does so with this blissful, drugged up numbness. It's aristocratic excessiveness in a novel, it's a hugely entertaining thing, a story of friendships, murder, danger and drug fueled stupefaction. It's a novel of being an outsider in a place where you do not belong, and, it's a highly self-indulgent thing, as perhaps all the greatest novels are. Knowing absolutely nothing of the author, or the novel itself, going into this, the only idea I had of it was "Saltburn with kilts" - what a fantastic surprise it was. It's a hidden delight, a gem shining amongst the dirt. The whole thing is slightly fuzzy around the edges, blurring and swirling, forever shifting what it's really about.
Certainly, this kaleidoscopic story deserves to be more well known than what it is. And, it's clear, that with this novel, Rifkind has written about what he knows most intimately - aristocratic success and posh boarding school experiences. Told to us by an only sometimes lovable, slightly unreliable narrator, Rabbits takes on the form of a fictional autobiography, one that's populated by extremely unlikeable, irritating, arrogant and at worst, utterly detestable people who only seem to sink lower as the story unfurls. Rabbits offers up a stark and shocking glimpse at a world fueled by parties, drugs, careless attitudes and far, far too many guns. It's all so very compulsively readable, a blazing blur, tinged with a smoky haze in which its mystery hides.
"A whole doomed world teetering on the edge of an entropy. I recognised even then, and perhaps even reveled in, but without ever quite grasping what entropy entails. And it has taught me, I suppose, that you can't cling on to things that are crumbling. Because you will break your nails, and you will fall, and then you will look back up and wonder how it can be that something which once seemed as solid as stone itself is now barely there at all."
How lovely it was to experience a slice of Dark Academia that challenges typical convention by being cast not stateside, but in Scotland instead. Rabbits is part The Secret History, part Saltburn, part These Violent Delights, and part the best bits of a genre stretched all too thin and losing its meaning. It's a return to what Dark Academia should be, a murder mystery dedicated to the epicurean elite. Everything contained within Rabbits is about superiority, or at least, the fragile perception of it. In the end, it's a tale as old as time, the unhinged behavior of teenage boys with too much money, the discarding of empathy that comes with feeling untouchable.
Despite the drama of it all, it's in no way, a fast-paced story. In fact, everything stretches out in a rather slothful manner. By no means is this the perfect dark academia novel, in fact, perhaps it's much better described as a murder mystery suffused with academic undertones, regardless, it's an enjoyable, wonderful, soulful novel.
"Do long summer evenings ever make you depressed? I know they're not supposed to. They do me, though, and I think it started then, after Alan had gone. The warmer the night, the greater the scented potential, the bleaker I felt."
January 7, 2025
The ‘saltburn with kilts’ is a good comparison, it defo has those dark, posh people doing horrible stuff vibes. Although, I think The Secret History with kilts is probably more accurate.
It’s very well written, very Scottish and yes, there are disgusting, posh people hunting and shooting stuff etc but the main character is sympathetic and I stayed up way past my bedtime to see what happened to him. Best book I’ve read for a long time.
It’s very well written, very Scottish and yes, there are disgusting, posh people hunting and shooting stuff etc but the main character is sympathetic and I stayed up way past my bedtime to see what happened to him. Best book I’ve read for a long time.
July 20, 2025
Didn’t think I’d enjoy this book as much as I did.
The nuances of the social class are extremely well displayed and while most of the characters are unlovable, I think thats exactly the point. This makes one sympathize with Tommo who encounters truly horrible people while trying to deal with his terribly ill mother and mostly absent dad.
The nuances of the social class are extremely well displayed and while most of the characters are unlovable, I think thats exactly the point. This makes one sympathize with Tommo who encounters truly horrible people while trying to deal with his terribly ill mother and mostly absent dad.
August 2, 2024
Bought this purely because it said “Saltburn, with kilts”. Less bath water in this book but was funny and dark the whole way through. Lots of posh people being bad humans. The last few chapters are the best and I’m surprised how well the plot wraps up
December 23, 2024
hedonism, horror and humor. loved it
August 24, 2025
Rabbits by Hugo Rifkind is a sharp, nuanced portrayal of class difference that lingers long after the final page. What begins as a story of teenagers negotiating the glitter of privilege slowly evolves into something far more complex: as the characters mature, the sheen of old money peels away to reveal its fragility, while the power and momentum of new money quietly asserts itself. Rifkind handles this transition with a deftness that is both subtle and cutting.
At its heart, the novel follows a teenager struggling to keep pace in a rarefied, posh world he never quite belongs to. His attempts to reconcile the pressures of social performance are made even more poignant by his private turmoil — a mother’s illness, a father trying just as hard to belong to a class that would rather keep him on the outside. This dual narrative of family and class tension enriches every chapter, grounding the satire in something deeply human.
The novel’s arc is both surprising and brilliantly controlled. The tension builds slowly but relentlessly, the climactic turn a genuine masterclass in narrative payoff. Rifkind balances the dark with the satirical, using shocks not as gimmicks but as essential pacing devices that jolt the reader forward and deepen the atmosphere.
Deeply, darkly satirical, Rabbits is a novel that manages to be both biting and compassionate, stylish and devastating. It is a dazzling exploration of belonging, class, and identity.
At its heart, the novel follows a teenager struggling to keep pace in a rarefied, posh world he never quite belongs to. His attempts to reconcile the pressures of social performance are made even more poignant by his private turmoil — a mother’s illness, a father trying just as hard to belong to a class that would rather keep him on the outside. This dual narrative of family and class tension enriches every chapter, grounding the satire in something deeply human.
The novel’s arc is both surprising and brilliantly controlled. The tension builds slowly but relentlessly, the climactic turn a genuine masterclass in narrative payoff. Rifkind balances the dark with the satirical, using shocks not as gimmicks but as essential pacing devices that jolt the reader forward and deepen the atmosphere.
Deeply, darkly satirical, Rabbits is a novel that manages to be both biting and compassionate, stylish and devastating. It is a dazzling exploration of belonging, class, and identity.
December 18, 2024
THIS is what I wanted perks of being a wallflower to be !!!
February 24, 2025
It’s the 1990s, with his mother in hospital and his father – a newly successful author – in the US working on a TV deal, teenaged Tom finds himself moved from his Edinburgh state school to a private boarding school. Here he comes into contact with the children of the upper classes who are very different people from those he’s used to, they live in castles, go to balls and shoot things.
Rifkind does a good job of capturing the conflicts of teen life, the need to fit in fighting the desire to be different, self-preservation against the lure of danger. There’s also Tom’s confusion at being thrown into a world where he doesn’t fully understand the rules.
The story is written in a sort of stream of consciousness style which can get a bit wearing as Tom’s thoughts grasshopper around. It’s rescued by the humour though, there are some great throw away lines – loved the one about the gateposts.
There’s quite a lot of time spent describing parties, smoking, drinking and drugs which feels rather indulgent particularly as towards the end, when the action picks up and the building sense of foreboding you’ve had delivers its payoff, it all seems like it’s delivered at a bit of a canter.
‘Saltburn with kilts’ says the blurb. Not really, Saltburn was all style and little substance. There is substance here but the book makes you work hard for it.
Rifkind does a good job of capturing the conflicts of teen life, the need to fit in fighting the desire to be different, self-preservation against the lure of danger. There’s also Tom’s confusion at being thrown into a world where he doesn’t fully understand the rules.
The story is written in a sort of stream of consciousness style which can get a bit wearing as Tom’s thoughts grasshopper around. It’s rescued by the humour though, there are some great throw away lines – loved the one about the gateposts.
There’s quite a lot of time spent describing parties, smoking, drinking and drugs which feels rather indulgent particularly as towards the end, when the action picks up and the building sense of foreboding you’ve had delivers its payoff, it all seems like it’s delivered at a bit of a canter.
‘Saltburn with kilts’ says the blurb. Not really, Saltburn was all style and little substance. There is substance here but the book makes you work hard for it.
July 4, 2025
This was teetering between a 4 and a 5 for me, but I’ve decided to not put too much thought into my criticisms (I did have a couple) and accept it as a 5 because I thoroughly enjoyed it. Great book, gives Scottish Saltburn.
November 16, 2025
Absolutely loved this one. A really fun combination of A Secret History, Saltburn, and even a little Demon Copperhead in the narration style, with the added bonus of being set in Scotland. Bonus points because all of the pubs that the characters went to in the book are real places that I walked by on my way to class in Edinburgh. Definitely recommend!
did-not-finish
September 5, 2024DNF @50%.
This was one of my bookclub’s suggested summer reading and I’m glad that I gave it a go.
In a different period of my life I would have finished this book, even if I struggle to relate in any way with this first person narrator. But right now I don’t have the patience to read (what seems to be) the ramblings of a teen who interacts with (what looks like 100 of) his peers.
This was one of my bookclub’s suggested summer reading and I’m glad that I gave it a go.
In a different period of my life I would have finished this book, even if I struggle to relate in any way with this first person narrator. But right now I don’t have the patience to read (what seems to be) the ramblings of a teen who interacts with (what looks like 100 of) his peers.
June 23, 2024
This book was an unexpected delight. It’s so good I plan to reread it soon, to pick up on all the things I missed first time round.
I’ll admit I probably wouldn’t have reserved this book if I hadn’t known of the author, and enjoyed his columns in The Times. That said, the book deserves to be better known.
The story is of teenagers at a posh Scottish boarding school, their associated friends and families. The thrust of the plot could be said to be about how these aristocrats are still hanging on to their perceived superiority but limited money means that they are no longer able to live the life they expect and aren’t relevant. It could also be said to be about how teenage boys behave. Having a son of about the same age as the protagonists, I was shocked about how a) they behaved here and b) what they thought, or rather, didn’t think about others. There was definitely a lack of understanding and empathy for anyone else.
I’m tempted to knock a point off because of the many characters too quickly introduced at the start, all the smoking and drug taking (my son and his age group have never smoked and I’m optimistic that they never took drugs to the extent shown here), the fact that the impact of Wilbur’s arrival wasn’t expanded upon much sooner, and all the mentioning of “but I’ll come onto that later” i.e. dropping things into the story then deferring details till later, but I’m feeling generous this morning.
I’ll admit I probably wouldn’t have reserved this book if I hadn’t known of the author, and enjoyed his columns in The Times. That said, the book deserves to be better known.
The story is of teenagers at a posh Scottish boarding school, their associated friends and families. The thrust of the plot could be said to be about how these aristocrats are still hanging on to their perceived superiority but limited money means that they are no longer able to live the life they expect and aren’t relevant. It could also be said to be about how teenage boys behave. Having a son of about the same age as the protagonists, I was shocked about how a) they behaved here and b) what they thought, or rather, didn’t think about others. There was definitely a lack of understanding and empathy for anyone else.
I’m tempted to knock a point off because of the many characters too quickly introduced at the start, all the smoking and drug taking (my son and his age group have never smoked and I’m optimistic that they never took drugs to the extent shown here), the fact that the impact of Wilbur’s arrival wasn’t expanded upon much sooner, and all the mentioning of “but I’ll come onto that later” i.e. dropping things into the story then deferring details till later, but I’m feeling generous this morning.
July 14, 2024
I enjoyed this book, having been promised a Scottish Saltburn, which spanned a great amount of time and opened a window into the fading world of the aristocracy and how out of touch they were rapidly becoming at the turn of the millennium.
The darker themes alluded to at the beginning of the book didn’t feel as well explored as they could have been. I get that the purpose may have been to present a darker undercurrent but when it is set up as the basis of the plot I felt it should have been explored more as the narrative developed. The end result was a close which felt rushed, even if it was an unexpected ending.
Overall an enjoyable read but I didn’t feel the plot was fully explored in the time available.
The darker themes alluded to at the beginning of the book didn’t feel as well explored as they could have been. I get that the purpose may have been to present a darker undercurrent but when it is set up as the basis of the plot I felt it should have been explored more as the narrative developed. The end result was a close which felt rushed, even if it was an unexpected ending.
Overall an enjoyable read but I didn’t feel the plot was fully explored in the time available.
September 3, 2024
Masterfully written. What initially feels like a public school romp and a stereotype of the upper classes unravels into a tale of friendship, loyalty, love and loss. It is a hilarious book for most of it with a fluidity in its hilarity but also a deeply moving, modern coming-of-age storyline
I didn’t think I’d enjoy this book as much as I did. Highly recommended - even if you don’t like rabbits, in fact even if you do!
I didn’t think I’d enjoy this book as much as I did. Highly recommended - even if you don’t like rabbits, in fact even if you do!
Read
January 16, 2025Such a disturbing cover but I really like Hugo Rifkind, so….
The story starts with Johnnie’s brother’s head being blown off in a car. Tommo is the protagonist, and we follow him through his now more privileged (due to father’s success with the sale of his butler books) life, public school boys (ugh), life in Scotland , people who live in castles, farmers, wealth, lost wealth, land ownership, and massive privilege.
It reads like Rifkind speaks, especially when he directly addresses the reader, which makes it feel somewhat autobiographical so I had to keep reminding myself Tom was not Hugo. I did wonder whether how much of this sort of behaviour he had seen or experienced. The hunting and the barbarity? The gralloch??
It’s a brutal world, and one I was glad to leave.
The story starts with Johnnie’s brother’s head being blown off in a car. Tommo is the protagonist, and we follow him through his now more privileged (due to father’s success with the sale of his butler books) life, public school boys (ugh), life in Scotland , people who live in castles, farmers, wealth, lost wealth, land ownership, and massive privilege.
It reads like Rifkind speaks, especially when he directly addresses the reader, which makes it feel somewhat autobiographical so I had to keep reminding myself Tom was not Hugo. I did wonder whether how much of this sort of behaviour he had seen or experienced. The hunting and the barbarity? The gralloch??
It’s a brutal world, and one I was glad to leave.
February 3, 2025
The closest I got to the society described here was a cousin who went to a Scottish boarding school, then on a gold card spending frenzy with pals and was reputedly made to do horrible dares. But this rings very true to what I observed of that small group of people when I was at Edinburgh Uni. The nuances of Scottish high society are well observed- and the sheer smallness of the circles in which they move compared to England. Rifkind's sad story of Tommo's mum has the ring of truth about it of course - and Tommo's inadequacy as a teenager to process the situation.
It is a drug fuelled romp through the upper classes from the classic outsider- the small put downs from those apparently laid back and lovely people really sting.
It is a drug fuelled romp through the upper classes from the classic outsider- the small put downs from those apparently laid back and lovely people really sting.
January 5, 2025
A bit of a slow burner this one wasn’t what I was expecting, but a good read. Its dark, disturbing yet funny atmosphere was interesting but it kind of left a sour taste in my mouth. As it was a dark more spinster version of Saltburn but on crack. So I was expecting a bit more and it felt like there were just a lot of gaps in the story.
3.5
3.5
July 6, 2025
A coming of age story set in Scotland in the 1990s. It follows the adventures of Tommo as he joins an elite boarding school and becomes part of the upper set and witnesses firsthand the madness of the gentry and nouveau riche. Darkly entertaining, it's a glimpse into another world.
December 1, 2025
I left this book about 30 percent in and then came back to it later . This was a good book, some parts dragged a little , and there was an awful lot of back and forth in parts but it was an overall good solid read and I liked the Scottish representation.
July 16, 2025
Tommo, your story made me cry.
August 14, 2025
honestly reminded me of the secret history in some ways. was fun being able to put a picture to all the edinburgh terminology. seeing people you genuinely liked as a character turn into something of a villain killed me just a bit. definitely want to re read soon
July 7, 2025
Exceptional gut punch of a novel that starts as a rural coming of age full of hedonism and humour, and spins out into an emotionally charged, lovely, sad book.
September 10, 2025
you can’t cling onto things that are crumbling. Because you will break your nails
December 12, 2025
I guess you had to be there. Not quite what it promises to be. And I don't know who this Hugo is but he seems to have a lot of friends saying nice but misleading things about this story. My summary would be: coming of age landed Scottish school boys drinking, taking drugs, going to parties, being confused about life with lots of 90s UK/Scottish culture references. They went out shooting rabbits quite a bit at one stage.
July 23, 2024
This was a refreshing change compared to the type of books I’ve read lately. When I saw this marketed as ‘Saltburn with kilts’, I was pretty much sold. Not sure how much I agree with that comparison though, it leaned more to Secret History/dark academia vibes. I loved the Scottish setting!! Tommo was an interesting narrator who I liked but at times found a little try hard and cringe. I enjoyed the mystery within this too and thought it concluded well. I really enjoyed this one but wish at times the pace picked up a little. Overall a solid 3.5/4 star. Can’t properly decide so have rounded up!
May 30, 2025
Great views of Edinburgh. Tailed off a bit towards the end but I had a great time.
June 6, 2025
A long and repetitive account of posh people playing at being not posh and then being sad about not being posh enough.
January 15, 2025
4,75⭐️
„It makes me think, now, how often I took those trips for granted. How I thought, or knew, or thought I knew, that there would always be the next place, as open as the last; a whole doomed world teetering on the edge of an entropy I recognised even then, and perhaps even revelled in, but without ever quite grasping what entropy entails. And it has taught me, I suppose, that you can't cling on to things that are crumbling. Because you will break your nails, and you will fall, and then you will look back up and wonder how it can be that something which once seemed as solid as stone itself is now barely there at all.“
„His clothes were always falling apart, but in exactly the right way, which meant his bollocks never quite hung out. More than that, though, he just seemed to embody ... well, everything. Everything that this new world of mine was about. Or, at least, everything I wanted it to be about. He knew guns, drugs, hillsides, girls who would lead you by the hand into barns. If Alan hovered above it all, as if forever destined to be somewhere else, then Johnnie rose up right out of it, like a mushroom from its mycelium base. Even today, when I miss it all, I miss it all through him.“
„It makes me think, now, how often I took those trips for granted. How I thought, or knew, or thought I knew, that there would always be the next place, as open as the last; a whole doomed world teetering on the edge of an entropy I recognised even then, and perhaps even revelled in, but without ever quite grasping what entropy entails. And it has taught me, I suppose, that you can't cling on to things that are crumbling. Because you will break your nails, and you will fall, and then you will look back up and wonder how it can be that something which once seemed as solid as stone itself is now barely there at all.“
„His clothes were always falling apart, but in exactly the right way, which meant his bollocks never quite hung out. More than that, though, he just seemed to embody ... well, everything. Everything that this new world of mine was about. Or, at least, everything I wanted it to be about. He knew guns, drugs, hillsides, girls who would lead you by the hand into barns. If Alan hovered above it all, as if forever destined to be somewhere else, then Johnnie rose up right out of it, like a mushroom from its mycelium base. Even today, when I miss it all, I miss it all through him.“
Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews