“The Road” by Cormac McCarthy held me captive, staying up all night immersed in its pages, awakening the next morning with a lingering sense of melancholy. Stephen King’s works, especially “The Shining,” share that unique ability to make you eagerly anticipate the next page, constantly wondering what twist awaits.
I have never read The Secret History (not yet at least). But maybe her writing has improved since her first book. Will have the read TSH and let you know how I feel!
Her prose in TSH is every bit as exceptional as it is in The Goldfinch.