The Hidden

Book Review - The Hidden by Tobias Hill
The Hidden
Tobias Hill
Format: eBook
File Size: 512 KB
Publisher: HarperCollins
Publication Date: October 13, 2009
Pages: 458 (Portrait view)
ISBN: 978-0-06-194305-8

There’s no denying that Tobias Hill has great skill and mastery over the English language and the mystery veiled in The Hidden was compelling enough on the surface to pique my interest but certain aspects of this story did not meet my expectations. One would think that with a story written about an archeological dig in Sparta, Greece that the so-called “hidden” (and, since I dislike spoilers, I won’t divulge what it is here) would be an extraordinary, unprecedented discovery. Think of the possibilities; undiscovered treasure show more of immense value or warring archeology factions, perhaps a supernatural entity unleashed accidently or even an ancient murder mystery uncovered – sadly, none of the above comes remotely close to the reality. And that’s the real problem with this story. The “hidden,” once known, is so mundane and “been-there-done-that” that I was very disappointed when Mr. Hill finally revealed it. It’s evident that Tobias Hill is a gifted writer. His prose paints fabulous mental images. His characters are believable, real and substantial, but not convincingly appealing in this story and while I was drawn in by his detailed descriptions and the clarity of his voice the narrative seriously lagged in places and what he created with a talented hand fell far short in substance.

When I first started writing this review I had in mind giving The Hidden a solid two and a half stars but the more I thought about it the more I decided to boost that to a three; simply because of Hill’s writing proficiency and acumen. The subject is worthy of a story but this one could have been managed profoundly better. I am certain that there are readers that will thoroughly enjoy this mystery but for me the one thing that kept me reading was the anticipation of the reveal which, once uncovered, was a regrettable choice by the author and a disappointment to me.

With that said, I should mention that I will attempt to read Tobias Hill again in the future. He definitely has the chops and I do enjoy his style. This story may not have stood out for me but the next may. And, I will say this… It is rare that I give unfavorable reviews but rarer still that I read additional works by an author that did not live up to my expectations. Mr. Hill is an exceptional writer and I will seek out his next book.

2 1/2 (oh, yeah) 3 out of 5 stars

The Alternative
Southeast Wisconsin show less

A young man who has had to leave England ends up in Greece working on an archaelogical dig where strange things begin to happen. I was looking forward to this book, but the parts of it seemed disconnected and the characters were unengaging. It has parallels to The Secret History, but is far less satisfying. A study of alienation which alienated me!

A truly absorbing and immensely enjoyable read (despite the fact that the 'will I love it?' 'thingy' on LT said there is a very small chance of me loving it - and which also makes me feel very lucky for having won it in the first place).

Ben Mercer, fleeing the wreckage of his marriage, joins a group of young archeologists on the outskirts of Sparta and, although he is quickly accepted as a co-worker, there is something not-quite-right about the other workers and their passion for the past. Soon, Ben finds he is falling for Natsuko, one of the diggers, and longs to be accepted into the group, but his need for acceptance soon begins drawing him into a strange and obbsessive life, based on the beliefs of the ancients Spartans.

Not only is show more this a wonderful book to take on a visit to Greece - the varied loactions around Athens and the Peloponnese are skillfully and accurately drawn, evoking in a few brushstrokes the essence of each distinct setting - but it is a gripping tale of intrigue and passion.

Other reviewers have compared The Hidden to both John Fowles's The Magus and Donna Tartt's The Secret History and the comparisons are justified. The ancient secrets, the close-knit group of obsessives and, perhaps most importantly, the unmistakeable sense of place that runs through all these books makes them a 'holy trinity' of essential reading for lovers of Greece - not to mention lovers of a gripping story, brilliantly told. Each one of them made my heart beat faster. show less

Perhaps some of my comments I made as I was reading this book will best show what I thought of it as I was reading it -

"Wow, now here's an unlikeable protagonist." The main character is not a very likable kind of guy. He's just gone through a messy divorce and he's a bit gloomy. As we find out in the story, everyone else is fairly similar to Ben in the sense that they are, as a group, very unlikeable. No one really likes Ben and we find that no one has ever really liked Ben. Then again, these people that do not like Ben aren't really likable themselves.

I should probably mention the plot at this point - Oxford scholar goes off to Athens to find himself and escape his ex-wife and he ends up on an archaeological dig with a few people that show more really don't like him and who seem to have something to hide.

"This book is rather strange. And the main character is a bit. . .disturbing. Just reading it I feel drugged in some way, it has a heavy, distorted feel to it." There is a bit of a dreamy quality to this work. The author manages to keep things hidden and it was this aspect of the book that I liked.

"I think the only reason I keep reading this is to find out what's hidden." Then again, with so many unlikeable people that I finally thought to myself - I hope they kill each other off at the end, the only reason I made it to the end was because there really is a mystery here. Something is hidden. Is it literal? Figurative? Ever going to come to light?

The writing is very good, but there are no heroes here. show less

There are two words I would use to describe this book. Gripping and poetic.

As a thriller, it achieved what it set out to do. Although saying a novel is atmospheric is somewhat cliched, the tension, emotion and sense of 'being on the outside' was palpable throughout this book. The character of Ben never really belongs with the group he meets on the dig in Sparta, and the author has managed to convey that sense even when the words suggested that he had been accepted and fitted in. The climax to the book is breathtaking. As a reader, you feel as out on a limb as the protagonist. You are kept away from the secret for as long as Ben is, and you aren't given any hint until he is faced with it in all of its horror.

And yet, the tension is show more created in language that is beautifully poetic. Indeed, at times the paragraphs read like poetry rather than prose which, I think, helped create the atmosphere. I was incredibly impressed by this novel - Tobias Hill is an author with a gift of language. show less

"The Hidden" is a book about obsession, and secrets, sombre in tone and full of ominous signs of things not being right, of not being what they seem. I enjoyed it, although at times I got a bit lost in the dialogue trying to follow who was speaking and had to backtrack and with the third person narrative I was unsure sometimes who the ‘he’ was. That said, it was a gripping tale of what happens to Ben Mercer. Ben, emotionally vulnerable after his divorce, leaves Oxford for Greece where he joined a group of archaeologists on a dig in Sparta. The group is made up of five people, including a fellow academic from Oxford, and two beautiful young women. Dazzled by their charisma he is desperate to be accepted as part of their group, to be show more included, to take part in the strange games they play. But it wasn’t just a game.

It’s also about the history of Sparta. Interspersed in the narrative are Ben’s “Notes Towards a Thesis” and it was in these notes that I found clues about the nature of the group. In ancient Sparta the Crypteia meant “The Secret Matter” or “The Hidden” - young men who were “an instrument of subterfuge and terror”.

I liked the contrasts in this book, the vivid descriptions of places. Here is an example where Ben is remembering Oxford:

"The fog going out through the streets to the rivers, the Thames and the Cherwell, the Evenlode and the Ock. The city always secretive and all the more so at that hour, as it slept, its acres full of unseen courts and cloisters, its lodgings and stairs full of lives, waiting, pending morning."

And again describing Athens:

"He recognised the lay of the land, the hills and saddle that ran between them. He knew the history of the ruins on each, the palaces and shrines and graves built one atop the other, like corals, the living on the dead. But the green of the slopes in the sunlight, and the flash of spring flowers; and beyond the ziggurat-steps of the Menelaion, the clear air across the valley, and the city below, and the mountains beyond the city, white capped, momentous … it was spectacular."

A novel about secrets, hidden things that maybe Ben should have left alone. The characters are all difficult to like, maybe because I couldn’t get a clear picture of some of them in my mind. Ben is really rather pathetic and needy and because of that he is easily manipulated. I read the chilling events at the end of this book with increasing unease and a feeling of desolation. It was both gripping and horrific. show less

The Hidden follows Englishman Ben Mercer as he flees a broken relationship and graduate school in archaeology/history, and heads to Greece. A series of happenstance encounters and decisions lead him to being on a dig in Sparta, chasing the ghosts of the Spartans of Thermopylae fame. The novel intermixes a series of "notes on a thesis", Ben's background notes for a thesis he's composing. The thesis explores the dark side of the Spartans, which contrasts with the more inspirational side of the Spartans as reflected in the story of the Battle of Thermopylae and as fictionalized by, for example, Steven Pressfield in [Gates of Fire], and the thesis notes are actually very interesting in and of themselves and not just in how they advance the show more storyline.

As the dig progresses, Ben ingratiates himself into the dig team and strange things start to happen. Modern as well as ancient Greece are well explored in The Hidden, but I found the activities of the dig team (I won't say more to avoid spoiling) to be a bit unmotivated and muddled. Still, the exploration of the darker side the Spartans was interesting to contrast with books and movies that celebrate them ([Gates of Fire] and the movie 300). I found the front half of the book to be much more enjoyable and convincing than the latter half, but overall it's an interesting read. show less