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smtornio's review against another edition
3.0
On the whole, I found this one less than satisfying—with Nabokov’s characteristically slimy and unreliable meta-narrator not quite working — but the initial section was certainly “dream-bright”.
shadyseal64's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
chatdemoiselle's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
5.0
baztoe's review against another edition
5.0
Could have done with fewer essays on time and more incestuous sex, but on the whole a brilliant book.
My favourite passage:
"No doubt he was morally right in using the first pretext at hand to keep her away from his bed; but he also knew, as a gentleman and an artist, that the lump of words he brought up was trite and cruel, and it was only because she could not accept him as being either, that she believed him:
'can I come now?' asked Lucette.
'I'm not alone,' answered Van.
A small pause followed; then she hung up."
All the characters are entirely unsympathetic, but Lucette is just so pitiful, and Nabokov was able to surmise the tragedy of her love so eloquently in only 4 sentences, it truly moved me.
Loved the constant Anna Karenina references.
Nabokov is far and away my favourite writer now.
My favourite passage:
"No doubt he was morally right in using the first pretext at hand to keep her away from his bed; but he also knew, as a gentleman and an artist, that the lump of words he brought up was trite and cruel, and it was only because she could not accept him as being either, that she believed him:
'can I come now?' asked Lucette.
'I'm not alone,' answered Van.
A small pause followed; then she hung up."
All the characters are entirely unsympathetic, but Lucette is just so pitiful, and Nabokov was able to surmise the tragedy of her love so eloquently in only 4 sentences, it truly moved me.
Loved the constant Anna Karenina references.
Nabokov is far and away my favourite writer now.
frtps's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Exuberant, multi-faceted, fascinating.
synthia02's review against another edition
2.0
The first 4 chapters were really difficult to get through. The story then picks up but there is a lot of back and forth and sidetracked thoughts throughout the chapters. The story also takes place in a world where there are similar countries to ours but not really. This fact is irrelevant to the main plot of the story- simply confusing. I wanted to put down this book on more than one occasion but the style is easy flowing so after some skimming, I was back on track with the big picture.
tyler_paranoia's review against another edition
4.0
This was my first ever Nabakov, and it was a challenge. I wish the religious and socio-economic parallel universe had been explained more.
amerynth's review against another edition
2.0
I spent the better part of a month wading through Vladimir Nabokov's novel "Ada, or Ardor." I generally found this a struggle to get through (though it got somewhat easier by the end) and a bit disappointing. I couldn't help comparing this to "Lolita," which was brilliant in the ways it attempted to make the reader sympathize with a totally repugnant character and this novel just manage to get there.
This book is about man named Van, who has a lifelong incestuous affair with his sister Ada (whom he initially believes is his cousin, which doesn't make it much better.)
I found the bulk of the novel -- which sets up the relationship between the two characters to be a bit boring. It got better when the story got moving (except for that weird time section, which was way over my head.) Overall, I just found this to be disappointing.
This book is about man named Van, who has a lifelong incestuous affair with his sister Ada (whom he initially believes is his cousin, which doesn't make it much better.)
I found the bulk of the novel -- which sets up the relationship between the two characters to be a bit boring. It got better when the story got moving (except for that weird time section, which was way over my head.) Overall, I just found this to be disappointing.