Posted on Book Chelle.Matt Bondurant's The Night Swimmer was a book I pushed my reading boundaries on. Bondurant captivated me with his carefully sought out words that brought a level of deep and emotional meaning to each sentence. The voice is clear and concise, allowing me to be aware of each scene, each character, and definitely each detail that came to life on the page.The Night Swimmer is a really well written book. Bondurant's female voice is calculated and concise, but does not lack the emotion of a female, a wife, a woman understanding herself in a strange environment. And if the cover didn't warn me enough, the story was filled with mystery, giving me goosebumps for a good part of the story.The Night Swimmer is about Elly, a woman with a minor abnormality that allows her to prolong her time in the water. She doesn't look at it as a defect, but as a blessing, allowing her to be at peace in the ocean. Bondurant describes the times as Elly's communion with the ocean - fittingly so. Elly has won a pub in Ireland, and has found herself moving to Ireland. As her husband Fred restores the pub, Elly spends her time exploring, and in time, swimming in the waters near Cape Clear Island.Once a couple in love, Elly and her husband find her marriage unraveling. Fred submerged himself into the pub and the business, while writing his elusive novel. Elly swims and befriends the locals, but as they ignore her, Elly becomes involved with the arguments of the townspeople. And that's when the suspense kicks in. I am a big literary wuss. It definitely tested my limits of what I was comfortable with. It was suspenseful and edgy, but I could not turn away. I was fascinated with each word and each turn of the page. Through Elly, I embraced the unexpected. She was strong enough to keep her feet on the ground, and so could I. Prose flowed so well. The words sang, allowing the story to be fluid. And like the water that Elly loves so well, it is the same for the story - at times calm, other times raging and chaotic, going in many directions without any borders and boundaries. The writing style is different. At times thoughts and words actually said aloud blended together. No quotation marks? I've seen it before, but I was surprised. It worked well and it allowed me to absorb everything in one breath. Love a good mystery, suspenseful thriller? Bondurant's The Night Swimmer is definitely the book for you.
