I loved this, very cinematic. I can see this novel being turned into a film that wins the Palme d'Or. This book reminds me of Carson McCullers' The Member of the Wedding, not the plot so much as the coming of age tale set in the dog days of summer, written so you can feel the heat and teenage boredom and madness. Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the ARC.

This is a lot of book in a short package, What I loved: the beginning and opening lines. What a way to hook in a reader. I know this book is quite popular and I can see why, I really did like it, but something just kept me from connecting with a book in a way that makes me truly love it. I will check out more from this author

This book was a short, terse read that really kept me invested in the story and thirsting for more. I felt that the story was definitely gripping and enthralling while being extremely bareboned and focused on plot and atmosphere.. Most of all, I found it to be emotional and a coming of age of sorts. This book fraught with intensity involving a decision that derails a life and creates a mania of sorts while in a remote, out of bounds location location. The main character was shifting between turning himself in and finding a way to live through his actions. I definitely want to read more from this author and found this to be powerful. Thanks for the ARC, NetGalley,

HEATWAVE, a French novella by Victor Jestin, is small but packs a wild punch. The opening sentence is a doozy: "Oscar is dead because I watched him die and did nothing."

As far as hooking your reader, that’s an epic beginning.

While this story is short, it’s a novella after all, the story is fraught with tension, desire, terribly questionable decisions, and heat. So. Much. Heat.

#heatwave #victorjestin is a short novella that was critically acclaimed in France. Thanks to #netgalley I had the privilege of reading this. The opening line is “Oscar is dead because I watched him die and did nothing”. So our story begins. I’m unsure whether I feel empathy for our 17 year old Leo or frustration. The book weaves a tale of a Leo and what happens after. #bookstagramchallenges #readersofinstagram #bookrecommendations #netgalleyreview #readersgonnaread

HEATWAVE, a French novella by Victor Jestin, is small but packs a wild punch. The opening sentence is a knockout: "Oscar is dead because I watched him die and did nothing." From there, we follow Leo, a teen on a family vacation at a beachside campsite in rural France, as he comes to arms with what he's done and the fallout from this strange act of cruelty. Jestin is a fantastic writer, but this does read very much like a debut. It seems somewhat like half of an idea; I wanted so much more, especially after an abrupt ending. Leo makes some crazy decisions throughout the book, and we never really understand why. However, this short book certainly made a huge splash when it was published in France in 2019 and perhaps it's the cultural translation that is just not working for me!

Heatwave by Victor Jestin immediately captured my attention and was the most desirable, mesmerizing novel to start off the summer season. I expected this story to be a mystery or thriller and was pleasantly surprised by the openness of the coming-of-age themes. Leo, our main character, witnesses another young man named Oscar kill himself at the playground while on vacation. I wish we'd gotten to know more about Oscar and understand why Leo didn't do anything to stop him. Rather than explore the complex emotions of guilt or concern that Leo may have had, Victor Jestin ruminated on love and languished the sun-soaked, short days of summer. The concept gave me chills, and from the first scene, I felt as though I was intruding on the lives of the characters by watching them when I shouldn't- much the way Leo did, too.

“Oscar is dead because I watched him die and did nothing.” Leo is on vacation and witnesses Oscar’s strangulation (this happens on page one, I’m not trying to be a spoiler!). Leo panics and buries Oscar. Over the next twenty-four hours, it’s a description of Leo and his guilt, yet at the same time trying to get together with a girl on the beach.
Confused? Me too.

Have you ever read The Stranger by Albert Camus? It definitely felt similar in structure and ambiguity. Like Thr Stranger, Heatwave is also translated from it’s original French, it’s very brooding and introspective. I’m sure this novel will work for a certain audience, it just wasn’t for me. What’s the last translated novel you read?

Thank You to NetGalley and Scribner for gifting me with a review copy of Heatwave by Victor Jestin. In exchange I offer my unbiased review.

For a very slim book author Victor Jestin manages to pack quite a lot into this taut story of isolation, loneliness and teenage sexual awakenings. Set over the course of 24 hours, we come to find Leonard, a boy who may or may not have killed another boy. Leonard is one of those unreliable narrators, who makes you question every word, sentence and action. As you read this story, you feel the heatwave enveloping your senses, causing you to feel hot, distracted, uncomfortable. Very atmospheric and unsettling, definitely a book I want to discuss further. Perfect book to toss into your beach bag and drift away.

"Heatwave" aggravated the heck of out of me. Ugh. The plot is very intriguing, but the writing style is just so clunky. I kept getting confused by certain situations, and I hated all the characters. Too bad because this novel could've been something special. I do like the vibe and overall tone this book gave off. Very creepy and morbid which I prefer. I'm sorry I wanted to love it but it was pretty average.

Thank you, Netgalley and Scribner for the digital ARC.

Leo is a 17 year old boy on a beach vacation with his family. One night, he watches a popular boy strangle himself on the playground. In a panic, he buries the body. He is haunted by guilt while the everybody around him carries on as usual.

This book was originally published in France under the title La Chaleur. I’m not sure if some of the clarity was lost in translation or if the intended purpose was to be in a fog like Leo, but this one left me confused. The logic behind Leo’s actions just didn’t make sense and there was no true resolution to the story. Just because I wasn’t the biggest fan of this novel, doesn’t mean you wont be. I encourage you to pick it up and form your own opinion when it is published on June 29th.

This book was so unique, tense, and unlike anything I have read in a long time. It was at times creepy, at times angsty, and most of the time mesmerizing. A perfect read for a long summer evening, and I stand by that! This won't be everyone's taste - that is really clear to me. But I think this book won't have a problem finding it's niche in the literary world.

Heatwave brings us on vacation with 17 year-old Leonard, who has just witnessed the (accidental?) death of another teen. He makes the split-second decision to bury him on the beach, and then tries to carry on with his vacation keeping this dark secret to himself.

Jestin maintains a deeply unsettling undertone throughout. On the surface, he's describing the beaches of Landes, France in the throes of summer, but there's a disquieting edge. The feeling that something is not quite right. Several times over, we feel that Leo has just managed to get away with something.

Leo is angsty and apathetic, and sometimes downright pitiable. Altogether, a convincing picture of adolescence.

This was a quick and unassuming read at only 112 pages, but its deeply immersive language immediately transported me to the summer heat, crowded beaches, and the angst of youth. Jestin's narrative skill alone made this an enjoyable read, and I'd be interested to pick up more of his future releases.

[ Thank you to Scribner for providing me with an arc edition of Heatwave for review. Much appreciated! ]

This felt more like a short story, or a segment of a novel, rather than a complete book. With the information the reader is given, it hard to tell if the protagonist is deeply troubled, or just an angsty teenage boy who made some poor decisions. That said, the author does a good job of conjuring up a specific time and place (and sense of heat). I’m not sure if I can say I enjoyed this book, and though I could see flashes of brilliance, I don’t think there was enough substance to make this a meaningful experience for me. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing this ARC for review.

Existential, or an Empty Vessel?

This is an interesting book. It's the kind of book about which one should first read many reviews. Then one should read the book itself, and then read more reviews. That's because how readers react to the book and how the book is reviewed is much more interesting and illuminating than is the book itself. In an almost literal sense the author has created an empty vessel, (in the main character, the setting, and the plot), and every reader can pour into it whatever meaning he wants.

Is it deep? Is it shallow? Is it profound, or naive? Is it the new, Gen Z version of existential, or is it just another example of trendy iGen angst? You've got me. The book has won a lot of awards, but I've read some great books with no awards and some highly regarded and awarded books that I've detested, so that's no help.

There have been some great mopes in literature, and some great sadsacks, and innumerable triumphantly odd characters. The hero of this book, Leo, is none of those things. For what it's worth, at 17% I decided that our narrator/hero was hopelessly pathetic and tedious. I didn't stop reading, I just rejected him as any sort of symbol of modern youth or disaffection, or as any sort of useful metaphor. None of his detachment or ennui or apathy seems to be more than just a plot device; it has no intention or depth. Passivity is tricky when it's the hero's only character trait.

For me the problem is the incident that sets the course for the book. Standing by and watching another teen commit suicide? O.K., that certainly sets up our existential quandary. But then dragging away the body and burying it in order to somehow become complicit in the suicide? That didn't work for me as an authentic act, or as a plot device, or even as a metaphor. And once you lose that all you have left are the musings of our teen protagonist. Who for the most part isn't a very interesting muser. (SPOILER? For what it's worth, the book is more interesting if you take the view that Leo killed Oscar. Then the guilt makes sense and the rest of the book becomes more thought provoking and takes on a different sort of flavor.)

So, in any event, if you'd like to try a modern bildungsroman that's remarkably light on the bildung, or if you're curious to see what constitutes "a prize winning sensation in France", this is an interesting choice.

(Please note that I received a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)