Age of Vice

A Novel

Paperback, 870 pages

Published Jan. 3, 2023 by Random House Large Print.

ISBN:
9780593632680

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2 stars (1 review)

6 editions

Completely changes from great to terrible 1/3 of the way in

2 stars

In the first 1/3 or so of this book, I was ALL-IN. A Slumdog Millionaire-type story of a kid who uses his wits and generous spirit to take advantage of any small bit of luck that comes his way. But then the narrator’s perspective shifts, and by the time we got to Neda’s story, I was just bored. The heavy-handed morality also got to me — I don’t drink or use drugs, but the piling on of alcohol as a signifier for all social ills got very tiresome. So, too, did the non-stop, unnecessary violence. It basically turns into a gangster drama that isn’t particularly interesting. 2 stars for the first 1/3.