Gregor Xane

This reminded me of Ian Banks' The Wasp Factory (one of my favorites). It's an in-depth portrait of a mind(s?) coming apart. The writing, at the sentence level, was quite rich (too rich at times). The ending devolved into madness along with the narrator, which became a bit tedious, as it went on for far too long. Also, the author seemed to be in love (or obsessed) with the word creosote. Aside from these few flaws, this was really a stunning work. It was jam-packed with great imagery, disturbing situations, dark humor, and unsettling ideas. She did a wonderful job exploring what it means to be a conjoined twin, and didn't shy away from some of the more touchy subjects. The chapter entitled "So you're wondering about National Penitence?" alone is worth the price of the book.