I was offered a copy of this book in audio format from the narrator in exchange for an honest review.
The complete title of this book is ‘Violations of Causality: a Skip Gershwin Mystery’, and there is a bit of mystery here, but the main subject in this book is Skip, a self-absorbed 23 years old student, obsessed about his poetry, which struggles trying to keep two different relationships: Gudrun, the Austrian au-pair, and Luna, the art student. Unable to decide between the two, he will try to carelessly keep both romances. In the meantime there is a mystery at the campus: Astronomy Professor Harold Berwyn has been murdered, but the killer has not yet been found.
I was expecting a bit more mystery, given the title of this book, but we are otherwise given a story set in the 80’s about college students, full of surprises and hilarious moments. We discover every character and event in this book through the eyes of Skip, getting a colored vision of what really happened. We get introduced to many characters, so many that I had troubles to remember each of them from time to time, not knowing which ones could be of importance later on in the story. This is one of the key points in this book, since we will get surprised in many ways about what really happened.
There is also a bit of mystery, but that part will not get fully developed until the end of the book, and also a strange sci-fi element related to the dead Professor.
The sci-fi in this story is quite laughable, and I think it goes nicely with the rest of the story, bordering on the absurd.
The chapters are very short, and this makes it suitable for listening at random moments during the day. I tend to listen audiobooks while running errands or performing chores at home, so this length was perfect for it.
All in all it was a very enjoyable read, full of surprises and with very funny moments. The choice of Joe Hempel as a narrator was spot on. He delivered each character in a special way, imitating accents and putting emphasis on the funny aspects of the story. I had a blast listening to this book.
If you are looking for a book different than the rest, a relaxed listen, and something to laugh, I encourage you to listen to this book. Just don’t be put off by the tacky cover.
My name is Elena. Since I was a little child I loved science fiction and fantasy, and I can’t resist a good novel. In 2015, while wait I started to listen to audiobooks and I discovered the pleasure in being able to read while doing my daily tasks, so there’s always an audiobook playing on my phone. If you see me with my Bluetooth headphones on, please be gentle, I get easily startled.
I live with my boyfriend, which I met during my six-year stay in Belgium, four cockatiels, eight lovebirds, and a hamster in Madrid, Spain; and I like to spend my free time knitting and sewing while listening to audiobooks.
