Brat Farrar by Josephine Tey #1949Club

 

🧩 After having finished Brat Farrar, I realized that had I read this book before Mary Stewart's The Ivy Tree, I might have appreciated this book more. The main plot of both books are the same - one member of a family was missing or disappeared without explanation. And then, years later, someone came claiming to be the missing person. It is the question of 'was he or was he not' is the central element behind the mystery/thriller. In this aspect, The Ivy Tree is superior than Brat Farrar, since we are never sure whether the 'prodigal child' was genuine or an impostor, until near the end. And that was what made The Ivy Tree such a gripping thriller. Unfortunately, in Brat Farrar, we know from the beginning that Brat Farrar is not Patrick Ashby. Hence, the book only deals with what has become of Patrick Ashby, who everyone had assumed he's committed suicide - was it suicide or....?

🧩 The Ashbys are an English country-squire family in a village called Clare. Resided in the family estate of Latchetts are Beatrice "Bee" Ashby (Aunt Bee), a spinster of fifties, Simon Ashby - the twin brother of Patrick, Eleanor - Simon and Patrick's sister, and two twin siblings. Patrick Ashby disappeared when the twins were teenagers; leaving a note that could be assumed as suicide note. Fast forward to present time, enter Brat Farrar. Brat is a foundling, who had just come back to England from America, when a stranger called him: Simon! He was an Alec Loding, old friend of Simon and Patrick Ashby. Brat's resemblance with the twin was uncanny, and that gave Loding a crazy idea, and in turn he presented Brat with a crazy proposition - that of being an impersonator. Patrick Ashby - had he been alive, would very soon be coming of age, and would inherit Latchetts. Loding, a poor second-rate actor, saw it as a chance to enrich himself by half of the proceeds.
🧩 Of course, Brat Farrar succumbed to temptation and agreed to the scheme. I won't reveal what happened next, since the process is half of the book's attraction. Suffice to say, that the whole plot is between 'is he going to fool them all?' and 'what's really happened to Patrick?' Of course, there should be crime committed, and to be honest, it's not a mystery at all. We could see from the beginning what's what. It's just fun to follow what would happen next, and how it would all resolve to at the end. 🧩 Like I said earlier, the idea is brilliant. But I wished the plot twist is more twisting and shocking than that. Like, I have been guessing that from the beginning, and just needed to know the way it had been accomplished. Entertaining? Very; but gripping? Well, maybe only twenty percent.... Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

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