shutter island

Shutter Island by Dennis Lehane was made into a movie a few years ago with Leonardo DiCaprio. I didn't see it.

After reading, I can see why they decided to make a movie with this book, it has some great plot twists and storyline surprises that would probably lend themselves pretty well to a visual storytelling. Maybe I'll check out the movie at some point and see for myself.

I've read a few of Dennis Lehane's books recently, but this is the first that hasn't featured his private investigation duo. This story features a US Marshall and is set in the 1950s, but is still set in Massachusetts, where Lehane comes from. They say write what you know, so it makes sense. King has Maine, and Irving has New Hampshire, right? Lehane writes about Massachusetts, and that local connection is fun for me I guess, altho I don't think I've ever been to any of the Harbor Islands. George's Island is supposed to be nice, in a field-trippy kind of way.

Shutter Island takes place over the course of just a few days, but the story is tense, and filled with a kind of smoldering tension. I series of small sub-plots color the story, and the main protagonist is dealing with his own demons, which impact his decision making more than he cares to admit. Lehane rolls the story out carefully, revealing the mysteries of Shutter Island a little at a time, and in such a way that we're not quite sure what all of its secrets are until the end.

I liked this one a lot. Read this book.

I've got an idea! Did you see the movie AND read the book? If so, tell us which one you liked better.