A sure way of knowing you’ve enjoyed a good book is when you’re sorry to have finished it, this is what has happened to me recently with the novel Eileen written by Ottessa Moshfegh!

Not the best novel that I’ve ever read in my whole entire life, but without a doubt definitely not the worst one either.  I really liked the self-loathing, self-deprecating and resolute character that was Eileen.  The book is a sort of psychological thriller which did admittedly take awhile to get going though.  Nevertheless, when it did get going then it was a highly enjoyable read.

Set for the majority of the time in a place repeatedly referred to as ‘X-ville'(a stone’s throw away from Boston, America), Eileen(now an old woman in the present tense) tells us about a story of her life back when she was just twenty-four years old.  Her existence back then was a mundane one.  She lived a somewhat hellish life, what with her mother dying when she was young and then living with her verbally abusive alcoholic father, who regularly suffered with hallucinations.  Back then, she worked as a secretary at a local young offenders prison known as Moorehead.

Initially, Eileen’s only escape from all her misery was to sexually fantasise about a guard at Moorehead called Randy(she liked his muscles and smell of man sweat).  This is until though the prison employs a new Head of Education, a glamorous gorgeous looking woman called Rebecca.  When they meet Rebecca changes Eileen’s life forever.  Eileen worships the ground that Rebecca walks on.  It is their coming together as a couple of kindred spirits that sets off a massive change of events.  Rebecca wants retribution for a boy who is under her care at the prison and Eileen is only too willing to come to her aid.

Pace wise, I could have done with being more hooked in earlier on in the story, however your patience will be rewarded with an absolutely corking twist that totally surprised me.  Such was my shock at the time that I let out a small scream of delight, I just couldn’t help myself!

I loved the descriptive detail of the locale by the author.  Furthermore, I loved the tone throughout the book.  Eileen had to be a likeable character for this novel to work and so indeed she was.

Once I got into it then the time and pages flew by so quickly.  The more I read then the more I enjoyed it, with the great climax keeping me right on the edge of my seat right until the very end.  A good story by an obviously very talented writer! 4/5.