The Thread - Victoria Hislop > Reviews (3)

Victoria Hislop has, for the past few years, been one of the most consistently exciting authors in the UK. With page turners such as The Island selling by the Million, I was awaiting her latest title “The Thread” with much excitement. This is very unusual for me as I tend not to read much fiction work preferring factual books, so that goes some way to suggesting how I consider this author to stand out above the current crop.

Again, I have to say that I am not disappointed and I could use all the clichés for reviewing books such as “could not put it down”, “page turner” etc etc and each one would be true. Hislop has an uncanny knack of involving the reader from the very first page to the last, writing in an emotional, enthralling and involving way which will see her continue to be a success for years to come.

The premise for the book is a simple story of enduring and old fashioned love. With the book opening and ending in modern day Greece it would be easy to fall into the trap so many books do of this sort and rely on flashbacks and corner cutting. What Hislop does with the tale though is craft it into a heart-warming classic. Although sentimental and emotional this is never over done in a cheesy way and the simple love story develops into themes of growing up, maturity and the tale of changing times.

The way Hislop handles the sometimes complex narrative here is testament to her skill. Lesser authors would leave readers feeling a little dazed and confused with the interweaving storyline and plot points but Hislop marries the two together with a class and skill that is hard to master. This makes the reader attentive and avoids pushing them away.

The characters themselves are well fleshed out and instantly relatable, they have depth and the dialogue between them is carefully thought out. The pace of the novel is a key point as Hislop doesn’t allow things to linger and get dragged down into sentimental gush, instead she fosters a truly human tale that is not only believable but tugs at the heart strings.

Sometimes I feel novels/stories that focus on enduring love are too “false” and “fairytale” like but this is the complete opposite and what we are treated to here is, like I have said, a novel grounded in reality and one that anyone who has been in love can relate to in an instant.

Low key, subtle and in many ways traditional this is an essential read for anyone who en joys good writing. As a rare reader of fiction I have found in Hislop an author with the human touch and one who I am sure will touch many heart strings with the Thread.