Just as the country grapples with the #MeToo movement, Lisa Lutz delivers a stab to the heart ... Set before social media became ubiquitous for teens, The Swallows capitalizes on the corners of the web that used to be where venom went to hide. As you read the book, you almost long for the days when misogyny was on the down-low ... For anyone who dreams of a day when 'boys will be boys' is a thing of the past and sexual politics are equal, The Swallows is a rallying cry.
Lisa Lutz’s new novel, The Swallows, is fast-moving, darkly humorous and at times shockingly vicious. The battle of the sexes within its pages couldn’t be more compelling ... Lutz delivers a frantic, morbidly funny story about what happens when girls are no longer willing to excuse bad behavior as 'boys will be boys.'
The polyphonic narrative...has the pacing and urgency of a spy thriller but the middling stakes of a book about a group of privileged kids sending each other cryptic texts. By the time the stakes do achieve life-or-death heights, the novel has forced itself into an awkward stance of violence and suspense that doesn’t entirely fit with its crumpled class notes and teenage self-importance ... In the #MeToo era, the intent of The Swallows is admirable: Trace toxic masculinity back to its roots, the peacocking years of early adolescence, and empower a group of young women to shatter it. And Lutz is mordant in her descriptions of 'boys will be boys' sliminess ... It’s in the machinations of the campus cold war itself—and in her clumsy homage to le Carré—that Lutz stumbles ... there is much to be said about power, privilege and cycles of abuse that is skimmed over in favor of spy-versus-spy skulduggery in The Swallows ... Where the novel truly succeeds is in its implication of adults in the nasty schemes of kids.
In her witty and charming style, Lutz...offers a genre-busting work of fiction that will satisfy readers looking for a seriously engaging read. The story itself is disturbingly plausible, and the humanly flawed characters make choices, good and bad, based on their backgrounds, all blending smoothly into a darkly comedic mystery ... As tangled as the truth often is, this novel keeps readers on the edge of their seats while opening a conversation about public shaming, economic privilege, gender inequity, and revenge versus justice.
Lutz makes a promising start with this super-smart and biting novel ... A large cast of characters and multiple narrators slows down the story, but Gemma, Alex, and a scrappy first-year named Linny come alive. The male characters—teachers, a dean, boy allies, boy villains—are less believable but good foils. The ending feels rushed and chaotic, but that’s also fitting ... Lutz’s many fans will enjoy this, as will those who devour boarding-school novels such as Curtis Sittenfeld’s Prep or #metoo revenge stories.
Lutz...draws on the droll humor and idiosyncratic characterizations that make her Spellman novels so appealing, and just about no one is quite who they seem. But kindness and decency do manifest in surprising places ... An offbeat, darkly witty pre–#MeToo revenge tale. The patriarchy doesn’t stand a chance.
Although [Lutz] features such a large cast of characters, she builds her plot cannily and walks a neat line between satire and realism. Lutz’s withering portrayal of how the #MeToo movement plays out in this rarefied setting should shock some and delight others.
