Amor Towles Novels - Thoughts & Mini Reviews

[Anonymous]

Warning - mild spoilers ahead.

I've now read all 3 of Towles' novels, and since they come up a lot on this forum I thought I'd write up some mini-reviews. Interested to hear others' thoughts as well!

Overall, I liked all 3 books. I think one of Towles' greatest strenghts as a writer is his ability to create very memorable settings. I could critique some of his choices involving characterizations and plot, but the settings are magnificent.

Rules of Civility: Though this was Towles' first novel, I ended up reading it last. This book is largely set in late 1930s New York City, and (per my overview remark) I think it does a great job of immersing the reader in this milieu. The main character moves back and forth among a variety of social circles, from the upper crust to the working class. I really enjoyed this character - Katey Kontent - though I was ultimately dissatisfied with what was arguably the other main character (Tinker). One minute he's a shameless social striver, and the next he's an ascetic intellectual. He's definitely supposed to be somewhat mysterious and complex, but I wasn't really convinced by his story arc. I also thought some plot points felt tacked on (What was the point of including the Jewish co-worker Charlotte? Why was a portion of the book a miniature 1930s version of The Devil Wears Prada?). I was also a bit miffed at the end of the book - Katey is built up to be a self-made woman, which is the main thing that makes her interesting, and then it's revealed that she happened to marry a scion of an uber-wealthy family. That said, I liked this book enough that I would consider re-reading it at some point.

A Gentleman in Moscow: This was my favorite of the three. I enjoyed the characters, plot, and above all the setting. Given that the main character is sentenced to a version of house arrest in a fancy hotel, the setting could have been a limiting aspect to the book. However, it was my favorite part. I felt like I could actually envision all the different parts of the Metropol, and get a sense of what it would be like to stay there. I enjoyed the main character quite a bit, as well as the secondary characters. My one critique is that his adopted daughter was a bit too good to be true, but that wasn't a huge stumbling block for me. The plot kept me engaged and I found the ending fairly satisfying. I definitely plan to re-read this book.

The Lincoln Highway: I may rank this one 3/3, though I still liked it. I found the 'main' characters (Emmett and Billy) to be kind of insufferable. They are so good, pure and noble it made them uninteresting. And Billy was a kind of Precocious Child trope that I find very unrealisted and uninteresting. Duchess and Wooly made the book a lot more worthwhile by adding some complexity. I found aspects of the plot to be tacked on (Ulysses and the naughty pastor). I also found the ending to be VERY abrupt and not satisfying. Again, the settings were amazingly done in this book. Specifically, the Adirondacks "cabin", which I was very pleased to encounter in Rules of Civility as well. I am not sure whether I would re-read this book. If I do, I probably would skim quite a few sections and hone in on the characters and scenes I found more interesting.

[Anonymous]

I picked up both Moscow and Civility based on over the top gushing by a friend. Couldn’t get past first pages. How much further do I need to force my attention before I find it intriguing?

[Anonymous]

PP, I read all three as well and tend to agree with you. For both Gentleman and Lincoln, it took until about halfway through until I was into it.
I loooved Gentleman in Moscow
Rules was great too, and I agree with you that it transported me back to that time.
I am in awe of novelists who can write about something they have never experienced. What creativity.

[Anonymous]

I've only read The Lincoln Highway (so I scrolled down and didn't read most of our post), and I absolutely loved it. The characters were quirky, creatively written, and endearing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I picked up both Moscow and Civility based on over the top gushing by a friend. Couldn’t get past first pages. How much further do I need to force my attention before I find it intriguing?

OP here, Rules is written kind of as a frame story - the first chapter takes place in the 1960s and then the bulk of the novel is the character reminiscing about 1938. I would give it until the end of the first chapter of the main part of the book to see if you like it. I was hooked at the end of the introductory chapter because it's implied that a character suffered a mysterious fate and I wanted to find out what happened.

For Moscow, I was interested from the get-go, but I would try reading at least until you're a chapter or so deep into the plot in the hotel.

That said, life is too short to read books that you don't enjoy!!

[Anonymous]

I've also read all 3.

Loved Rules of Civility.

Could not stand A Gentleman in Moscow. It seemed very affected and the interactions with the child just felt so fake/precious and annoying.

Loved The Lincoln Highway.

After disliking AGIM so much, it made me wonder if my taste had changed since reading his first one.... but now I'm just wondering if 2 was somehow an aberration, since I know so many people who loved that one best and didn't care for his other two.

I like watching authors' work over a period of years, and he releases them slowly enough that it's easy to keep up--so I'm already looking forward to his next one!

[Anonymous]

I listened to the audio book of Rules of Civility. I felt like I was completely immersed in 1938 and loved it.

We read that for a book group I was in a while back and someone mentioned that his name, pulled apart, sounds like A Mortals, which for some reason has stuck with me.

I couldn't get into A Gentleman in Moscow and was very disappointed.

I hope to read Lincoln Highway at some point.

[Anonymous]

OP here. Interesting, it seems like there are almost two camps, those who prefer Gentleman in Moscow and those who prefer Rules / Lincoln Highway.

[Anonymous]

Didn’t care for “A Gentleman in Moscow”, at all. Mostly because nothing happens, but also because it’s completely unrealistic so it was hard to suspend belief (I’m originally from Russia). In real life, he would’ve surely been executed, or at best sent to a labor camp which essentially amounted to the same thing.

[Anonymous]

I thought Rules was kind of boring. Nicely written, but it was a bit of a struggle for me to finish it.

I haven’t read Lincoln Highway and don’t have plans to do so any time soon.

A Gentleman In Moscow is one of my favorite books. It’s beautifully written, gives me glimpses of a time and place and culture that I know little about, and within the strictly created boundaries, tells a detailed and compelling story. For me, it’s all about the writing. Towles is a sensitive observer and a truly gifted writer. Combine that with a compelling socio-historical context and a setting worthy of Eloise at the Plaza and I’m all in. This book is a keeper.

[Anonymous]

I've read the 2nd and 3rd, have the 1st on my list. I really liked them both, but found Lincoln Highway more engrossing. However both of them are rather fantastical - that's a feature rather than a bug but was a constant reminder that it was fiction.

[Anonymous]

My husband and I both loved The Lincoln Highway. I liked AGIM and ROC quite a lot, but TLH was my favorite.

If you enjoyed it, I'd also recommend The Cold Millions, by Jess Walter.

[Anonymous]

I loved all 3 and enjoyed that they were all very different books. TLH was a romp a la The Rievers, ROC a Fitzgerald-y bit, and Moscow was a changing circumstances piece like Dr. Zhivago. I enjoy a writer with range.

[Anonymous]

I agree with your reviews and rank ordering, OP. I had a bit of trouble finishing The Lincoln Highway, tbh. I found it somewhat disappointing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Didn’t care for “A Gentleman in Moscow”, at all. Mostly because nothing happens, but also because it’s completely unrealistic so it was hard to suspend belief (I’m originally from Russia). In real life, he would’ve surely been executed, or at best sent to a labor camp which essentially amounted to the same thing.

OP here, that is a valid point about realism. Normally that is a major sticking point for me but for whatever reason I was able to set it aside for this novel. I have read a good amount of 'real' Russian literature which I also enjoy, but that genre is known to be difficult. AGIM felt like an easier-to-read version of that while still staying in the realm of literary fiction rather than 'beach read'.