Hilda Hilst
Pushkin Press
4 March 2025
128
eBook - PDF
Fiction
ARC via Edelweiss
In Letters from a Seducer, Hilst describes the everyday life of Karl, a wealthy, erudite, and amoral man who seeks an answer to his incomprehension of life through sex. Karl writes and sends twenty provocative letters to Cordelia, his chaste sister. The letters' text becomes intertwined with the life of the poet Stamatius, who finds Karl's letters in the trash. It quickly dawns upon the reader that both men are in fact the same person albeit at different points of time and circumstance. This mirror play is the guiding trope for a uniquely grand work.
Unlike The Obscene Madame D, which I reviewed just a few minutes ago, I found Letters from a Seducer a much more accessible read. The opening half in particular felt reminiscent of the Marquis de Sade, so it was familiar and easy to follow the story and the characters. The second part was still interesting, but I didn't enjoy it as much as the first, although I could see the cleverness in how the author executed the work. If you are knew to this author like me, I would recommend starting with this book as the more easily read text. There were plenty of interesting thoughts and ideas in this novella, and I would certainly check out further works by Hilst in the future. I am giving this book 4.5 stars.
I received this book as a free eBook ARC via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
No comments:
Post a Comment