Foe
Ratings105
Average rating3.7
Boring, finally googled if my guess was right (and it was) and then I was finally able to DNF it.
Contains spoilers
WTF did I just read?
Ever been in one of those situations where you know something is wrong? Alarm bells are ringing, red flags waving, and yet you can't really identify the problem. You see hints of it maybe here and there, but there is nothing definite, nothing solid. And at so many levels.
Everything about this setup is so wrong. I'm going to spoiler tag the rest of this because I just can't think of any way to talk about it without spoiling. Understand, this is not a long story and everything seems significant one way or another.
Why does no one ever go there? Both of them have jobs, they have coworkers. There needs to be something around, someplace where these people live. Where they buy their groceries. Where their kids go to school, and similar. But yet, Junior and Hen might be the only people on the planet as far as we can tell.
Why do they never talk about anyone else? Or, for that matter, anything else? Again, they have jobs, they have coworkers. And yet neither one ever mentions a funny story from work, a joke shared among coworkers, a coworker who royally pissed you off. Nothing. They have screens but yet never speak about anything they see or read? This is weird.
Why do neither of them appear to react to Terrance and the news he brings? I mean seriously, if someone showed up one day and gave a line of bull like Junior and Hen got, I'd be telling everyone I knew. I'd be contacting the police. Is this for real? Is this legit? WTF! And yet, Junior and Hen seem almost completely unaffected by the news. Unrealistically passive.
And it gets better. Someone moves from a house and leaves a piano in the basement that just gets randomly found? They would leave live chickens in the barn without making arrangements for their care?
Junior and Hen have no pasts. The most we get of their lives before they got married is the first time Junior saw her. And again, no mention or anyone or anything else. No matter how introverted, our lives are a long string of personal connections going from birth to the now. And yet for Junior and Hen, there is nothing. its like a giant abyss. Notice how the description of Hen's home growing up is a run down farm house, just like the one they bought after they married?
Terrance walks into the mill where Junior works like he already knows the place. Knows exactly where the bathroom is located. Where is everyone and why does no one show up until after Terrence goes to the bathroom. Why does no one blink an eye about Terrance being there? How can Terrence instantly replace Junior at his job?
Nothing changes. Its always hot summer. It never rains. Hen is always wearing her black tank top.
And the beetles. Literal bugs in the system. To spy? Possibly. Symbols of bugs in the code? Also possible.
Notice how both replacement Junior and replacement Hen freeze staring at one of those beetles, neither reacting to them in any way and staying that way for way way too long.I had hopes that when real Junior returned that their relationship would be better. And yet that Junior was every bit as self centered as the replacement.
And near the end I wondered, maybe Replacement Junior and Replacement Hen might have been happy together and pity original was back.
And then I wondered, is this all for original Junior? This was his happiness. It was where he wanted to be, how he wanted his life to be, not Hen. He was the only one who attempted to get rid of one of the beetles too. Even original Hen didn't do that. Was this all for him? Though it doesn't explain why he was the one who went away initially.
Or did he even ever go away? Was he ever there? The first line in the book is Replacement Junior seeing the headlights. Was there a past before that moment?
There is a lot to digest in such a short book. I'm going to have to reread it at some point.
I enjoyed this. While I did guess one of the twists right away, I second guessed it many times and there were plenty of red herrings that led in various directions so it stayed interesting. It did feel like it could have been a novella or short story and worked just as well.
In the end it really felt like a parable about relationships.
I think where it felt less successful was in some of the more science-fiction-y ideas that it was trying to explore. Due to the nature of the way the story unfolded, and the twisty ending, you can't really appreciate some of the big questions the book asks until the end, and by that point the details that would make those questions most interesting are less fresh in your mind. There's also just a lack of depth to a lot of the descriptions, and some real plot holes which did slightly take away from the story. But overall I did enjoy it a lot and it kept me reading.
I read this really fast. I saw the ending coming with this one, which usually I don't with Reid's work; but as always I had to keep reading.
I love how Iain Reid work always keeps me thinking about what I just read. Now let's see if this movie is better than ‘I'm Thinking of Ending Things'
Cant review it to much, or Id give away the plot.
The last 50 pages were the best.
& the ending I liked it a lot.
Kind of a decide for your self what really happened.
I think this book has entered into my all time faves list. This was a page turner for me, I couldn't stop reading it. Existential, but wow what a book. The yummy kind of fear and anxiety my brain oh-so-loves haha.
If you enjoyed the video game Soma, you will enjoy this fast-paced read.
Interesting sci-fi book, the concept is good but also quite short and the payoff didn't feel that satisfying as you can sort of see the twist coming. 3.5 stars
Precise rating: 3.5 ⭐
I think this one would've deserved 4 stars as a short story. It's not bad, but not great either.
3.75 I guessed it from chapter 2 or 3. It felt a bit dragged out and the psychological part took a while to set in, probably past the 50% mark which is suprising. I did like the last few chapters, however, to those who have read this book, what are those beetles meant to signify?
INSAAAAANE BOOK!
Such a thrilling, quick read that completely held my thoughts hostage for the last few days. Obsessed with how cleverly this is written.
Does anyone do it as good as Iain Reid?!
Foe is a quick read, it drew me in and kept my attention the whole way through. It's interesting and there's tension without it being too heavy. I found the writing to be interesting and thought out well. Basically, it's about what it means to be alive and living.
damn i knew whats going on pretty much from the start so this was just a bit boring to me. was confused the whole time waiting for something to happen coz i thought surely there must be something more to this than what i already guessed...but no.
of all the ways i thought this book would obviously end, i'm very happy that it subverted my expectations with something very unpredictable and awesome. does that make up for the mundanity that is the bulk of the middle of the novel? not really, but i also don't think it hits as hard without it.
Strange and unsettling is definitely Iain Reid's jam, but where I'm Thinking of Ending Things was deft and unpredictable, Foe was a bit too heavy-handed, and the ending could be seen from just a bit too far off. Still enjoyed this though. Reminiscent of Asimov and Bradbury's short stories.
*4.5 stars. Man, I like the spare style and unique creativity of Iain Reid. Both of his books are intelligent, immersive and fast reads. Foe is a little Sci-fi gem.
Pros: atmospheric, interesting characters
Cons: somewhat predictable
Junior and Henrietta's lives change the day Terrance shows up at their country house. Junior has been chosen by lottery to participate in the installation, meaning he'll be away for an undetermined amount of time. But the company has decided that Henrietta won't be left alone while he's gone...
The book is very atmospheric. The chapters are short and punchy and leave you feeling unsettled. Junior asks Terrance questions and it's fascinating how easily Terrance deflects the conversation or speaks a lot without saying anything. There's a level of frustration you feel, along with Junior.
The first person perspective was a little peculiar, as both Junior's thoughts and spoken words were done without italics or quotation marks. A few times I wasn't sure if he'd said something out loud or just in his head.
I liked Junior and Henrietta. It was interesting seeing their lives. The book mostly takes place in their home, with only occasional jaunts to where they work or the fields outside their home. It gave the book a claustrophobic feeling.
The book is set in the near future but the world is largely ignored. There are a few SF elements but the book mostly feels like a suspense novel.
I figured out the ending around the half way point, but it was still interesting to see how the book would reveal what was really going on. It was also a quick read, which helped maintain the creepy mood.
If you like books with mystery and a touch of horror, this is a good read.
Fuck yeah, fuck yeah, fuuuuuuuuuck yeah.
I was heavily impacted by Iain's first novel I'm Thinking of Ending Things and oh my fuck I love this novel just as much.
What a whirlwind of an amazingly plotted, eerie, fantastic writing. And that ambiguous ending... I mean, you sort of understand, but there are all those questions and fun theories you can come up with this novel just like his first.
I probs won't shut up about this book for awhile.
3.5 Love a book that keeps you thinking and stays with you when it's done. Just dont know what it is about this one, if it's the creep factor, or that you really don't ‘get' what you just read. Gonna ponda this a while...