Year 9, Book 80

80. The Hundred Year House by Rebecca Makkai

Zee Devohrs and her husband Doug live in the carriage house on the grounds of her parents large mansion once home to an artists’ colony. Doug is trying to earn his way into a tenured faculty position by writing a book about an artist who once stayed at the colony but hits a brick wall every time he tries to get any information about that time from Gracie, Zee’s mother. The novel moves backwards through time revealing more of the story of the house and its inhabitants until you discover the secrets that everyone has been trying to conceal.

I like the conceit of the book, but I really just couldn’t get into that much. I didn’t care about the characters and although I didn’t see the reveal coming I also wasn’t that interested in it either. I give it a 4 out of 10.