I was suprised and delighted when the book arrived on Christmas Eve, like a present. With family from the US staying for 3 weeks over the holiday period, I've was only able to get started on it a few days ago, after they left. I found the descriptive blurb enticing, which is why I applied for a copy of the book, but having started it I'm afraid I've fallen into the "not for me" camp, and am with NannaAnna on some of the points she makes.
I've tried several times to engage with the story, and also wonder if something has been lost in translation as I found the style dull and the pace slow. I didn't really care what happened to the characters, and although Martha, as a retired teacher, has something about her, I started to feel the whole atmosphere of the story was quite claustrophobic and repetitive.
This set me wondering if this was a deliberate device on the part of the author - was purpose of the author to make the reader feel like one of the residents of the home? Or was it just my response? And was the use of comparing the way the home was run with a prison a social/political comment on the way old people are treated in homes, i.e. worse than prisoners? I've worked as a geriatric social work assistant, and I'd say that the home where the characters live is a pretty bad one!
Afraid the book wasn't for me at all, but my questions for Catharina are:
Those mentioned above, plus
Did you visit several old person's homes in your research for this book -good and bad?
Did you have a yen to write a crime novel and decide to set it in this quirky format?