The Blue Hour

The Blue Hour is Paula Hawkins' much anticipated fourth novel. Having read two of her previous three, in my opinion The Blue Hour absolutely blows them all out of the water.

Eris Island is now home to Grace and was once home to Vanessa Chapman, a celebrated artist. When Vanessa died she left her collection to be housed at Fairburn House, a country estate and home to other great artworks and sculptures. James Becker is the curator of the collection and a Chapman aficionado, and when an alarming discovery linked to Vanessa is made, he must travel to Eris and seek clarity from Grace, a woman who knew her well.

There's so much more to this book than first appears. There is such depth to the writing, the emotions and the unfolding of events, show more and the plot is complex and twisty. It has an almost indefinable something that I love in books: a melting pot of a touch of mystery, a bohemian feel, and an undercurrent of simmering menace and tension. Add in not only a remote Scottish island but a country house too and it makes this book pretty much perfect.

Eris is an incredibly atmospheric setting. Grace has a lonely existence there, looking across to the houses in the bay, cut off from the mainland for half of every day when the tide rolls in. Becker proves to be both a welcome and unwelcome visitor, with the discovery opening up old wounds. Much of the story is told from the point of view of either Grace or Becker, interspersed with Vanessa's letters and diary entries, and Hawkins brings all the strands together expertly to create an edgy, thrilling and absorbing read.

I soaked up every bit of this book, savoured every word. I didn't want it to end but when it did, it did so in chilling style. Brilliant! show less

Meh! This book tried really hard to be creepy and mysterious, as well as tension-filled, but somehow fell short of the mark. I’m not sure if it was the characters or the endless descriptions of art, or whether it was run-of-the-mill writing skills. It did manage to pique my interest for about the first half of the book, but it was too easy to figure out what happened on this lonely and remote Scottish tidal island. Then I just wanted the book to end and this ending was anti-climactic and formulaic. I didn’t really care what happened to poor Beck at that point. I can’t really recommend this book unless you are a Paula Hawkins fan. The title was the best part of the book.

This haunting gothic horror story revolves around a reclusive artist named Vanessa Chapman and her long-time companion, Grace. The narrative unfolds slowly at first but soon escalates dramatically. When Vanessa dies of cancer, she bequeaths all her artwork to Douglas Lennox, her ex-lover, which provides a much-needed boost to his small art gallery, Fairburn. Becker, the gallery's curator, considers himself an expert on Vanessa's work. He feels a special connection to her creations, believing that his deceased mother, a fan who owned one of her paintings, enhances this bond.

However, very little is known about the real Vanessa, who lived on Eris, a remote channel island in Scotland accessible to the mainland only during low tide. Grace, show more Vanessa's long-time companion, still resides on the island. As Becker starts visiting the cold, dreary island to unravel Vanessa's mystique, I could feel the chill seep into my bones.

The book takes its time initially, setting the stage and introducing a cast of compelling characters. Nonetheless, the potential for violence kept me engaged. By the middle of the book, I was utterly hooked. Still, nothing could have prepared me for the heart-stopping finale. The story is deliciously wicked. show less

The Blue Hour is a novel with a strong plot, excellent setting and good characters. The possibilities of directions it can take are broad.

Its main focus is art and the life of an artist specifically Vanessa Chapman. The excitement begins when one of her works, on loan to the Tate Museum, is viewed by a forensic anthropologist and questioned. The Fairburn House which owns many of Chapman's works including the one out on loan respond with laughter when the Tate calls them.

The novel continues logically until its many surprising twists and turns coerces the reader to dizzily re-think everything. And passionately want to know what is going on.

Key motifs in the novel are the subjectivity of beauty, wealth and poverty, abandonment, show more loneliness, and the need for love.

Well-written and excellent read. show less

So Eris Island is not a true island but it is very isolated. With a dangerously thin road connecting Eris to the mainland only a mile in length. It's possible to go walk or drive from the small village during a six hour window. Once the tide comes in you are stuck.

The story weaves back-and-forth between present day and the past. There are three main points of view involving current day perspectives and flashbacks to events in the past.

Vanessa Chapman was a brillant artist who died of cancer, leaving her entire collection of art to The Fairburn Foundation. This was a surprise as she'd had a huge falling out with Douglas Fairburn, pulling her show out at the last minute and thus, starting a lengthy legal battle. Besides being famous for show more her artwork she is also associated with the mysterious disappearance of her ex husband Julian Chapman. He visited her island one day and afterwards, vanished without a trace.

Grace is a pivital character in the novel. Grace is a doctor and met Vanessa when she struggled into the practice with a broken wrist. You could say they became friends or you could also see Grace positioning herself into Vanessa's life as friend/caretaker/medical professional.

As more of the character development is revealed you will come to realize Grace had a very lonely life. In one flashback to her college life I felt very sorry for her when she was put in the hospital and no one came to visit. Her roommates disappeared. Abandonment. But there is more to Grace than meets the eye.

Becker is the third narrator. He is a curator for the Fairburn Foundation and obessesed with Vanessa's work. He is in an awkward position at the foundation, a down to earth type who wants to do the right thing. Then he discovers some sordid secrets.

Without spoilers I will say this is a slow burn and the revelations sometimes contradict each other, depending on perspective of the character narrating. Towards the end you see all the pieces fit together. I was never tempted to bail but I didn't like how it ended. 3.5 stars show less

My favourite of the four mystery thrillers by Paula Hawkins so far – an eclectic cast of predominantly unlikeable characters, a breathtaking setting, complex relationships, lost bodies, found bones - it ticked all the boxes until … the end.
The descriptions of the Scottish island of Eris are deeply atmospheric and inspirational to reclusive artist Vanessa Chapman, captured in oils, ceramics and objet trouvés, who buys the island in the late nineties. In the present day art historian and Vanessa Chapman obsessive, James Becker, is sent to Eris to retrieve pieces missing from the artistic estate bequest to his employer, the Fairburn Foundation, and question Grace, Vanessa’s former companion, about a shocking discovery.
The show more backstories along with excerpts from Vanessa’s diaries and notebooks reveal that there is more to everybody than meets the eye especially prim and proper, plain and secretive Grace, lonely and alone, dominated by the tides that cut Eris off from the mainland for twelve hours every day.
Even though I guessed some of the outcomes I loved the slow burn plot development, the building of tension and the unravelling of Grace until the last couple of chapters which, rather than reaching a satisfying crescendo, fell disappointingly flat. show less

This one should have been a DNF for me. I couldn't make myself interested in Grace or Becker, the main characters. I did love the descriptions of Eris, the remote Scottish island where a famed artist moved. All of the people involved were shallow, selfish, unsure of themselves, and petty. The second someone pursued a bit of freedom or was happy in their lives it was shown as a bad thing.

**SPOILER**
I'll admit I was disappointed in the predictable twist. Of course the "ugly" lonely woman was jealous and started killing people. It just felt so unoriginal. Of course a woman who is a capable doctor couldn't be happy in her life if her friends aren't completely obsessed with her. Ugh. I just didn't love that ending.

"All is fair in love and show more war, and friendship is love, too, isn't it? And a kind of war sometimes as well." show less