PositiveThe New York Journal of BooksDoyle perhaps does too good a job of rendering Davy’s frustration. Readers may get exasperated by the circularity of his debate with Joe and their inability to come to a better understanding of each other. It’s a relief when the narrative occasionally turns away from the two men and focuses instead on Faye, Davy’s wife ... Near the end, the narrative takes another sharp turn and propels Davy and Joe to an emotional rendezvous with Davy’s dying father. It’s a satisfying scene in that it finally brings the two men closer, but Davy’s father is barely mentioned in the earlier scenes, and so the novel’s ending doesn’t really fit with the rest of the book. Doyle is clearly trying to say something about the nature of mature love—as opposed to the \'spunk eyes\' infatuation of youth—but the message seems muddled ... Despite these flaws, Love has moments of brilliance and is a must-read for Doyle’s fans. In Dublin, even a bad night on the town is still pretty good.
