An extraordinary read and very unlike ‘The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time’. Very well researched and most engaging; this is a time slip novel with a difference.

At the outset, Phillipe, a very wealthy businessman, has lost his beloved wife in a plane crash. The only survivor of the incident is Phillipe’s new-born daughter, Angelica. Devastated, Phillipe retreats from the world to raise his daughter in almost total seclusion. His affection for his daughter is so intense that is crosses the boundaries of a moral society. When Darius, a potential suitor for Angelica appears, Phillipe tries to murder him. In fear for his life, Darius escapes on the ship, The Porpoise and this is where the novel turns completely on its head.

Essentially this is a re-telling of Shakespeare’s Pericles, Prince of Tyre with brief revisits to Angelica’s story. During her upbringing Angelica has immersed herself in the stories of ancient Greece and Rome and it isn’t clear whether the actions in the past are real or all in Angelica’s head. I know what I think but I’ll let you come up with your own interpretation.

This is a fascinating novel with an excellent re-working of an ancient Greek myth. Aspects of the novel are not for the faint-hearted but I have no hesitation in recommending it. It is not a straightforward read but it is very much worth pursuing.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher, Random House UK for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I found this too disjointed to really get into .Two very different storylines , one modern and one mythological I could not get them to blend easily . Unfortunately the book did not draw me back to keep reading so abandoned it at about 60% read . I have read earlier books by this author so was disappointed .

I was looking forward to reading this book. It started well, a moving account of the plane crash, but then I found it hard to follow as it went from reality to mythological. Angelica's story was an unsetting one from start to finish. Not an easy read. The retelling of the story of Pericles was well written. But I think I may have enjoyed to more as two separate books.

I have enjoyed many of Mark Haddon’s books so was looking forward to reading The Porpoise.
The opening chapters were very unsettling and took me well outside my comfort zone. As the story progressed it became more strange and weird – a rollicking voyage through time. Apparently based on the story of Pericles Prince of Tyre,
a well written tale but I did not like all the to-ing and fro-ing through time.

Where to start, great book, great writing could not put it down! same effect that with the curios incident of the dog at night -time.

However, once finished I felt emotional (the contemporary and the antique story lines are both fascinating and gripping) but also confused by the multiples story-lines. In my view the Shakespeare's one does not bring anything to the story. Finally the ending let me a bit frustrated.

Excited about reading this one owing to his fantastic debut, and whilst I enjoyed the story on the whole I did find it quite tricky to follow. As a fan of Greek Myths I was particularly intrigued by where Mark Haddon would take this Appolonius-esque story and think that perhaps some of the story's complexity was caused by this tie-in.

Readable, but unlike me to give three stars to a story too!

I chose to read this having enjoyed both 'The Curious Incident --' and 'A Spot of Bother', also by Mark Haddon. This book is very different from either of those but like his other works is a wonderfully written story. In The Porpoise the reader is reading two tales at the one time, separated by time and space. The novel starts with a contemporary story in which a young, very pregnant, woman dies in a tragic accident and her newborn daughter is saved. The contemporary story, which is very uncomfortable to read, concerns the abusive incestuous relationship to which this daughter is subjected by her father. This story is the backdrop to a retelling of the story of Pericles of Tyre, a tale which has been told by many authors in many times. Haddon's version is fascinating with very sympathetic main characters and two very strong women: Chloe, married to Pericles, and their daughter Marina. I found the section of the book in which Haddon told a side tale of Shakespeare and George Wilkins, two earlier tellers of the tale of Pericles, a confusing and unnecessary aside in what was otherwise a beautifully crafted tale, The book motivated me to find out more about the myths of Pericles and as a result I will re-read 'The Porpoise'.

I've seen another reviewer who mentioned being interested in the book but not enjoying it, and that's exactly how I would summarise my experience of this novel. I found the second half of the story a lot more gripping as we delved further and further into the classical world and Pericles' story

The story of Angelica and her father is disturbing on many levels; for me, the most disquieting part of reading their story line is that everything is presented at a distance to us, without any in-depth exploration of the characters' feelings or behaviours so I felt like a voyeur throughout. Angelica is presented passive and doll-like; the perfect receptacle for her father's desires, much as her mother was ideally positioned on TV screens for him to project his desires onto. It's clever writing that makes for uncomfortable reading, but I couldn't escape the feeling that it was too consciously clever - I felt like it was glaring me in the face from the pages of the book.

One thing Mark Haddon does beautifully is conjure imagery that is at once painfully clear and understood, while also being so obscurely derived that you can't help but take a moment to appreciate its artfulness. The book is gorgeously written and resplendent with descriptions that haul you straight into the story; Haddon has an incredibly deft touch when it comes to balancing detail and imagination, which is absolutely showcased as the plot moves through ancient cities and lands.

Beautiful, disturbing, enthralling, slow, clever, difficult - I have so many mixed feelings towards this book that, while I'm not sure I liked it, I would absolutely still recommend you read it.

I read the first third of this book which was beautifully written albeit with very dark content, but I could not engage with the story when it started to shift between reality and mythology. I think its a shame the story of Angelica did not continue without the fantasy side, but then I suppose that isn't what the author intended.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this book.

Oh I am so torn. Part of me absolutely loved this book, and the rest was left feeling disappointed. The initial disaster scene was so sad and beautifully written, and I enjoyed the part of the story in relation to that. I didn't like the underlying Pericles tale. So for that reason I'm split. But his writing is excellent so I will give this 4/5 anyway!

Beautifully written but not an easy read. I felt like I had been following the plot quite fluidly when it suddenly changed before me. It was tricky at times to keep an idea of where you were but I imagine that was the point. I know people who absolutely adored this book so i think that Mark Haddon ultimately set out what he achieved to, I'm just sorry i didn't love it as I have his previous books.

Mark Haddon's latest novel moves into markedly different territory from his previous work, it shifts into different time periods, from the modern to more ancient times, with strong elements of the fantastical. Haddon draws on Greek mythology, the story of Appolonius and Shakespeare's Pericles, reworking them but with differences, and for those readers unfamiliar with them, it will pay to become acquainted with at least the broad outlines of what happens in them prior to reading this. The novel has a haunting dreamlike quality in its telling, of the tragic, a need for justice and revenge, and with its depiction of strong and resilient women. I should point it has some gruesome aspects and includes the dark, unsettling and disturbing themes of abuse and incest.

Philippe's wife, Maja, is killed in a plane accident, and he is overcome by grief. His baby daughter, Angelica survives, untimely ripped from her mother. Angelica is raised in splendid isolation by her over protective father, she is to become the focus of a deeply unhealthy and troubling obsession. She finds herself escaping into literature. Darius makes a failed attempt to rescue Angelica from her well guarded father, only just managing to board The Porpoise and embarking on a series of adventures. The multiple threads interconnect in this complex, multilayered and beguiling book, although it can feel disjointed occasionally. This is a beautifully written novel, thought provoking, and whilst overall I found it an enthralling read, it is not likely to be for everyone. Many thanks to Random House Vintage for an ARC.

At first I thought gosh I’m enjoying this. Then, oh dear enjoying might be the wrong word. Then! What’s happening now? where has Pericles come from? I settled into that and made my mind up that it was the main characters way of escaping her horrendous life. I might have been right or wrong but either way I was left confused. This novel felt disjointed and didn’t grab me.

Multi-strand novel about Pericles amongst others – not great

This novel is about various inter-linked characters in different timelines. Philippe, in our era, has a daughter, Angelica, born in tragic circumstances. Meanwhile, in ancient times, Pericles discovers love, marriage, tragedy, the birth of a daughter and a host of adventures. In the 17th century, we encounter George Wilkins, a collaborator of Shakespeare's. All their stories are linked, sometimes in a supernatural way. There is incest, murder, plots, abuse and all sorts of action.

I found this novel too disjointed, a bit pretentious, a bit too clever-clever for my liking with loads of references to demonstrate the author's knowledge or extensive research. The writing is detailed and flowing, full of description and with well-developed characters. I think that there are better examples of literary fiction but fans of Mark Haddon may enjoy this work. I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

My thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley for the opportunity to review this book.

A complex, brilliant tour de force, entrancing writing which will sweep you into this multi layered world of myth, quest and adventure. I don't want to say more for fear of ruining this absolute treat.

I thought The Porpoise was very good in many ways, but I did have some reservations.

It is, at heart, a re-telling of the story of Pericles, Prince of Tyre. However, it begins in the present day when a very rich man’s newborn daughter, Angelica, is the sole survivor of a plane crash which kills his wife. We get the story of Angelica’s growing up in the shadow of her father’s obsession with her...which then morphs into the tale of Pericles in ancient times with occasional brief cuts back to Angelica’s story. It’s not clear whether this is all in Angelica’s head, but it’s an odd device, made even odder by a chilling but strange and rather out of place episode of the ghosts of Shakespeare and his co-author Gower in 17th-Century London.

The individual stories are compellingly told and I was very gripped by much of the book. Mark Haddon is exceptionally good at portraying the internal experience of his characters, so for example we get what it might really mean to be taken for dead at sea and thrown overboard in a sealed coffin in terrifyingly chilling detail. All of this is truly excellent and makes a thoroughly gripping read, but the oddness of the structure and the weirdness of the transition from the present to the time of Pericles sat uncomfortably with me. It made me wonder whether Mark Haddon was trying to put two books together which didn’t really go.

Overall I enjoyed The Porpoise and found some parts quite brilliant, but my recommendation is slightly qualified.

(My thanks to Random House for an ARC via NetGalley.)

Baby Angelica is cut from her mother’s dying body following a plane crash. She grows up cut off from the world in a remote manor house under the sole care of her wealthy father, who ends up substituting Angelica for his dead wife. A visitor appears one day, Darius, and her hopes that Darius will somehow rescue her but things begin to fall apart when her father suspects her, Angelica begins to withdraw from life, and Darius apparently takes a boat trip on The Porpoise and becomes … Pericles?!

Indeed, Haddon, in his postscript, describes the whole as the myth of Appolinus rewritten. We are not told whether the subsequent adventures are all in Angelica’s mind, or in Darius’, or are in fact just pure fantasy. Either way, there are several stories woven together here, all interlinking in some way, and we are taken backwards and forwards in time between ancient Greece and the present, with a brief sojourn in the middle to Shakespeare’s era.

Haddon is a marvellous storyteller and I was enchanted by each of the individual stories, but I did not know the Appolinus myth or even perceive that this novel was based on a ‘real’ myth until I reached the end. I was therefore probably struggling more than most to understand what on earth was going on, and much as I enjoyed the individual stories contained within the pastiche and felt they captured brilliantly the times and the characters involved, I ended up struggling rather and being particularly disappointed that all the stories were left hanging at the end. I confess to being a plebeian here … I need a resolution to my stories, whether there’s a happy ending or not!

All in all, for me there was just a bit too much that was unexplained. However, I think lovers of Greek mythology and in particular those that are acquainted with the Appolinus stories will really enjoy this – and also readers with a vivid imagination, able to revel in pure fantasy.

Disappointing and self conscious reworking of a story which has been done better by better. I know I’m setting the bar high, as it’s Haddon. Probably a less author wound have got a more positive review but still...

This book was very readable, which is something I like about Mark Haddon’s books. He definitely can’t be pigeonholed as each of his books are so different. I loved The Curious Incident Of The Dog In The Nighttime but this didn’t interest me as much. I’m pleased I read it but it didn’t blow my mind like the Curious Incident did.

This is a beautiful, fascinating read. I loved the opening, then was jolted hard into the world of myth. I nearly stopped reading it was such a shock. But I'm so glad I kept going. I ended up hardly putting it down. The writing is perfect - short, sparse sentences that are so evocative. I was lost in the hazy world of myth/reality. Best book I've read in a while.