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Corrupted Humours, A Novel
"A fever dream...an engaging, serpentine, and multi-layered tale of death, passion, and people." - Kirkus Reviews
" Complex protagonists and their interwoven narratives create a distinctive literary mystery with a bent toward the philosophical." - BookLife
Corrupted Humours , a literary mystery told in two braided narratives, opens with the unexplained explosion of Albert Snaedeker, a psychiatrist, on the operating table during routine surgery. His cousin, an oil heir and publisher of Angle magazine, pressured by Snaedeker's sister, assigns his reporter and sometime novelist, Owen Berk, to investigate.
Berk not only pursues the whodunnit, howdunnit questions but, intrigued by the bizarre death and the people surrounding it, turns them into characters in a new novel. In it, Snaedeker's surgeon's depressed wife has an imagined flowering when she is indoctrinated into the world of S/M. We read Berk's novel in alternating chapters with the framing novel, uncertain of the interior novel's relationship to the larger narration, until they converge and Berk falls in love with the now-divorced wife of the surgeon, wondering how much of his passion is for her, how much for the fantasy figure he has turned her into.
" Complex protagonists and their interwoven narratives create a distinctive literary mystery with a bent toward the philosophical." - BookLife
Corrupted Humours , a literary mystery told in two braided narratives, opens with the unexplained explosion of Albert Snaedeker, a psychiatrist, on the operating table during routine surgery. His cousin, an oil heir and publisher of Angle magazine, pressured by Snaedeker's sister, assigns his reporter and sometime novelist, Owen Berk, to investigate.
Berk not only pursues the whodunnit, howdunnit questions but, intrigued by the bizarre death and the people surrounding it, turns them into characters in a new novel. In it, Snaedeker's surgeon's depressed wife has an imagined flowering when she is indoctrinated into the world of S/M. We read Berk's novel in alternating chapters with the framing novel, uncertain of the interior novel's relationship to the larger narration, until they converge and Berk falls in love with the now-divorced wife of the surgeon, wondering how much of his passion is for her, how much for the fantasy figure he has turned her into.
302 pages, Paperback
First published August 29, 2020
About the author
Donald Friedman
22 books43 followersSometime trial attorney and perennial procrastinator, presently novelist, short story writer, and essayist, I’m the author of the multiply translated The Writer’s Brush, Paintings, Drawings, and Sculpture by Writers, which The New York Times Sunday Book Review described as “sparkling audaciously on every page,” and which the American Libraries Association called “a grand feat of research and interpretation.” My first novel, The Hand Before the Eye, black comic and shot through with religious themes—praised by Publishers Weekly for “its impassioned finale of spiritual redemption,” was a Vanity Fair Hot Type Recommendation. You’re My Dawg, Dog: A Lexicon of Dog Terms for People, has brought pleasure equally to dog and word lovers.
I was born in Philip Roth’s neighborhood, the Weequahic section of Newark, New Jersey, but did most of my growing up in suburban South Orange. There, at ten, I enrolled in private art classes and began oil painting which continued through high school.
At Washington University, St. Louis, where, apart from occasional cartoon contributions to the college paper and private sketching, my art career came to an end, and my creative impulses were mainly expressed in fiction writing. It was then that I sensed a connection between the urge to draw and paint and to write, but had no idea what it could be. When I ran across a reference to D. H. Lawrence’s paintings it made an impression; as did a book of Henry Miller’s watercolors that someone gave me not long after.
In the years that followed graduation, after I’d gotten my J.D. from Rutgers Law School and an L.L.M. from New York University Law School, had started practicing law, married and raised two children, I continued to make notes about writers who were artists from which The Writer’s Brush eventuated. I also began to study fiction writing and to write in the early morning before going to work. Now I have three novels under my belt and a fourth in the works.
I was born in Philip Roth’s neighborhood, the Weequahic section of Newark, New Jersey, but did most of my growing up in suburban South Orange. There, at ten, I enrolled in private art classes and began oil painting which continued through high school.
At Washington University, St. Louis, where, apart from occasional cartoon contributions to the college paper and private sketching, my art career came to an end, and my creative impulses were mainly expressed in fiction writing. It was then that I sensed a connection between the urge to draw and paint and to write, but had no idea what it could be. When I ran across a reference to D. H. Lawrence’s paintings it made an impression; as did a book of Henry Miller’s watercolors that someone gave me not long after.
In the years that followed graduation, after I’d gotten my J.D. from Rutgers Law School and an L.L.M. from New York University Law School, had started practicing law, married and raised two children, I continued to make notes about writers who were artists from which The Writer’s Brush eventuated. I also began to study fiction writing and to write in the early morning before going to work. Now I have three novels under my belt and a fourth in the works.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 69 reviews
August 26, 2020
DNF. I hate giving bad reviews, but I don't know what I was thinking when I downloaded this book. I read for about half an hour before I decided to cut my losses and squander my precious time elsewhere. I enjoyed neither the plot nor the writing style. Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest opinion. I'm sorry Mr. Friedman and Bottle Turtle Press / Bookbaby that I did not find this book more enjoyable.
January 16, 2021
Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book via netgalley!
So I didn’t hate this book nor did I like it...it took me a while to figure why. The story is good, it reads more like a diary type or a movie script. But it’s not formatted to read like that which is why it becomes cumbersome for the reader. It’s a shame because the storyline has good potential but it is lost in the uneven flow of this book. You have to read it To judge for yourself...
So I didn’t hate this book nor did I like it...it took me a while to figure why. The story is good, it reads more like a diary type or a movie script. But it’s not formatted to read like that which is why it becomes cumbersome for the reader. It’s a shame because the storyline has good potential but it is lost in the uneven flow of this book. You have to read it To judge for yourself...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 31, 2020
When Dr. Snaedeker dies unexpectedly on the operating table - a routine polyp removal ending in a literal explosion of his intestines - his sister Betty is convinced something nefarious occurred despite the various investigations into the incident that were performed and deemed the incident an accident or Dr. Snaedeker’s own fault. She seeks help from her cousin Skip who employs Owen Berk, a writer and former private investigator, to look into the matter.
Berk begins his investigation into the odd and ultimately deathly event. Dr. Snaedeker suffered from a disease in which his body could not process starches properly and made his body produce an abnormally large amount of gasses and flatulence. The hospital and other investigators have concluded this disorder coupled with the doctor’s own negligence in the pre procedure process caused his unfortunate demise.
Researching the death acts as a sort of muse for Berk and as we learn of his findings during the investigation, we are also presented with his novel which is based off the people in Dr. Snaedeker’s life.
This was an incredibly unique and hyper sexualized novel with varying, intertwined storylines. We follow Berk’s love life and infatuation with a woman nearly a third of his 60+ years, the bizarre death of the doctor, the doctor’s unorthodox and illegal practice methods, and Berk’s novel about the Chatelaine. I most enjoyed the story about the Chatelaine and her exploration into her own sexuality.
Admittedly, the story was a bit confusing and I actually didn’t realize the Chatelaine’s story was Berk’s novel until a ways into the book. The overlap between the “real” and fictional characters was very blurred but I think that added a really nice literary element to the book.
If you can stick with it and can handle the bizarre (and honestly gross) medical disorder and discussions, I think this one is worth it and I am happy to have read it. It’s unlike any other novel I have read before.
Thank you to NetGalley, BookishFirst, and the publisher for a copy of this novel.
Berk begins his investigation into the odd and ultimately deathly event. Dr. Snaedeker suffered from a disease in which his body could not process starches properly and made his body produce an abnormally large amount of gasses and flatulence. The hospital and other investigators have concluded this disorder coupled with the doctor’s own negligence in the pre procedure process caused his unfortunate demise.
Researching the death acts as a sort of muse for Berk and as we learn of his findings during the investigation, we are also presented with his novel which is based off the people in Dr. Snaedeker’s life.
This was an incredibly unique and hyper sexualized novel with varying, intertwined storylines. We follow Berk’s love life and infatuation with a woman nearly a third of his 60+ years, the bizarre death of the doctor, the doctor’s unorthodox and illegal practice methods, and Berk’s novel about the Chatelaine. I most enjoyed the story about the Chatelaine and her exploration into her own sexuality.
Admittedly, the story was a bit confusing and I actually didn’t realize the Chatelaine’s story was Berk’s novel until a ways into the book. The overlap between the “real” and fictional characters was very blurred but I think that added a really nice literary element to the book.
If you can stick with it and can handle the bizarre (and honestly gross) medical disorder and discussions, I think this one is worth it and I am happy to have read it. It’s unlike any other novel I have read before.
Thank you to NetGalley, BookishFirst, and the publisher for a copy of this novel.
September 3, 2020
Thank You so much to Bookish First for the e-ARC of Corrupted Humours by Donald Friedman.
When I originally read the excerpt, the book sounded like another vaguely cynical medical valentine for healthcare workers in the vein of House of God, but it really wasn't.
Corrupted Humours had it's merits, a few ridiculous fart jokes and some things that I could definitely appreciate as a nurse. Some of his surgeon insights are spot on ha ha
It took me quite a while to figure out where the book-within-a-book was going, before I realized that the storylines were vaguely tied together as characters from real life were being placed into the reporter's story.
The writing style in general was just dry and hard to follow for me. The characters were intermittently funny but it was hard to keep anything in my mind due to the unreadability of it.
Overall: I'm thinking an aging surgeon with a lot of self importance would love this, but the layperson might not comb through the entire book to get to the bottom of the explosive gas mystery.
When I originally read the excerpt, the book sounded like another vaguely cynical medical valentine for healthcare workers in the vein of House of God, but it really wasn't.
Corrupted Humours had it's merits, a few ridiculous fart jokes and some things that I could definitely appreciate as a nurse. Some of his surgeon insights are spot on ha ha
It took me quite a while to figure out where the book-within-a-book was going, before I realized that the storylines were vaguely tied together as characters from real life were being placed into the reporter's story.
The writing style in general was just dry and hard to follow for me. The characters were intermittently funny but it was hard to keep anything in my mind due to the unreadability of it.
Overall: I'm thinking an aging surgeon with a lot of self importance would love this, but the layperson might not comb through the entire book to get to the bottom of the explosive gas mystery.
September 11, 2020
Corrupted Humours begins with a very interesting premise: Dr. Snaedeker, a physician, explodes during a routine operation on his GI tract. The deceased’s cousin asks a reporter and novelist, Owen Berk, to investigate the bizarre death.
Without Corrupted Humors, I would not know it was medically possible to be so full of hot air (read: farts) you could literally blow up. Many a good mystery kicks off by teaching the reader something wild, weird, or wonderful about the human body. This is not that book.
Instead, after Dr. Snaedeker's flatulence injures an entire OR, we are forced to spend time with Owen – a character full of his own sour humor and a penchant for bloviating verbally and in print.
Owen is a writer, as he reminds us at nearly every turn. He's also, apparently, an amateur sleuth who will take on the case of exploding physicians and simultaneously write a fictional novel about the wife of said physician. The book-within-a-book sets Owen up to peer into what this wife, dubbed The Chatelaine, thinks and feels. The narrative then flips back and forth between the book and what is presumably reality.
The problem with Owen, in both his real world accounts, and his fictional take on The Chatelaine, is he comprehends women as the functional equivalent of a skirted symbol on a ladies' room door. The women in this story operate solely to remind the men they are sexual objects to be ordered around, used, and even sexually assaulted at will.
Owen is also a 70-year-old man having sex with a college student he picked up in a park. The suspension of disbelief required to make this man a hot commodity for twenty-somethings is enormous.
For example, Owen describes women in ways like "her pubis warmly spotlighted by a square shaft of sunlight" and "white-capped breasts swayed freely from her chest, like softballs in a stretched sock of skin." I'm unsure if this woman had somehow mastered having pure white areolas, or she had an accident during plastic surgery that really messed up her anatomy. By the time I reached the description of a woman sexily "soaping her pelvis" I physically cringed.
Outside of Owen's incredibly awkward sexual fantasy life, which is 50% of the book, Corrupted Humours is very difficult to read. He references the great Paul Auster more than once, but Auster he decidedly is not. Reading this is like being trapped in conversation with someone who has recently used recreational stimulants and wants to relate every single factoid they've ever learned. The near constant non-sequiturs, and frenetic-style, was distracting and so obtuse I often skipped over them.
Part of what may make this so difficult to digest is the poor formatting on the ebook edition. Without quotation marks, it was nearly impossible to distinguish internal dialogue from spoken word. Whole sentences appear to be missing their ends. I would hope the publication version improves the overall experience.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Without Corrupted Humors, I would not know it was medically possible to be so full of hot air (read: farts) you could literally blow up. Many a good mystery kicks off by teaching the reader something wild, weird, or wonderful about the human body. This is not that book.
Instead, after Dr. Snaedeker's flatulence injures an entire OR, we are forced to spend time with Owen – a character full of his own sour humor and a penchant for bloviating verbally and in print.
Owen is a writer, as he reminds us at nearly every turn. He's also, apparently, an amateur sleuth who will take on the case of exploding physicians and simultaneously write a fictional novel about the wife of said physician. The book-within-a-book sets Owen up to peer into what this wife, dubbed The Chatelaine, thinks and feels. The narrative then flips back and forth between the book and what is presumably reality.
The problem with Owen, in both his real world accounts, and his fictional take on The Chatelaine, is he comprehends women as the functional equivalent of a skirted symbol on a ladies' room door. The women in this story operate solely to remind the men they are sexual objects to be ordered around, used, and even sexually assaulted at will.
Owen is also a 70-year-old man having sex with a college student he picked up in a park. The suspension of disbelief required to make this man a hot commodity for twenty-somethings is enormous.
For example, Owen describes women in ways like "her pubis warmly spotlighted by a square shaft of sunlight" and "white-capped breasts swayed freely from her chest, like softballs in a stretched sock of skin." I'm unsure if this woman had somehow mastered having pure white areolas, or she had an accident during plastic surgery that really messed up her anatomy. By the time I reached the description of a woman sexily "soaping her pelvis" I physically cringed.
Outside of Owen's incredibly awkward sexual fantasy life, which is 50% of the book, Corrupted Humours is very difficult to read. He references the great Paul Auster more than once, but Auster he decidedly is not. Reading this is like being trapped in conversation with someone who has recently used recreational stimulants and wants to relate every single factoid they've ever learned. The near constant non-sequiturs, and frenetic-style, was distracting and so obtuse I often skipped over them.
Part of what may make this so difficult to digest is the poor formatting on the ebook edition. Without quotation marks, it was nearly impossible to distinguish internal dialogue from spoken word. Whole sentences appear to be missing their ends. I would hope the publication version improves the overall experience.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.
January 16, 2021
Thank you to the publisher for a copy of this book via netgalley!
So I didn’t hate this book nor did I like it...it took me a while to figure why. The story is good, it reads more like a diary type or a movie script. But it’s not formatted to read like that which is why it becomes cumbersome for the reader. It’s a shame because the storyline has good potential but it is lost in the uneven flow of this book. You have to read it To judge for yourself...
So I didn’t hate this book nor did I like it...it took me a while to figure why. The story is good, it reads more like a diary type or a movie script. But it’s not formatted to read like that which is why it becomes cumbersome for the reader. It’s a shame because the storyline has good potential but it is lost in the uneven flow of this book. You have to read it To judge for yourself...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 9, 2020
Thank you Netgalley for an e-copy of this. All opinions remain my own.
I felt a little forced to read this sooner rather than later because the Netgalley shelf app said it expires in 37 days... I thought... it won't take me 37 days to finish this book... I straight away considered on this occasions, I may be wrong.
This was not an enjoyable reading experience for. I started confused and I ended (less confused but) feeling rather annoyed that I forced myself to finish this. I didn't get the point and I really didn't care for the plot or the characters or anything thay really happened, as harsh as that may sound.
It was super uncomfortable to read sex scenes that described a position such as "a baby being diapered"... or pulling down her trousers reminded her of pulling snow soaked bottoms off a child.. ew.. why connect the two things. Some little instances actually directed my thoughts to Lolita so when a mention of it was said, I wasn't too shocked.
I couldn't help but notice, that this was yet another book, back to back, where I've noticed the interesting use of not using speech marks. Is this a thing now? Something that is more actively ustilised? I feel like it missed the mark for me this time round because I was already struggling to keep up with what was going on, what with the story within a story, and realising probably too late that it wasn't just a story and also honestly, and I hate saying this, but really not finding it very interesting, entertaining or thought provoking, leaving within me an overall dull and irritated mood. It just wasn't for me.
I guess it taught me a new word because I had no idea what a Chatelain was and speaking of her... I didn't understand the need or reason for every other chapter being from the main characters story he was writing (who I didn't even know his name until like 50 pages in, being very confused whenever I saw "the Chatelain by Owen Berk"... that was probably me just being silly), and when these things did eventually make sense, I still saw it as an unnecessary addition, that made it a type of complexity that was just confusing when it needn't have been.
There were times were I was impassioned with so much irritation that I could have dnf'ed but other times were I just kept scrolling with a glazed, cloudy feeling over my brain. In fact, there was a line that perfectly sums that up, although taken out of context in relation to the book, it reads: "I spent a couple of hours rereading paragraphs, turning pages with no conprehension of what my eyes scanned..."
I only truly felt somewhat enthralled when there was a debate type of conversation, but that was only if I could keep up with what the characters were talking about and unfortunately, I struggled with that a lot. I dislike not understanding what was going on and hate to say this because no one should feel this way, but I felt like I wasn't intelligent enough to understand, what felt was like, every other word on the page. I would say it comes across pretentious, but I don't feel overly confident stating that, as I've admitted perhaps it's above my level of understanding. I'm not sure.
What I am sure of is, unfortunately, this wasn't one for me and I probably won't be making the effort to check out any other books this author has or may bring out, unless it really stands out. I think this was one of those riskier decisions I perhaps should have thought more about before requesting it, but that's not to say that a different type of audience won't enjoy it.
As another reviewer stated, it's just very dry in terms of writing style and has a very unreadablity to it, which I find is unobtainable for the average reader, but perhaps someone more deeply rooted in the medical profession would get a bit more from this, than I ever could.
Pick it up, give it a go and enjoy! >(^_^)<
Gén
I felt a little forced to read this sooner rather than later because the Netgalley shelf app said it expires in 37 days... I thought... it won't take me 37 days to finish this book... I straight away considered on this occasions, I may be wrong.
This was not an enjoyable reading experience for. I started confused and I ended (less confused but) feeling rather annoyed that I forced myself to finish this. I didn't get the point and I really didn't care for the plot or the characters or anything thay really happened, as harsh as that may sound.
It was super uncomfortable to read sex scenes that described a position such as "a baby being diapered"... or pulling down her trousers reminded her of pulling snow soaked bottoms off a child.. ew.. why connect the two things. Some little instances actually directed my thoughts to Lolita so when a mention of it was said, I wasn't too shocked.
I couldn't help but notice, that this was yet another book, back to back, where I've noticed the interesting use of not using speech marks. Is this a thing now? Something that is more actively ustilised? I feel like it missed the mark for me this time round because I was already struggling to keep up with what was going on, what with the story within a story, and realising probably too late that it wasn't just a story and also honestly, and I hate saying this, but really not finding it very interesting, entertaining or thought provoking, leaving within me an overall dull and irritated mood. It just wasn't for me.
I guess it taught me a new word because I had no idea what a Chatelain was and speaking of her... I didn't understand the need or reason for every other chapter being from the main characters story he was writing (who I didn't even know his name until like 50 pages in, being very confused whenever I saw "the Chatelain by Owen Berk"... that was probably me just being silly), and when these things did eventually make sense, I still saw it as an unnecessary addition, that made it a type of complexity that was just confusing when it needn't have been.
There were times were I was impassioned with so much irritation that I could have dnf'ed but other times were I just kept scrolling with a glazed, cloudy feeling over my brain. In fact, there was a line that perfectly sums that up, although taken out of context in relation to the book, it reads: "I spent a couple of hours rereading paragraphs, turning pages with no conprehension of what my eyes scanned..."
I only truly felt somewhat enthralled when there was a debate type of conversation, but that was only if I could keep up with what the characters were talking about and unfortunately, I struggled with that a lot. I dislike not understanding what was going on and hate to say this because no one should feel this way, but I felt like I wasn't intelligent enough to understand, what felt was like, every other word on the page. I would say it comes across pretentious, but I don't feel overly confident stating that, as I've admitted perhaps it's above my level of understanding. I'm not sure.
What I am sure of is, unfortunately, this wasn't one for me and I probably won't be making the effort to check out any other books this author has or may bring out, unless it really stands out. I think this was one of those riskier decisions I perhaps should have thought more about before requesting it, but that's not to say that a different type of audience won't enjoy it.
As another reviewer stated, it's just very dry in terms of writing style and has a very unreadablity to it, which I find is unobtainable for the average reader, but perhaps someone more deeply rooted in the medical profession would get a bit more from this, than I ever could.
Pick it up, give it a go and enjoy! >(^_^)<
Gén
August 28, 2020
Corrupted Humours is an intriguing combination of romance, mystery, and late-life midlife crisis. Reporter and novelist Berk is assigned to investigate a bizarre death on the operating table. Albert Snaedeker exploded in mid-operation for a polyp. The explanation was that he failed to fully clear his system so he still had a lot of gas in his system, gas that ignited under the heat of the cauterizing surgical tool. Yikes!
Beck begins the investigation, aided and prodded by his young lover, a college student whose love he cannot believe will last. He might be right, he’s in his sixties. He is also writing the story of The Chatelaine who we quickly realize is the wife of the surgeon in the Snaedeker explosion.
We also learn that more than one person may have had a motive to kill Snaedeker, but how could it have been done?
I liked Corrupted Humours though I am not sure that I like that I liked it. The people are all so awful, even Beck. He is kind, he is generous, he loses love because he isn’t into degrading women. I will confess I think his affair with the college student is gross and while it is not an abuse of power or coercive in any way, it still is gross. His boss is gross, Theresa is gross, the surgeon is gross, Snaedeker is gross, the imagined story of the chatelaine (if it is imagined) is gross, and yet it all comes together into a compelling narrative and an intriguing and interesting story.
Corrupted Humours will be released on August 29th. I received an e-galley from the publisher through NetGalley.
Corrupted Humours at Bottom Turtle Press
Donald Friedman author site
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpre...
Beck begins the investigation, aided and prodded by his young lover, a college student whose love he cannot believe will last. He might be right, he’s in his sixties. He is also writing the story of The Chatelaine who we quickly realize is the wife of the surgeon in the Snaedeker explosion.
We also learn that more than one person may have had a motive to kill Snaedeker, but how could it have been done?
I liked Corrupted Humours though I am not sure that I like that I liked it. The people are all so awful, even Beck. He is kind, he is generous, he loses love because he isn’t into degrading women. I will confess I think his affair with the college student is gross and while it is not an abuse of power or coercive in any way, it still is gross. His boss is gross, Theresa is gross, the surgeon is gross, Snaedeker is gross, the imagined story of the chatelaine (if it is imagined) is gross, and yet it all comes together into a compelling narrative and an intriguing and interesting story.
Corrupted Humours will be released on August 29th. I received an e-galley from the publisher through NetGalley.
Corrupted Humours at Bottom Turtle Press
Donald Friedman author site
https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpre...
September 4, 2020
A psychiatrist goes into the hospital for a routine gastric procedure, as men do at a certain age, however, he never makes it out of the operating room due to the fact that he explodes on the operating table. Got your attention, right? This would make for a very interesting story, and I think that it is if you can read between the lines of all the mumbo jumbo that is not needed and just read the nitty-gritty of the storyline. There is so much in this book that just doesn't make sense or just does not need to be there, but if you can get past that, the story is great.
.
This book is unique in the fact that the main character is a reporter and while he is researching the explosion and what happened, he is also writing a novel based on the characters and fact-findings of what he thinks happened. We are reading his novel every other chapter in this book sometimes making it confusing as to if it was his novel or what had happened.
.
I did not understand the connection of some of the characters in the book and was not sure of their purpose at all. The writing style was very confusing and, honestly, sometimes a little over my head. And I've said this once, and I'll say it 100 more times, I do not understand the non-use of quotations marks! Why do authors not use quotation marks when there is a lot of dialog in a book? For that alone, it knocked a star off.
.
I liked the premise of this booked and I really wished I would've liked it more, but it just did not do it for me, unfortunately.
.
I received this book from BookishFirst.
.
This book is unique in the fact that the main character is a reporter and while he is researching the explosion and what happened, he is also writing a novel based on the characters and fact-findings of what he thinks happened. We are reading his novel every other chapter in this book sometimes making it confusing as to if it was his novel or what had happened.
.
I did not understand the connection of some of the characters in the book and was not sure of their purpose at all. The writing style was very confusing and, honestly, sometimes a little over my head. And I've said this once, and I'll say it 100 more times, I do not understand the non-use of quotations marks! Why do authors not use quotation marks when there is a lot of dialog in a book? For that alone, it knocked a star off.
.
I liked the premise of this booked and I really wished I would've liked it more, but it just did not do it for me, unfortunately.
.
I received this book from BookishFirst.
August 19, 2020
Thank you, NetGalley and BookBaby, for providing me with an uncorrected proof of "Corrupted Humours" in exchange for an honest review.
In "Corrupted Humours," a Manhattan-based satyr is asked by the editor of the magazine for which he writes to investigate the mysterious death of his cousin, a psychiatrist who burst into flames on an operating table during the ligation of a colonic polyp. Along the way the literary quasi-lion decides to write a novel based on one of the doctor's parents, a book-within-a-book that he excerpts between chapters of the main narrative, and is forced to confront his own mortality as he becomes romantically attached to a philosophy student several decades his junior. With its combination of highbrow erudition and lowbrow humor (the dead psychiatrist suffered from chronic flatulence), meta-fictional self-awareness, sexual obsessions, exquisite attention to detail, and monomaniacal focus on the struggles of an aging alpha male, "Corrupted Humours" is exactly the sort of boomer roman a clef which I believed epitomized literary fiction when I was a young man and didn't think could be written this deep into the 21st century.
And I haven't missed them one bit.
In "Corrupted Humours," a Manhattan-based satyr is asked by the editor of the magazine for which he writes to investigate the mysterious death of his cousin, a psychiatrist who burst into flames on an operating table during the ligation of a colonic polyp. Along the way the literary quasi-lion decides to write a novel based on one of the doctor's parents, a book-within-a-book that he excerpts between chapters of the main narrative, and is forced to confront his own mortality as he becomes romantically attached to a philosophy student several decades his junior. With its combination of highbrow erudition and lowbrow humor (the dead psychiatrist suffered from chronic flatulence), meta-fictional self-awareness, sexual obsessions, exquisite attention to detail, and monomaniacal focus on the struggles of an aging alpha male, "Corrupted Humours" is exactly the sort of boomer roman a clef which I believed epitomized literary fiction when I was a young man and didn't think could be written this deep into the 21st century.
And I haven't missed them one bit.
September 29, 2020
I tried very hard with this novel, I really did. It is my opinion that the author writes well, so that was not the issue. Actually, the quality of the writing probably kept me interested and pushing on far longer than I should have. I liked the device of a novel within a novel and really would have liked to see the mystery of what happened to Snaedecker solved.
I made it to page 105 out of 288, or 36% of the way through the book. Two hundred and eighty eight pages isn’t really that long for a novel. So why couldn’t I finish this book? Ugh, at the risk of being labeled a prude, it was in part how hyper-sexualized the story was. It was smut for the sake of smut, even worse than “bodice ripper” romance, where at least the sex has a point. Also, every single character was insufferable.
This novel has the honor of being my first ever DNF.
I made it to page 105 out of 288, or 36% of the way through the book. Two hundred and eighty eight pages isn’t really that long for a novel. So why couldn’t I finish this book? Ugh, at the risk of being labeled a prude, it was in part how hyper-sexualized the story was. It was smut for the sake of smut, even worse than “bodice ripper” romance, where at least the sex has a point. Also, every single character was insufferable.
This novel has the honor of being my first ever DNF.
August 18, 2020
Before I posted my review, I made Sunday Gravy, it made me cry... where have you been all of my life? Parmesan Asparagus. ”n” eggs are simply craveable! I will eat this breakfast, lunch or dinner.
The photos are exquisite! , you feel can feel the Family Love of sharing a meal. The book is well written full of family stories and easy to follow directions for ALL of the recipes. This cookbook is a welcome addition to home.
Thank You for sharing these amazing recipes with us!
Susan W
The photos are exquisite! , you feel can feel the Family Love of sharing a meal. The book is well written full of family stories and easy to follow directions for ALL of the recipes. This cookbook is a welcome addition to home.
Thank You for sharing these amazing recipes with us!
Susan W
August 29, 2020
I was really intrigued to read this book, and was sorely disappointed in the outcome. I feel that Donald Friedman carries himself in a very pompous manner. I felt like his writing screamed, ‘I’m better than you! If you don’t understand you are not educated! If you don’t understand the vocabulary get a dictionary!’
Corrupted Humors sounded like it was going to be a fantastic story of duel storylines that would come together. A story of a freakish death in the OR, romance, and a mysterious investigation. Sadly, the synopsis was well baited, and in my opinion sold a pretentious and lackluster story as something that it was not!
Overall, I would really like to give Corrupted Humors zero stars out of 5, but I will give it 1/2 star out of 5 and round that star up to 1. This piece of literature, if you can consider it a piece, is utter garbled garbage! Nothing but a lot of rambling, old perverted men wanting young women, old perverted women wanting young men, and more nonsensical rambling to fill pages. I highly disliked this book, and would never recommend it to a friend. I will never be touching a work by Mr. Friedman again. Utterly horrible.
Corrupted Humors sounded like it was going to be a fantastic story of duel storylines that would come together. A story of a freakish death in the OR, romance, and a mysterious investigation. Sadly, the synopsis was well baited, and in my opinion sold a pretentious and lackluster story as something that it was not!
Overall, I would really like to give Corrupted Humors zero stars out of 5, but I will give it 1/2 star out of 5 and round that star up to 1. This piece of literature, if you can consider it a piece, is utter garbled garbage! Nothing but a lot of rambling, old perverted men wanting young women, old perverted women wanting young men, and more nonsensical rambling to fill pages. I highly disliked this book, and would never recommend it to a friend. I will never be touching a work by Mr. Friedman again. Utterly horrible.
October 28, 2020
I received a complimentary digital copy of this arc book from the publisher and NetGalley in exchange for an unbiased review.
The preview written in GoodReads is probably best explains the story but contains many spoilers in my opinion.
This story alternates between the life of Owen Berk, investigative reporter and the novel being written by Owen Berk. This a bizarre story overlap particularly because Owen Berk is a morally corrupt voyeur. I found this book to be less than thrilling and far from humorous.
The only redeeming quality is the concern that Owen takes to protect and assist his 92 year old neighbor, Basha-Rose at their apartment building in Central Park. Skip, a hypochondriac editor of the Angle, asks Owen to investigate the suspicious death for his cousin Betty Snaedeker. Her brother was a psychiatrist who mysteriously died when he “exploded” in the OR during a routine polyp removal from his colon. The hospital investigation concluded that the tragedy was due to the patient’s inadequate bowel prep before surgery. The theory is that he was known to have a gastrointestinal disorder in which his body overproduced methane.
If that isn’t enough to turn your stomach, Owen continues an inappropriate relationship with Kjirsti, a college student in her 20’s. She involves herself in his investigation into this bizarre death. I found the story as absurd and ridiculous as The Chatelaine, the novel Owen is writing which oddly reflects his life.
Although the author’s biography states he is American born and educated, I was confused by the unusual use of language. I did not enjoy this book and found many parts unnecessarily explicit which I guess contributes to its corrupt humor.
The preview written in GoodReads is probably best explains the story but contains many spoilers in my opinion.
This story alternates between the life of Owen Berk, investigative reporter and the novel being written by Owen Berk. This a bizarre story overlap particularly because Owen Berk is a morally corrupt voyeur. I found this book to be less than thrilling and far from humorous.
The only redeeming quality is the concern that Owen takes to protect and assist his 92 year old neighbor, Basha-Rose at their apartment building in Central Park. Skip, a hypochondriac editor of the Angle, asks Owen to investigate the suspicious death for his cousin Betty Snaedeker. Her brother was a psychiatrist who mysteriously died when he “exploded” in the OR during a routine polyp removal from his colon. The hospital investigation concluded that the tragedy was due to the patient’s inadequate bowel prep before surgery. The theory is that he was known to have a gastrointestinal disorder in which his body overproduced methane.
If that isn’t enough to turn your stomach, Owen continues an inappropriate relationship with Kjirsti, a college student in her 20’s. She involves herself in his investigation into this bizarre death. I found the story as absurd and ridiculous as The Chatelaine, the novel Owen is writing which oddly reflects his life.
Although the author’s biography states he is American born and educated, I was confused by the unusual use of language. I did not enjoy this book and found many parts unnecessarily explicit which I guess contributes to its corrupt humor.
September 15, 2021
This book was pretty much what I expected of a sarcastic satirical fiction. You could pretty much guess the book’s atmosphere by the opening scene where a person died from his own fart exploding during a surgical procedure.
Yes, it was funny, quirky, mindboggling in some areas, and went on a tangent in some places. It was quite enjoyable, although at the end of the book, I wondered what it was all about - que sera sera I guess?
From this point of view, the book did deliver on its promises and meet my expectation. It was an experience.
(Thanks to NetGalley and Bottom Turtle Press for a free copy in exchange for an honest review)
See my bookstagram review.
Yes, it was funny, quirky, mindboggling in some areas, and went on a tangent in some places. It was quite enjoyable, although at the end of the book, I wondered what it was all about - que sera sera I guess?
From this point of view, the book did deliver on its promises and meet my expectation. It was an experience.
(Thanks to NetGalley and Bottom Turtle Press for a free copy in exchange for an honest review)
See my bookstagram review.
August 17, 2020
I really wanted to like this book more than I did. It looked so creative, dark, and funny. But I had such trouble getting into it--maybe because it opens with some very clinical language when Albert's body explodes on the operating table. Or maybe it's just the mood I'm in and I can't deal with anything this weird and quirky right now. Usually I'm all about weird and quirky but this took too much work getting into that I had to push myself which made me skim too much. I'm usually better about knowing what to request as I know what I like so don't take my word for it as it has some 5-star reviews! Just not the book for me!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!
Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!
September 5, 2020
This book is billed as a literary mystery.
For me, literary it is not - ”refreshingly profane” it says. Profane yes, but not artistically or skillfully used. I think Friedman spent too much time in a baseball dugout to be able to differentiate the continuous use of profanity and literature.
For me, mystery it is not - as with any mystery, the book starts with a death, and an investigator is enlisted to uncover clues to the point where the murderer is revealed. Oh, how I long for Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle.
In Corrupted Humor, Albert Snaedeker dies on the operating table during routine surgery. A cousin who publishes a magazine called the Angle assigns a reporter, Owen Berk, to investigate.
Of course, Berk pursues the leads in the mystery case, but in the course of his work, he crafts a novel about the people associated with the case. The one and only interesting thing about this book is its structure - each section is a chapter of Berk’s book followed by a snippet of the story of Berk’s pursuit of the murderer. Eventually, the two converge. This is a creative, interesting, and enjoyable structure.
And that is where it ends. While I enjoyed the creative structure, when I got about halfway through the book, I began to wonder when it would end. I think the book (295 print pages) is twice as long as it need be, as the seemingly endless cycle of profanity and sex is not delicately used in a literary manner. What is the average length of a Christie or Doyle mystery? I haven’t checked my library, but the 60 official and 6 unofficial Homes stories total only 877 pages. A well-crafted mystery could be written in 150 pages (about half of Corrupted Humours).
The problem with the conclusion is that Friedman robs the reader from seeing it for him or herself. Instead, as we reach the conclusion, he just gives it away and tells us how the two storylines resolve. I will never forget my disappointment at reaching this point in the book.
I don’t know who wrote the Amazon blurb, but Corrupted Humours was neither witty nor sophisticated. The profanity and sex were overdone and not literary. The book is about twice as long as it should be if it is really going to be a competitive mystery. Readable yes, compulsively, no. This was not a book that I would stay up late to read. I keep wondering - did Friedman write this for himself or for the reader? We are always told to write what you know, and if this is what Friedman knows, I know enough.
Anyone who completes a project should get some credit for having done so. I found little else redeeming in Corrupted Humours; Friedman valiantly earned his one star.
I would like to thank the author, Bottom Turtle Press, and NetGalley for the advance review copy. I have voluntarily left this review.
For me, literary it is not - ”refreshingly profane” it says. Profane yes, but not artistically or skillfully used. I think Friedman spent too much time in a baseball dugout to be able to differentiate the continuous use of profanity and literature.
For me, mystery it is not - as with any mystery, the book starts with a death, and an investigator is enlisted to uncover clues to the point where the murderer is revealed. Oh, how I long for Agatha Christie or Arthur Conan Doyle.
In Corrupted Humor, Albert Snaedeker dies on the operating table during routine surgery. A cousin who publishes a magazine called the Angle assigns a reporter, Owen Berk, to investigate.
Of course, Berk pursues the leads in the mystery case, but in the course of his work, he crafts a novel about the people associated with the case. The one and only interesting thing about this book is its structure - each section is a chapter of Berk’s book followed by a snippet of the story of Berk’s pursuit of the murderer. Eventually, the two converge. This is a creative, interesting, and enjoyable structure.
And that is where it ends. While I enjoyed the creative structure, when I got about halfway through the book, I began to wonder when it would end. I think the book (295 print pages) is twice as long as it need be, as the seemingly endless cycle of profanity and sex is not delicately used in a literary manner. What is the average length of a Christie or Doyle mystery? I haven’t checked my library, but the 60 official and 6 unofficial Homes stories total only 877 pages. A well-crafted mystery could be written in 150 pages (about half of Corrupted Humours).
The problem with the conclusion is that Friedman robs the reader from seeing it for him or herself. Instead, as we reach the conclusion, he just gives it away and tells us how the two storylines resolve. I will never forget my disappointment at reaching this point in the book.
I don’t know who wrote the Amazon blurb, but Corrupted Humours was neither witty nor sophisticated. The profanity and sex were overdone and not literary. The book is about twice as long as it should be if it is really going to be a competitive mystery. Readable yes, compulsively, no. This was not a book that I would stay up late to read. I keep wondering - did Friedman write this for himself or for the reader? We are always told to write what you know, and if this is what Friedman knows, I know enough.
Anyone who completes a project should get some credit for having done so. I found little else redeeming in Corrupted Humours; Friedman valiantly earned his one star.
I would like to thank the author, Bottom Turtle Press, and NetGalley for the advance review copy. I have voluntarily left this review.
October 5, 2020
I Had High Hopes When I Won an ARC I always appreciate the opportunity to receive a book and discover a new author (whether new just to me or truly a debut). When I read the sample pages here on BookishFirst, I was certain that I would really enjoy this mystery even though the lack of quotation marks for dialogue is not a literary style I like.. The initial premise certainly sounded believable even though the actual death of Dr. Snaedeker, a well known and highly regarded psychiatrist, was unusual: he truly explodes on the operating table. The cause is something that middle grade students would laugh about long and hard; Snaedeker had extreme and excessive flatulence, and even his top-notch surgeon can not prevent all of Snaedeker's bodily gas from turning a routine procedure into an O.R. explosion.
Unfortunately, I soon began to get confused and found myself wondering what this book was about as it twisted off into the life of Owen Berk. Hired to be an investigative reporter to get to the bottom (no pun intended) of Snaedeker's case, Mr. Berk actually takes over the book as an author of his own book-within-this-book. It seemed somewhat unbelievable that Berk the reporter uses actual people he's investigating as his characters - but with fantasized lives of cheating on spouses.
When it came time for the book to focus on the imagined sexual preferences of Dr. Spencer's wife, I was ready to stop reading.
I think I expected more because the novel was touted as a literary mystery. Still, I appreciate the planning and hours of work behind any novel. Thank you to BookishFirst for the ARC.
Unfortunately, I soon began to get confused and found myself wondering what this book was about as it twisted off into the life of Owen Berk. Hired to be an investigative reporter to get to the bottom (no pun intended) of Snaedeker's case, Mr. Berk actually takes over the book as an author of his own book-within-this-book. It seemed somewhat unbelievable that Berk the reporter uses actual people he's investigating as his characters - but with fantasized lives of cheating on spouses.
When it came time for the book to focus on the imagined sexual preferences of Dr. Spencer's wife, I was ready to stop reading.
I think I expected more because the novel was touted as a literary mystery. Still, I appreciate the planning and hours of work behind any novel. Thank you to BookishFirst for the ARC.
August 25, 2020
3.75 stars / This review will be posted at BookwormishMe.com on 25 August 2020.
Owen Berk is called upon to investigate the untimely death of his boss’s cousin, one psychologist named Albert Snaedeker. Albert was in for a routine colonoscopy/polypectomy when he met his end by exploding on the operating table. The hospital maintains that Albert simply neglected to properly prepare for the procedure, but Albert’s family isn’t so sure.
Berk sets off on a path of questions that lead him to find questionable behaviors and some soul searching of his own. Along the way, he decides that he’s going to turn this investigation into a novel. Corrupted Humours is a book within a book - Berk’s path through his own life and relationships while he tries to find an answer for Snaedeker’s death, and the fictionalized accounting of his death which he writes.
Be prepared, this isn’t your average novel. Berk is a 70-something who still runs daily, writes for a literary magazine, and does a tad bit of investigation on the side. There is definitely some sex, drugs and a little bit of romance. Berk isn’t quite sure what to make of his own life, let alone the ones he’s exploring. If Berk weren’t in his 70s, I would almost call this a “coming of age” novel.
I wanted to love this, based on the crazy concept of a human exploding in an OR, but I didn’t love it. I enjoyed it. I liked it. I got a little lost with the book within a book because the two stories overlap quite a bit. If you can keep track of the separate but similar storylines, you’ll be okay.
Owen Berk is called upon to investigate the untimely death of his boss’s cousin, one psychologist named Albert Snaedeker. Albert was in for a routine colonoscopy/polypectomy when he met his end by exploding on the operating table. The hospital maintains that Albert simply neglected to properly prepare for the procedure, but Albert’s family isn’t so sure.
Berk sets off on a path of questions that lead him to find questionable behaviors and some soul searching of his own. Along the way, he decides that he’s going to turn this investigation into a novel. Corrupted Humours is a book within a book - Berk’s path through his own life and relationships while he tries to find an answer for Snaedeker’s death, and the fictionalized accounting of his death which he writes.
Be prepared, this isn’t your average novel. Berk is a 70-something who still runs daily, writes for a literary magazine, and does a tad bit of investigation on the side. There is definitely some sex, drugs and a little bit of romance. Berk isn’t quite sure what to make of his own life, let alone the ones he’s exploring. If Berk weren’t in his 70s, I would almost call this a “coming of age” novel.
I wanted to love this, based on the crazy concept of a human exploding in an OR, but I didn’t love it. I enjoyed it. I liked it. I got a little lost with the book within a book because the two stories overlap quite a bit. If you can keep track of the separate but similar storylines, you’ll be okay.
August 31, 2020
I have seriously been aching for a good whodunnit, which is why i decided to read this book in the first place. The first chapters drew me in which is why I was so disappointed to feel so lukewarm about the rest of the book. Don't get me wrong, the medical case was so intriguing especially as someone who studied science, but I didn't really care for the story within a story aspect. To me, it didn't really contribute anything significant to the storyline. But I really liked the characters and thought they were well thought out. In all, for me, it was a solid read, not the most amazing book I've read but also not the worst. I might read another book from this author but i definitely think it would depend on the topic.
I have seriously been aching for a good whodunnit, which is why i decided to read this book in the first place. The first chapters drew me in which is why I was so disappointed to feel so lukewarm about the rest of the book. Don't get me wrong, the medical case was so intriguing especially as someone who studied science, but I didn't really care for the story within a story aspect. To me, it didn't really contribute anything significant to the storyline. But I really liked the characters and thought they were well thought out. In all, for me, it was a solid read, not the most amazing book I've read but also not the worst. I might read another book from this author but i definitely think it would depend on the topic.
I have seriously been aching for a good whodunnit, which is why i decided to read this book in the first place. The first chapters drew me in which is why I was so disappointed to feel so lukewarm about the rest of the book. Don't get me wrong, the medical case was so intriguing especially as someone who studied science, but I didn't really care for the story within a story aspect. To me, it didn't really contribute anything significant to the storyline. But I really liked the characters and thought they were well thought out. In all, for me, it was a solid read, not the most amazing book I've read but also not the worst. I might read another book from this author but i definitely think it would depend on the topic.
September 12, 2020
Thank you Bookish First for offering the raffle & providing the ebook. I was mildly interested in this book after reading the First Impression so I was looking forward to reading the full story. The only part I was really interested in was the investigation into Dr. Snaedeker's death and unfortunately, the book didn't address it as much as I would have liked. The chapters alternated between Berk's personal life (the journalist investigating the doctor's death) and his fictional report of the dead doctor's wife titled The Chatelaine. I thought I was going to see how Berk investigates the case and also see the events leading up to the doctor's death through The Chatelaine chapters, but it wasn't! I read so much fluff about Berk's life and the dead doctor's wife which didn't really relate to why the doctor died and how it was done. In the epilogue, it mentions the events that led to the doctor's death, but again I don't know who planned it and why it happened. I think the epilogue was an attempt at giving the reader some closure, but it still left a lot of ends open and questions unanswered.
The way the story was written didn't really bother me: there were many long sentences, many tangents, and references, and occasionally a really obscure and complicated word would pop up. What bothered me the most was how I got no closure about the case and the rest of the characters in the book didn't care about it in the end, so what's the point.
The way the story was written didn't really bother me: there were many long sentences, many tangents, and references, and occasionally a really obscure and complicated word would pop up. What bothered me the most was how I got no closure about the case and the rest of the characters in the book didn't care about it in the end, so what's the point.
November 5, 2020
Thanks to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this book...
and saving me from spending my money. I wanted to love this book. I think in my head it was going to be a cross between a phenomenal whodunnit and a Christopher Moore novel. Instead, I felt like I was dropped into a very deep, dark hole at the end of which was a frigid, cold lake.
This book felt either very, very forced with its attempt at dark, sick humor, or very telling of who the author is in his darkest of hearts, and either way it made me sick to read and disturbed to consider this book out in the hands of the general public, but...whatever.
I mean, it is a whodunnit, kind of, insomuch as you can "whodunnit" what appears to be spontaneous combustion on an operating table, but everyone in this whole book from Owen to...I mean, well, everyone... makes you question humanity and the author and yourself as a reader and wonder if we aren't all just crap after all. No redeeming qualities ever.
The humor, such as it was, was disturbing. The back and forth between "real life" and the book that the main character is writing was interesting, but there is just so much going on. He's investigating the explosion on the table. He's sleeping with a college student. He has maybe some psychological stuff amiss.
It was hard to keep swiping pages and I have to be honest, when I did, maybe sometimes I swiped past a few pages in the process instead of going to the next page.
and saving me from spending my money. I wanted to love this book. I think in my head it was going to be a cross between a phenomenal whodunnit and a Christopher Moore novel. Instead, I felt like I was dropped into a very deep, dark hole at the end of which was a frigid, cold lake.
This book felt either very, very forced with its attempt at dark, sick humor, or very telling of who the author is in his darkest of hearts, and either way it made me sick to read and disturbed to consider this book out in the hands of the general public, but...whatever.
I mean, it is a whodunnit, kind of, insomuch as you can "whodunnit" what appears to be spontaneous combustion on an operating table, but everyone in this whole book from Owen to...I mean, well, everyone... makes you question humanity and the author and yourself as a reader and wonder if we aren't all just crap after all. No redeeming qualities ever.
The humor, such as it was, was disturbing. The back and forth between "real life" and the book that the main character is writing was interesting, but there is just so much going on. He's investigating the explosion on the table. He's sleeping with a college student. He has maybe some psychological stuff amiss.
It was hard to keep swiping pages and I have to be honest, when I did, maybe sometimes I swiped past a few pages in the process instead of going to the next page.
August 30, 2020
Corrupted Humors is a novel about a writer investigating an accidental death.
You should know this book is a little misogynistic. Lines about how women attack at the first whiff of fear were straight out of the men writing women subreddit. The author could be gentle with his female characters but only sparingly—lots of women cheating and lying in this book.
The novel within a novel is fine but not great. If you’re expecting The Blind Assassin-level novel-within-a-novel, well it’s not quite there.
The story was fairly interesting if you can ignore all the negative comments about women, which I couldn’t do. But the plot is laid on thick and could have been executed better. It’s not awful but there are a lot of uncomfortable parts. There are several threads that I think meant something but weren’t tied together neatly. And honestly, I couldn’t tell you any of the larger themes. I think perhaps the novel needed an editor to come in and clean it up a bit and tighten the plotting. It’s supposed to be a suspense novel but the answers don’t come until the epilogue. And there are entire characters who could be cut.
There’s a chunk of the book dedicated to farts which is quite funny. Basically, come for the fart jokes, stay for the wacky writer trying to get his life together.
I received an advance review copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
Tw: rape
You should know this book is a little misogynistic. Lines about how women attack at the first whiff of fear were straight out of the men writing women subreddit. The author could be gentle with his female characters but only sparingly—lots of women cheating and lying in this book.
The novel within a novel is fine but not great. If you’re expecting The Blind Assassin-level novel-within-a-novel, well it’s not quite there.
The story was fairly interesting if you can ignore all the negative comments about women, which I couldn’t do. But the plot is laid on thick and could have been executed better. It’s not awful but there are a lot of uncomfortable parts. There are several threads that I think meant something but weren’t tied together neatly. And honestly, I couldn’t tell you any of the larger themes. I think perhaps the novel needed an editor to come in and clean it up a bit and tighten the plotting. It’s supposed to be a suspense novel but the answers don’t come until the epilogue. And there are entire characters who could be cut.
There’s a chunk of the book dedicated to farts which is quite funny. Basically, come for the fart jokes, stay for the wacky writer trying to get his life together.
I received an advance review copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.
Tw: rape
September 6, 2020
Owen Berk, a writer for Angle Magazine, has been asked to look into a rather strange death during a routine procedure. Dr. Snaedeker, who went in for this simple operation, came away from it in many more pieces than when he went in. Simultaneously Berk is writing a new novel, loosely based on the individuals involved in the case of course, in a strange mixture of reality and fiction.
The prologue of Corrupted Humours was quite entertaining; this novel began with a bang. After that, however, it pretty much fizzled out for me. It was rather hard to follow along at times because Friedman didn’t use quotation marks to signal dialogue between characters, and at times it became difficult to follow along with who was speaking and when. I really couldn't connect with any of the characters in any way, and some I question their purpose to the story all together. I felt like the action jumped around a lot and I honestly felt lost half the time. The novel does touch some on S/M, and I went into this novel knowing that, but it was almost too detailed and the message could have been sent in a less graphic way. I think the only reason I stuck with it until the end is because I kept hoping that it would get better, like the prologue.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an e-copy of Corrupted Humours , given in exchange for an honest review; all opinions are my own.
The prologue of Corrupted Humours was quite entertaining; this novel began with a bang. After that, however, it pretty much fizzled out for me. It was rather hard to follow along at times because Friedman didn’t use quotation marks to signal dialogue between characters, and at times it became difficult to follow along with who was speaking and when. I really couldn't connect with any of the characters in any way, and some I question their purpose to the story all together. I felt like the action jumped around a lot and I honestly felt lost half the time. The novel does touch some on S/M, and I went into this novel knowing that, but it was almost too detailed and the message could have been sent in a less graphic way. I think the only reason I stuck with it until the end is because I kept hoping that it would get better, like the prologue.
Thank you to NetGalley for providing an e-copy of Corrupted Humours , given in exchange for an honest review; all opinions are my own.
August 7, 2021
Thank you to the author, Donald Friedman, the publisher, BookBaby and Netgalley for providing me an ARC in exchange for my candid review.
Ughhh....where to start. It had a somewhat interesting storyline about an investigative reporter that is asked to investigate the untimely death of a psychologist that dies on the operating table when he explodes from methane buildup in the colon while having a polyp removed.
The book presents two disparate views....one supposedly reality where the author investigates the death, and the other a fictionalized version of the behind the story.....which I suppose we are to believe is what really happened? I found the shifting POVs difficult to navigate and very annoying.
The story seems to be less a story about solving a mystery and more about exposing a sexually abusive sexual sadist who takes advantage of women who suffer from masochistic sexual dysfunction problems.
But this story really is a prurient expose of sexual s and m practices that seeks to, somehow, justify and support the practices.
It is a fairly dark story and I find it difficult to like or even empathize with any of the characters. I only finished reading this book due to my hatred to DNF and in support of my commitment to NetGalley.
I will not be recommending this book.
Ughhh....where to start. It had a somewhat interesting storyline about an investigative reporter that is asked to investigate the untimely death of a psychologist that dies on the operating table when he explodes from methane buildup in the colon while having a polyp removed.
The book presents two disparate views....one supposedly reality where the author investigates the death, and the other a fictionalized version of the behind the story.....which I suppose we are to believe is what really happened? I found the shifting POVs difficult to navigate and very annoying.
The story seems to be less a story about solving a mystery and more about exposing a sexually abusive sexual sadist who takes advantage of women who suffer from masochistic sexual dysfunction problems.
But this story really is a prurient expose of sexual s and m practices that seeks to, somehow, justify and support the practices.
It is a fairly dark story and I find it difficult to like or even empathize with any of the characters. I only finished reading this book due to my hatred to DNF and in support of my commitment to NetGalley.
I will not be recommending this book.
August 29, 2020
Description
A literary mystery – antic and amusing, refreshingly profane, elaborately staged, compulsively readable
Corrupted Humours opens with the explosion of Albert Snaedeker on the operating table during routine surgery. The deceased’s cousin, an oil heir and publisher of Angle magazine, assigns his reporter and sometime novelist, Owen Berk, to investigate.
Berk not only pursues the whodunnit,/howdunnit questions but, intrigued by the bizarre death and the people surrounding it, transforms them into characters in a novel. In the story, Snaedeker's surgeon's depressed wife is indoctrinated into the world of S/M and has an imagined flowering. Berk's novel is woven into the framing narrative until the plots converge as Berk falls in love with the woman, wondering how much of his passion is for her, how much for the fantasy figure he has turned her into.
Firstly I want to thank netgalley for the eARC of Corrupted Humors it was a wonderful read. My thoughts are my own.
This is very hard to categorize or even describe. Different tangents.
Those who appreciate more subtle/darker humor, insight into human behavior (even that which we don’t care to examine in ourselves), and intelligent writing should enjoy this. It is unique and well-crafted.
A literary mystery – antic and amusing, refreshingly profane, elaborately staged, compulsively readable
Corrupted Humours opens with the explosion of Albert Snaedeker on the operating table during routine surgery. The deceased’s cousin, an oil heir and publisher of Angle magazine, assigns his reporter and sometime novelist, Owen Berk, to investigate.
Berk not only pursues the whodunnit,/howdunnit questions but, intrigued by the bizarre death and the people surrounding it, transforms them into characters in a novel. In the story, Snaedeker's surgeon's depressed wife is indoctrinated into the world of S/M and has an imagined flowering. Berk's novel is woven into the framing narrative until the plots converge as Berk falls in love with the woman, wondering how much of his passion is for her, how much for the fantasy figure he has turned her into.
Firstly I want to thank netgalley for the eARC of Corrupted Humors it was a wonderful read. My thoughts are my own.
This is very hard to categorize or even describe. Different tangents.
Those who appreciate more subtle/darker humor, insight into human behavior (even that which we don’t care to examine in ourselves), and intelligent writing should enjoy this. It is unique and well-crafted.
September 15, 2020
The strangest thing about this novel is not the protagonist-a writer whose assignments range from covering an outdoor art installation in Central Park to reporting about how crime really does pay- or his editor, who asks him to look into the untimely death of a family member in what looks like an unusual but not unknown death during routine surgery it's not even the novel within the novel that our protagonist is writing while he dutifully interviews all the medical personnel and immerses himself in the details of what went wrong on the operating table . The strangest thing is the proximate cause of death, which was the fire sparked by the buildup of gas in the decedent's colon and the instrument being used during his colonoscopy. "Murder by Fart Fire" might have made a good title for this book, during which our hero determines that someone with both motive and knowledge of the dead man's chronic flatulence may have arranged for the fatal mishap. Of course, there's a likely suspect, but in the end (no pun intended) it's only the careful reader who can decide if it's homicide, and if so, who committed it.
August 30, 2020
This book opened up very well written and I was beginning to enjoy the story when suddenly the story line changed. It was at this point that I became seriously confused and thought that something had happened to the copy downloaded to my kindle. After fighting through the confusion I found myself back in the original story line and was again beginning to enjoy the story when again there was a change and again I became confused. I decided that it might be worth while to look at reviews of other readers and realized that there is a story within the story. Armed with that knowledge I went back and began to read again hoping that I would be able to get into the book as a whole. Unfortunately I have decided to not finish this one. I really like the main story but the changes between the stories (I can't tell if there are two or three) has left me lost and unable to enjoy what I am sure others will find to be a great book.
October 15, 2020
Berk is a New York City writer in his 60s wrestling with loneliness and the contemplation of his own mortality. He is romantically involved with a 26 year-old graduate student. He is asked by his employer to investigate the mysterious death of his cousin, a psychiatrist who burst into flames on an operating table during the ligation of a colonic polyp. The cover conveys the medical tragedy. Along the way he decides to write a novel about one of the psychiatrist's patients. This clever, well-written novel is filled with intrigue, twists and interesting characters. Although I could not relate to any of the characters, I still enjoyed the story. The story within a story that Berk is writing slowly converges with reality. This is not going to work for readers who are squeamish or prudish; there are detailed medical descriptions and BDSM sex. Others who enjoy a good thought-provoking mystery will like this book.
September 27, 2021
This book opened up very well written and I was beginning to enjoy the story when suddenly the story line changed. It was at this point that I became seriously confused and thought that something had happened to the copy downloaded to my kindle. After fighting through the confusion I found myself back in the original story line and was again beginning to enjoy the story when again there was a change and again I became confused. I decided that it might be worth while to look at reviews of other readers and realized that there is a story within the story. Armed with that knowledge I went back and began to read again hoping that I would be able to get into the book as a whole. Unfortunately I have decided to not finish this one. I really like the main story but the changes between the stories (I can't tell if there are two or three) has left me lost and unable to enjoy what I am sure others will find to be a great book.
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