Rating: 
Summary: A Serious American Writer
Review: Kate Christensen's misanthropic Hugo Whittier is as credible and full of depth as Gustave Flaubert's tragic Emma Bovary. Her language scintillates and dances on the page the way Nabokov's does. I believe, Ms. Christensen has established herself as a great and serious American writer with this third novel. Not only are The Epicure's characters dimensional and fascinating, the novel is intelligent, hilarious, poignant, lush, and plot-driven--overall just extremely compelling. Thank goodness, Ms. Christensen does not water anything down with that political correctitude that has been getting oh-so-tired and has made most contemporary literature thin as vegan broth. This book is as delectable, pungent and complex as Hugo's carefully prepared dishes. I couldn't put it down and found that by book's end I had fallen head over heals in love with the wonderfully despicable and endearing Hugo.
Rating:
Summary: Just Terrific
Review: Kate Christensen's The Epicure's Lament is just terrific. Her story of Hugo Whittier, a likeable misanthrope is addictive, engaging and so well-written. Hugo is a great character--he's got tremendous flaws, but you can't hate him, he's just too charming. At the start of the novel, he is living out what he believes to be his final days as his family home in New York state. He smokes (and the cigarettes are literally killing him), he cooks and his sole human contact appears to be with the checkout girl who sells him his cigarettes. He enjoys his solitude immensely and is thus unhappy that his older brother, Dennis has moved back into the home after his own marriage breaks up. Dennis' return is just the beginning, Hugo's wife and daughter return, as does an older uncle. Christensen handles this all well, there is nothing cute about all these people showing up at this home, probably because there is nothing cute about Hugo. Hugo is forced to make more forays into the outside world. He is a wonderful cynic, it's a pleasure to get inside his head. Very well done. Enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: when is she going to write another one?
Review: One of the best novels I've read in ages. I couldn't put it down. Full of energy, insight and thoroughly engaging (in the best sense). I look forward to reading it again.
Rating: 
Summary: Three Cheers for the Misanthropic
Review: One of the most disappointing things about most of the fiction that I've read in the past few years is the lack of character development. Good guys are normally easy to spot, notwithstanding a stereotypical flaw - whether it be wine, women, or other. Bad guys are all cruel and calculating genuises with tortured childhoods. Sometimes the stories are good, but the characters are the same.The best thing about The Epicure's Lament is that Ms. Christesen has given us a true character with depth. He's mean, completely self-absorbed, and lazy. He's more than happy to allow himself to rot in his parents' mansion while sucking down endless cigarettes and whiskey while planning his next mean quip. Hugo Whittier is a a true curmudgeon with few apparent redeeming values. You want to dislike him, but you also find him compelling. He claims that he justs wants to be left alone, but in his relationships with his brother, his paramour, and his ex-wife, I found myself wondering whether anyone can truly be an island unto himself. Beyond a wonderful character portrayal, Ms. Christensen is a wonderful writer. She has a rich and abundant vocabulary that reminded me of Nabakov in her use of arcane words to illustrate a scene or pepper a conversation. The wordplay never distracts from the story, which moves at a good pace.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant, Breathtaking
Review: This book is so good--and in so many ways--I feel inadaquate to the task of praising it. The Epicure's Lament is just astonishingly well written--a joy to read.. Funny, dark, incongruously compassionate and true in most terrible and entertaining fashion. After setting up house in Hugo Whittier's twisted brain, the reader will be reluctant to leave. I closed the book and immediately revisited MFK Fisher and Montaigne (both of whom figure prominently in narrator Hugo's world view), desperately wanting more. This is scary-good writing. Words like "tour de force", "breathtaking" and "brilliant" come immediately to mind.
If you found yourself seduced by Nabokov's Humbert you'll love Hugo.
Awe-inspiring.
Rating:
Summary: Black Comedy at it's Best
Review: This is going to be on my "best of 2004" list. This novel is very very funny, and very dark. In quick summary, without giving away any plot secrets, this is the story about a man who is prepared to live the remainder of his life alone, but then has to "put up with" a series of relatives and others who come live with him. And this does not make Hugo happy, to say the least. Hugo Whittier is a curmudgeon. He is sarcastic, rude, incredibly intelligent, and does not suffer fools lightly. Oh, and he is dying. He doesn't have to die, but he is unwilling to give up smoking which is making his condition worse. This is an entertaining book, with with some very clever prose and dialogue. I was hooked at page one. Read Hugo's story, and about how life can throw you some surprising turns, even if you are determined to dodge them. Highly recommended.
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