Beautiful, terrible in the best sense of the word, and everlasting, The Secret History is an unpredictable and unforgettable novel.
“And always, always, that same toast. Live forever.”
The ever present idea of eternal life within ‘The Secret History’ by Donna Tartt applies to the characters in this captivating story and the novel itself. Originally published in 1992, The Secret History has proven time and time again to be a novel that readers cannot put down. But how does a story consisting of an unreliable narrator, a slew of hedonistic activities, and hardly any likable characters consistently hold a place in the hearts of many?
I read this book for the first time in December, and I’d have to say the answer is obvious to me now. Despite all of these aspects that sound like a recipe for disaster, I fell in love with every word. Donna Tartt is a master writer and crafts a story full of so many unexpected twists and turns all while maintaining her signature beautiful and elegant tone.
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When our narrator Richard arrives at Hampden college, he allows himself to be swept up by a picturesque group of students who spend their time studying Greek and attending dinner parties. Slowly, the rotten core of this group is revealed to him in the events leading up to and including the murder of their classmate Bunny. Despite all of this, Richard remains unphased and continues his so-called picturesque life with them. He continues romanticizing his peers and continues to show the reader that he aspires to be like this group, despite all of the horrors.
Perhaps the most impressive element of Tartt’s story is how she introduces the climax within the first page. This mimics the writing style of classic authors, such as Shakespeare, who include detailed prologues that let the reader know the story’s plot before it happens. She tells us from the very first line that Bunny is dead, and his demise was at the hand of Richard and his friends. At first glance, this decision seems to leave little room for mystery and excitement. At times, I found myself questioning what else could possibly happen to fill the rest of the book.
However, Tartt’s decision to provide the reader with this detail creates a more engaging and captivating novel. Despite knowing exactly what Bunny’s fate will be, I couldn’t help but wonder what would happen next and how they would get to this conclusion. Tartt knew what she was doing with her writing, and I clung on to every word of it.
One of the first things we learn about Richard is that he heavily romanticizes what he experiences, describing himself as having “a morbid longing for the picturesque at all costs.” This lets the reader know to expect a romanticized story with strange and interesting commentary from Richard. The idea of romanticism is expanded upon later in a scene where one of Richard’s classmates and friends describes beauty as terror and states, “whatever we call beautiful we quiver before it.” To me, this quote encapsulates the exact element of this story which captivates so many. While I find the events within the story to be terrible, it somehow remains one of the most beautiful books I’ve ever read.
Before I even finished this novel, I knew it was going to be one of my favorites forever. It’s unpredictable twists and turns combined with a plot that feels like a car crash you can’t look away from creates the perfect story. The Secret History is a novel I recommend to anyone who asks and one I’m already preparing to reread. In my mind at least, this book will live forever.