A Collar for Cerberus

From the cover - "A Collar for Cerberus is a story about time, life, pleasure and the decisions we make.". I love this book to the moon and back! There is much to be savored in the words, much to be learned from the characters who are jump off the page real. Wow. Just. Wow.

The book begins with the warning “Never meet your heroes”, since they have a tendency to turn out rather disappointing in real life, and initially that definitely seems to be the case for the narrator of this book. He has travelled to Greece to meet his idol, the Greek author Irakles Bastounis. Bastounis is an era-defining author who has brushed shoulders with many others and been married to Miss Venezuela, amongst other wives. Not surprisingly our young man, whose name we never learn, is daunted when his dream actually comes true and so he fluffs up his initial meeting with the literary giant. However, he gets a second chance when Bastounis commands, not asks, him to drive him somewhere. This one somewhere becomes many as the two form an unlikely partnership as they travel through Greece together to places with significance in Greek mythology. “Myths are our roots,” according to Bastounis.
Another quote from the book is “Acclaim is a dangerous currency”, but I hope the author won’t mind if I acclaim his work. It’s compulsive reading and is rich and multi-layered. Throughout this excellent story are references to the twelve labours of Heracles (Hercules). Bastounis and his chauffeur share the same physical journey but embark on separate spiritual journeys, both facing their own labours – challenges they need to tackle. It’s probably our narrator who gets the most out of them, but Bastounis isn’t far behind. They learn more about each other too, and initially what the young man learns about his companion isn’t flattering. Opinionated, rude, privacy-invading, outspoken – other than an amazing way with words Bastounis doesn’t seem to have much going for him. However, perhaps this is another one of our young man’s challenges: to see beneath the surface, to see what’s really there in front of you.
As we and Bastounis discover, our narrator isn’t as insipid as he might first appear. He’s witty, wry, very observant and while it’s true he has a lot to learn, he’s definitely the man for this job as he’s receptive to all that Greece and Basounis have to offer him. He realises neither family nor friends will appreciate the enormity of what he’s going through with his irascible companion. They just think he’s wasting his time bumming around in Greece but he’s aware that it’s them living the vacuous, shallow lives.
This book gives you much to think about. Who actually is the real hero here, the Heracles? Our narrator or Bastounis? And who’s Cerberus? Cerberus was the three-headed Hound of Hades. It was his job to stop the dead escaping from the underworld. So if he’s collared, that means presumably that these lost souls can break free. They can live again. Does collaring our young man to act as his chauffeur allow Bastounis a last chance to make his mark, or by befriending and de-clawing Bastounis is it our narrator who can run from the shadows into the light?
As well as such fascinating teasing, there are wonderful, vibrant characters and vivid settings in the book that captivate. You’ll find the sights and soul of Greece within these pages. A marvellous novel.

A Collar for Cerberus by Matt Stanley

Thank you Net Gallery, Thistle Publishing and David Haviland for allowing me to review this novel.

If you are reading a book right now finish and pick up this book.
It is fantastic.

I hated Mr. Bastounis at the very beginning but he grew on me. A very smart man who knows what he wants in the last half of his life. Mr. Bastounis recruits a young graduate student to drive him around to see anything and everything in Greece. Not to mention we get to feel like we are actually there with the great telling of this book. This book is hard to put down it's filled with crazy characters and free will. When Cerberus and Mr. Bastounis get to the end of the road sort of speak you find out why. They pick up hitch hikers and run from reporters. Never a dull moment in this book. I would love to read more by this author. This book is so good I hardly know how to word my review.

Cherie'

If you met your favorite Author what would you say? Better yet, if you had the opportunity to drive them around a countryside for some days...what kind of experience do you think you'd have?

If you think you have an answer or a bunch of them then you'd love reading this book. It's the first encounter I've had of Matt Stanley's writing and I'm looking forward to reading more of his books. The depth of writing and character development is astounding and having a young man's naive dreams and an old man's regrets mixed in this story made it an enjoyable read.

See, there's something catchy about the title but if you are thinking of picking up the next read, go for this one because it's an unforgettable experience and nothing beats a good road trip!

Thank you David Haviland, Thistle Publishing and Netgalley for the eARC.

What an incredible experience! Yes, this novel was not so much a book, but rather a deeply felt experience. From the very beginning the reader is thrust into the sights and sounds and tastes and odors of each scene, giving us the feeling of genuineness.

When I read the description of this novel, I thought it was going to be a travelogue of Greece. However, it is so much more than that. It is about the journey of life and how to experience life to the fullest. This book delves into the deepest resources of our lives and transports the reader into Greek history and mythology, revealing their timelessness in today’s world and in our own lives. The entire journey is just a couple of weeks long, but yet covers a lifetime.

The characters are richly drawn and beautifully fleshed out. The timeline is straight forward and moves well. It was a page turner in that I never wanted to put it down. However, it was a slow read as I enjoyed savoring and digesting each page.

The use of the English language is absolutely exquisite. The vocabulary is wonderfully rich. It was a true joy to experience this novel. I sincerely hope that Matt Stanley will grace us with more of his extraordinary gift of writing.

Many thanks to Net Galley, Thistle Publishing and David Haviland for the ARC of this novel.

In Greek mythology, Cerberus is the horrifying multi-headed dog-creature that guards the Underworld to prevent the dead from leaving. For Heracles twelfth labor, he was sent to bring back this “hound of Hades”, which seemed to be an impossible task.

If this interests you so far, then you will savor every page of this book. Recently, I have read summer beach stories set in sunny Greece. This is not a chick lit rom com. This is a serious piece of literary fiction, and it succeeds in being an interesting and fascinating read.

This book is a first person account, told by a recent college graduate who is wandering through Greece while he figures out what to with his life. The young man stops in a small town, with a vague idea of searching for his author-hero, the Nobel Prize winning Irakles Bastounis.

He does meet the author at a café, but it is the great man himself who takes over. Bastounis gets the young fellow to drive both of them on an epic journey through Greece, visiting famous sites of ancient Greece. As they travel, Bastounis belittles the young man and his way of thinking, so, he assigns him 12 challenges. The scene where they catch, prepare and cook an octopus is a highlight.

The book is filled with eloquent descriptions, ripe with vocabulary that was unfamiliar to me. The descriptions and thoughts on life can be more solid food than those of used to baby food may want. Literary fiction can be like that. However, the pace of the book was energizing enough to keep pulling me through the hard currents.

Irakles Bastounis will remain a memorable character. His backstory is exciting, and his current life is unusual and he shares many interesting observations. The young man doesn’t know himself at all, so he is not as fully formed in the book.

The book begins with this thought, “Never meet your heroes.” And ends with, “You have your whole life in front of you. Use it well.”

Was the famous author a great and wise man, or was he a decaying old pompous failure? Was the young man right to live a cautious, careful life or should he fly to the sun? I recommend this thoughtful, well-written book.

Sometimes you come across. book that you know will stay with you long after you reach the final page. This is one of those books. There's a lot of thought-provoking stuff in here, and I'm probably going to be pondering it for some time yet, but I do know I really loved reading it. This is a book for book lovers - it's rich in references to other books and writers from Greek mythology and philosophy to modern writers and everything in between. I liked so many things about this book - both characters were well done and believable, and I enjoyed their different journeys. There's a lot of social commentary, which made me reflect on my own life. All in all a solid 5 stars, I'm going to be looking out for more from this author.

It was NetGalley where I got the book, but it was really my trip to Greece, some 20 years ago, that made me enjoy this story more than I would have thought.

It may sound strange but sometimes I had the feeling the author rode with me and my husband in our tiny car through the Peloponnesos. In the first half of the book, Bastounis follows almost exactly the route we did. Our narrator is having his first real taste of good Greek food... and we had exactly the same experience. We discovered you don't ask for a menu; just ask the cook for something nice and you'll be suprised. At one point in the book, our narrator and Bastounis have a meal somewhere where they find the carcass of the lamb they just ate hanging at the rear of the building. This same thing happened to us; the place was hardly recognizable as a restaurant, just one table and two chairs and a very nice women who cooked a delicious meal for us.

I could talk about these coincidences a lot more but unfortunately I'm not blessed with any literary talent. The book was a revelation, so many layers and so many things to think about. Although I've read some of the great books that are mentioned in this story, I had to look up certain things so it was like reading more than one book at the time. It was a wonderful experience more than just 'reading a book' and I'm very happy to have been given the chance.

When searching for more information on the author, I landed on the website of Andrew Lownie Literary Agency. O dear... n this site, there is an abstract of the book full of spoilers. What a pity!

This book is full of wisdom and motivations . One can only love this book . Thank you Matt Stanley for writing this gem . I felt like I was te one in the journey with Irakles Bastounis . You have to feel the book and read it again and again

There are some of my favorite lines from the book :

✒You have to live with a book, read it over and over – and read it at different stages of your life.

✒Look at this man you made your rival and competitor – a man you had no respect for. Why compare yourself to him? Because I seemed to value him? Who dictates your self-worth and the truth of your ideas? Only you.

The young naive traveler out to live the ultimate experience only to meet his hero and received a blow to his self-confidence from the repulsive spittle he was spouting. To think his favorite author, his idol, the one that catapulted him in the direction he was now in, cause him such hurt and embarrassment, his writing was the catalyst that helps chart his course, so much that he wanted to be like him, Irakles Bastounis. One should never go searching for their hero if you are not ready for the rude awakening you might receive. A story that emboldens and takes you on a journey, one that helps our young traveler to learn a few hard lessons and to mature. An eclectic well written and interesting read that captivates you.

Rating 5 stars:
In the opening scene of ‘A Collar for Cerberus’, the protagonist, a recent college graduate from the United Kingdom, disembarks from a bus in a small dusty Greek mountain town. He is on an improbable quest to find his literary hero, Irakles Bastounis. Bastounis is a Nobel Laureate, who was a quite famous partier in his younger years, but has become a recluse in old age. He hasn’t published a book for twenty years. Bastounis does in fact live in the little village the unnamed acolyte stopped at, and they unexpectedly meet at the village café. The college graduate, has a freshly minted degree in Literature, and he idolizes Bastounis’ semi-autographical books. He thinks that he could learn so much, and live outside the mundane box that society has proscribed for him, if he could just meet Bastounis, and then take some time out to travel. As luck would have it, Bastounis eventually invites him to his ramshackle house, and then asks him to drive him, in his 1970’s model Peugeot, to a seaside Greek town a few hour’s drive away.

The student, is a bit reluctant because of Bastounis’ irascible personality, and the intrusions in his privacy that have already taken place. But eventually he finally agrees to be Bastounis’ driver. So begins a buddy tale; a coming-of-age story; a Greek travel story; and big dip in into Greek mythology. These layers are masterfully laid down by the author, Matt Stanley. At times you want to shake Bastounis’ and at times you want to shake the student. But all the time I was reading, I wanted to see what the next page held.

This was an erudite exploration of what it means to live life to the fullest. The vocabulary is lovely. I pride myself on my pretty extensive vocabulary, but I was glad to be reading this on my Kindle, so I could easily look up many words that I wasn’t completely sure of the meaning. That’s not to say that the book is dense or unapproachable, just that it made me stretch and learn in a good way. For instance, I had to look up the meaning of ‘Cerberus’ in the title. It is a 3-headed dog in Greek mythology that guards the entrance to Hades. The Cerberus is primarily known for his capture by Heracles, as one of Heracles' twelve labors. How clever to use this in the title since Irakles continues to give the student various labors that he needs to accomplish during the trip.

The pair eventually travel all over Greece, hitting many of the high points, Delphi, Olympus, Athos. But they also find calm and adventure in smaller towns along the seashore and in the mountains. There are wonderful descriptions of Greek food. It really made me want to pack my bag and fly to Greece tomorrow. But more than a Greek travelogue, the book explores what it means to be at the beginning of your life, and towards the end of your life. How does your life experience influence your outlook, and opinions? Is there any one right way to live a life? Should it be more than the 9-to-5 weekday routine, with a two-week holiday thrown in once in awhile?

In the end, while I don't think that I could have lived with Bastounis’, I would certainly be challenged by him in many of the same ways that the student was. I’m not sure I’d make the same choices that either of them did, but I loved seeing how the discussions, and exhortations, and sharing affected both parties. I’m giving this 5 glorious stars. I highly recommend this book! Opa!!

‘Thank-You’ to NetGalley; Thistle Publishing; and the author, Matt Stanley; for providing a free ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

All the Stars to A Collar for Cerberus! 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟

This is a sleeper of a novel that deserves the praise and accolades I have seen showered on it thus far. Thank you to my friend, Tudor Queen, for the recommendation! I would not have known about this book otherwise.

A Collar for Cerberus opens with a college graduate stepping off a bus just outside a small town in Greece. He has traveled there, on a whim and far from home, to hopefully meet someone he has admired in his studies of English, Nobel laureate Irakles Bastounis. From the opening paragraph, I knew I stumbled into an exceptional read.

Not only does our main character meet his idol, he becomes his driver. Together they take on Greece in Bastounis’ dusty, vintage Peugeot.

What awaits the reader from this point on is practically indescribable as the two embark upon their journey. There are layers upon layers of things to ponder, sage words from Bastounis, and important life lessons learned along the way. I am keeping it short here because there is likewise a journey for the reader, and I want it to be completely yours as you experience it.

Overall, A Collar for Cerberus is an ode to Greece, its rich landscapes and history, as well as its beautiful people. A Collar for Cerberus is about living in the moment, and it is wholly engaging, enriching, and honest. At the end of it all, it was also resonant and affecting, and I absolutely loved it.

Thank you to Thistle Publishing for the complimentary copy. All opinions are my own.

This is my kind of book. A narrative style which suggests a haunting by Italo Calvino; a mysterious and endearing narrator full of personal doubt; and a plot that weaves through landscape all combine to create an intriguing read.

This was probably the most challenging read I have had this year. I started this book over a month ago and only finished it last week. I struggled to get into the mood, the feel and the trajectory of the story. However, I was determined to get into it and grab hold of it. As I did, I was left very satisfied.

It wasn't until I past the 40% mark, that I finally started to get the feel for it. This book follows a young man who wants to live his dreams of meeting his most esteemed literary hero, Irakles Bastounis, but quickly finds out that his hero is not someone that he thought he was going to be.

When they initially meet, Bastounis is callous and rude to the young man, exaggerating his interest and mocking him for appreciating his work. The next day, Bastounis asks him to be his driver and takes him on the most amazing journey of self-discovery that anyone could be so lucky to take.

Stanley does an amazing job at taking things back to the human level and back again to a mythical sphere as our main character and his hero Bastounis discuss esoteric experiences, travel around Greece, and fully learn what it must be like to be faced with the realities of our own creation and untimely demise.

Not only does this book create a satisfying adventure as we meet new characters throughout the adventure, develop hatred for appropriate enemies, and learn more about each of our main characters as they conclude their journey, but we also learn more about ourselves in the process.

As I read the story, I was continuously challenged in my own mind to see things from a new perspective, and this I believe, is what made the story so challenging for me in the beginning and yet so satisfying in the end. I felt like I had traversed the country and ensuing challenges right along with our main characters.

An amazing read and journey for all who might be interested!

When our unnamed British narrator meets his literary hero, Irakles Bastounis in (Greek for Podunk) Dimitsana on holiday, he figures he'll get a selfy or a quote or an entertaining story out of the experience. Never did he expect it to become a cross-country, life-changing confrontation with death. As a reader I too was constantly seduced and enthralled - by Matt Stanley's genius writing and this loving tribute to the beauty, culture, and history of the Greek islands.

It hurt my heart every time the young Brit doesn't say what he's thinking to everybody, he lives so inside his head it's a shame. I didn't realize he didn't have a name until I tried writing this review, wasn't sure if it was unmemorable or if the character was meant to be that invisible. I liked the series of challenges Bastounis sets for his milquetoast companion, and practically cheered out loud every time they were achieved!

This would make for a great book club discussion. Stanley really gets to the heart of what makes great lit: "Huge books - monumental in the sense of Roth's American Pastoral or Heller's Catch-22 (he'd known them both). Era-defining books, though perhaps currently out of favour in the same way that Mailer's books of the sixties and seventies seemed now to reek too strongly of testosterone and a specific cultural moment. Then there was the style - nobody else like him. There'd been comparisons with Nabokov, McCarthy, Joyce and others, but nobody is truly alike at that level. All are unique and immeasurable. He was one of those whose prose gives you vertigo, halts your breath and forces you immediately to re-read and discern the hidden power of its silences and syllables."

First of all, I have to admit that I wasn’t expecting this book to be as good and as wonderfully written as it was, for it to have such valuable lessons in it. This book is a hidden gem and I hope I get to read more from this author because damn, he can write!

Confession time here, I am not sure I am going to be able to write a review that could do this any justice. I am going to try to do that anyway.

The book starts with a freshly graduated young man in his twenties visiting Greece on his own. It was an impulsive decision on his part and perhaps one of the only decisions he had really taken with some input of his own. He decides to visit Dimitsana, Greece because he wanted to get a glimpse of his literary hero, Irakles Bastounis. Irakles is a Noble prize winner along with being one of the best novelists of his times. For the young man, meeting Bastounis is dream come true in idea however when he does meet his hero, it turns out that Bastounis isn’t just the Noble prize winner or one of the best novelists in the world, he is also devastatingly human.

The initial theme of the book seemed to be ‘Never meet your heroes.’ And it sticks true to that for a while because frankly, Bastounis bullies the younger man into driving him around Greece for no payment, he is constantly making the younger man aware of how out of depth he really is.

However as the story progresses, we begin to see the novelist as a human who has really lived his life. Who still lives it with the same vigor if not in physical sense then in emotional sense, Bastounis is a man who has seen a lot in his life and in his own irascible ways, and he is trying to teach some lessons to younger man.
The duo then drives around Greece and the younger man experiences many new things, he is shown many places of historical importance, meets new people who, in their own way, teach him new ways of living life. There are so many moments in the book where I wanted to pause and savour the dialogues, there were many mentions of various books that I had to look up because I hadn’t really heard/ read them. I am kinda interested in reading them now, I am not sure if I am going to add them to my Goodreads yet.

There is Greece food, a veritable feast really and frankly, I was just getting hungry as I was reading those scenes. Such beautiful imagery, god! I wanted to go out and have some Greek food. The sheer beauty of the language used by the author was so good. Every new chapter was rich with descriptions and teeming with life.
By the end of the book, I felt like I also learned some lessons along with the young man which was such a good feeling? Throughout the book, we come to know that despite Bastounis’ acidic tones and observations, the younger man isn’t completely thick, he does have a dry wit and he uses it very well. There’s no set plot however it’s literally the journey that counts in this book.

The vivid descriptions of Greece, the way every secondary character is presented and the primary characters are so well fleshed out that frankly I couldn’t help but love the book. This book made me think about life in a different way and taught me some things alone the way, what more could I really ask for in a book?

I would totally recommend to people who love to read about travel, life and just sheer brilliance of well written characters. I am really hoping to read more from this author.

This book is a hidden gem, as it is brilliantly written and I became completely engrossed by it. The author's vivid detail when describing Greece made it easy to imagine being there. I didn't want this book to end, as I enjoyed reading about the main character's journey and the decisions he made.

I really loved this novel - if not the best I have read this year, then certainly one of the most enjoyable. Why? This was a trip down memory lane for me. In the 1980s I backpacked around Greece as a callow young man, visiting all the sites I had read about and meeting all sorts of wonderful (and a few weird) people as I went. The un-named narrator of this story visits many of the same places I did and it was both emotive and fascinating to view them through his eyes. Greece is such a fascinating country and the author captures its essence and that of its people with uncanny precision. I really felt that I was back there travelling along with the narrator and his companion, an irascible, infuriating Nobel Prize winning Greek novelist, coming to the end of his life. So good.

This book was an unexpected delight and a thoroughly appreciated treat so thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this book. It was not what I was expecting but, in fact, so much more. It was also one of those books that I might have dismissed on reading the blurb - what initially caught my eye was the Greek setting and as a devout Grecophile that was enough for me to request it. And I'm so glad I did.

It is beautifully written. The language is just gorgeous, the vocabulary outstanding, the turns of phrase to die for. The wit, the warmth, the intelligence - so thoroughly engaging and enjoyable, just a delight. The setting is so wonderfully and powerfully evoked that I was transported. It is part travelogue, partly a coming of age story that encompasses Ancient Greek mythology, philosophy and nothing less than all of life and death themselves. And food. Oh the food! One particular scene had the two main characters gorging themselves on authentic Greek food. By the end I was salivating with desire for my favourite dishes and longing for my favourite Greek destination.
This is one of my books of 2018. I cannot recommend it enough. It has the perfect mix of gentle humour and pathos, it is inspiring and challenging, expansive and sophisticated, intellectually and emotionally stimulating. What a great book!