Helpful Score: 4
Sinisalo posits that trolls are actual creatures, just long unknown to science because of their shy and nocturnal habits. When our protagonist, a gay ad designer, finds a young troll being abused by a gang of teenagers, he takes the creature into his home. However, rather than calling animal control, or the usual authorities one might notify when one finds a rare and endangered animal, he develops a weird and even sexual obsession with the wild creature.
He finds himself going to odd lengths in his personal life using sex as a bartering tool, sabotaging relationships with friends and lovers all to care for and conceal the troll.
An ongoing literary parallel is made between this strange pairing and that of the teenage Filipina mail-order bride and her husband/captor who live in the apartment downstairs.
Although technically science-fiction (the occurrences in the novel do have scientific, technical explanations), this has been marketed as a mainstream book.
He finds himself going to odd lengths in his personal life using sex as a bartering tool, sabotaging relationships with friends and lovers all to care for and conceal the troll.
An ongoing literary parallel is made between this strange pairing and that of the teenage Filipina mail-order bride and her husband/captor who live in the apartment downstairs.
Although technically science-fiction (the occurrences in the novel do have scientific, technical explanations), this has been marketed as a mainstream book.
Helpful Score: 3
A fantastic little book! Troll is a short but sweet love story for outsiders. I couldn't put it down!
Helpful Score: 2
Troll: A Love Story was a very strange tale indeed. It is the story of a gay Finnish photographer who finds a live, baby troll that is sick & being harassed by teenagers. In the universe of this novel, trolls are real creatures & only recently confirmed by scientists within the last century.
Angel, the man who finds the troll, takes it into his home rather than turning it over to authorities or animal control, & nurses it back to health. As the troll becomes healthier, strange things begin happening in Angel's life as he becomes obsessed with the troll.
I won't give away more of the story line in this review. I will say that this novel takes the reader into a world that flirts with what it means to be an intelligent creature & what might happen when creatures of two intelligent species live with one another.
It was a very good book & I read it within two days. It was very hard to put down. I recommend it.
Angel, the man who finds the troll, takes it into his home rather than turning it over to authorities or animal control, & nurses it back to health. As the troll becomes healthier, strange things begin happening in Angel's life as he becomes obsessed with the troll.
I won't give away more of the story line in this review. I will say that this novel takes the reader into a world that flirts with what it means to be an intelligent creature & what might happen when creatures of two intelligent species live with one another.
It was a very good book & I read it within two days. It was very hard to put down. I recommend it.
Fascinating mix of urban fantasy, evolutionary divergence, and sociology. Weird and wonderful.
Helpful Score: 1
Beautiful story. I actually got a bit teary-eyed...
