Godspeed

Another wonderful novel from Nickolas Butler. His characters come alive on the page. Great story that keeps you guessing with a very satisfying conclusion.Highly recommend all of his books. Each one is a unique and engaging read. "Godspeed" is another great addition to his body of work.

Zu was sind Menschen bereit, wenn die Gier nach dem schnellen Geld sie treibt? Dieser Frage geht der Autor anhand der Geschichte von drei Freunden nach, die ein unmögliches Bauvorhaben umsetzen wollen, mit der Aussicht, sich damit ein kleines Vermögen zu erwirtschaften. Die Antwort: Zu allerhand und selbst dem Unerdenklichen. Doch nachdem man das verstanden hat, erlahmt die Dynamik, und man wartet nur noch auf das Ende. Die weibliche Hauptfigur, die Auftraggeberin der drei, ist nicht schlüssig: Dass sie gleichzeitig sensibel, verletzt und ehrgeizig ist, mag noch angehen; dass sie aber gleichzeitig, so selbstsüchtig ist, um andere Menschen ins Verderben zu stürzen, nicht, zumal sie weiss, dass sie eigentlich nichts mehr zu gewinnen hat.

Prosa esmerada en las descripciones, preciosista cuando se refiere a la naturaleza, y, en esta novela, abundando en la jerga de la clase obrera, que es el eje de la obra. Se trata, sorpresivamente porque es la primera vez que lo hace, de un thriller aditivo, de no poder parar de leer. Y si lo lees en inglés, obviamente mucho mejor.

I love all of NB's books and have enjoyed reading them over the past year - this book is a slight chance of pace and style, and is more like a thriller as opposed to his usual style. But it works brilliantly.The narrative arc will have you hooked - each character has a back story that must be unravelled - and the time pressure the three amigos face builds beautifully.To me, this book acts as an allegory on modern life, particularly capitalsim and the pursuit of wealth. To that end, it's very thought provoking, and stayed with me long after reading.How far would you go to provide life changing wealth for your family? What does it mean to be a good man? Do we need wealth to be happy? What is the purpose of beauty if it cannot be shared?I really enjoyed this book, and look forward to following Butler's career.

I read GODSPEED by Nickolas Butler for my monthly bookclub. The discussion was quite interesting because the members all had different opinions about the book’s characters, all of which were flawed. Decisions often appears to be made because of greed or a personal desire. None were very likeable, but they were certainly interesting. A woman hires a small company of builders to complete construction on a home she is building in a beautiful and remote area outside Jackson, Wyoming. The goal is perfection and money is no obstacle with incentives high enough to motivate the builders to meet the seemingly impossible deadline and challenges. Things changed half way through the book as it picked up speed and had several surprises I did not expect.