The Blue Hour by Paula Hawkins
In her latest addictive novel, The Blue Hour, Paula Hawkins immediately captures her readers’ attention through deception, beautiful art, and complicated characters. While this recipe is Hawkins’ bread and butter, we see a new side to her storytelling that we have not seen in the past.
When art curator James Becker, “Becker”, is alerted to the fact that one of Vanessa Chapman’s famous sculptures is made of human remains, he is shocked. Artists can be quirky, but having idolized Vanessa all of his life he is speechless. There must be a mistake. So naturally, he sets out to Eris Island where her longtime companion currently resides in Vanessa’s former home. Though she was reclusive in her later years, she was also enthusiastic, charming, and incredibly creative … and her ex-husband also vanished after visiting her, never to be seen again. But will he get to the bottom of this mystery, or will the rolling tides uncover even more secrets than he bargained for in his pursuit of the true Vanessa Chapman?
The Isolated Life on Eris Island
Welcome to Eris Island — population 1. This home is perfect for those who don’t want to see people, would rather depend on themselves all while devoting themselves to their work and life. Which often are one in the same. The island is only connected to the nearby town for 12 hours a day due to the tide, leaving residents completely at the mercy of the tide. Doesn’t sound like a winner? Well, for Vanessa Chapman, a recently divorced artist, it sounds perfect.
Vanessa’s ex-husband was a leech, always asking for money to pay off his debts, constantly cheating with no remorse, and all while declaring his love for Vanessa and their art. So when she was able to move away, she sought a different life where she could throw herself into her work, only seeing people when she felt like it, and live the existence of a true artist. And then she met Grace, who was devoted to her and a little clingy but what are best friends for? Grace didn’t fit into Vanessa’s life, but she didn’t need to know that. Best keep this friendship on the island, isolated where it belongs.
Flash forward 20 years, and James Becker is the art curator of Vanessa Chapman’s artistic estate, which was left to Fairburn after her death. He has idolized her ever since he discovered she was the artist behind his mother’s favorite painting which he still has to this day. She was complicated, wild and a total mystery to him. A mystery that he would do anything to solve, just to get a little bit closer to her. But the Fairburn has been played, and Vanessa’s long time companion and the executor of her estate, Grac, is holding back important pieces of the artistic estate. So he goes to visit her to try and get to the bottom of things, and he gets a lot more than he’s bargained for.
A Devoted Friend or a Misunderstood Outcast?
Grace is misunderstood, she was Vanessa’s best friend for Christ’s sake, so why doesn’t anyone seem to remember (or know) that?! So when she has the chance to speak to Becker about the estate, this could also be her chance to make a friend, something that she has struggled to do all her life. Friendships have ebbs and flows, just like the tide, but Grace always puts her best foot forward. She’s dedicated, and loyal and would do anything to make sure her people are supported. And if people always overlook her, well that’s okay. That’s how she likes it. Right?
This cast of characters makes one thing explicitly clear; that everyone has secrets. And they’re not always straight forward.
A Masterpiece of Deception and Art
This book is fast paced, beautifully descriptive but also chaotic and totally up for interpretation by the reader. I would bet that if we compared notes, we would have a totally different take away from this book and its characters.
After reflecting on my experience, this whole book is almost like an art review; totally subjective and incredibly layered. The way Hawkins writes about a host of characters, all unlikeable in their own ways, makes it so tough for the reader to form an opinion. So you wait to see what comes next, because certainly the true characters will be revealed! But just like when you’re looking at a beautiful piece of art, you may never be presented with all of the facts and so you need to draw your own conclusions.
The Blue Hour shows the depth that Paula Hawkins has to her artistic pallet while continuing to immerse the reader in these worlds she builds much like her other books. She is a master of detail, and nothing is too small. She paints a beautiful picture of legacy, and how far we will go to feel like we belong in a world that is not always kind. It’s a thought-provoking message that is a consistent thread throughout the book. This is a masterfully twisty thriller that is perfect for spooky season, one that will remain in your thoughts long after the last page.
About Paula Hawkins:
Paula Hawkins worked as a journalist for fifteen years before writing her first novel. Born and brought up in Zimbabwe, she moved to London in 1989. Her first thriller The Girl on the Train became a global phenomenon, selling over 23 million copies. Published in over fifty languages, it was a No.1 bestseller around the world and a box-office-hit film starring Emily Blunt. Paula’s most recent thrillers, Into the Water and A Slow Fire Burning, were also instant No.1 bestsellers. In 2021 A Slow Fire Burning was nominated for Thriller of the Year at the British Book Awards. Her upcoming thriller, The Blue Hour, will be published around the world in October 2024.
