Tim

don't usually write reviews but (in fairness to this superb book) I owe it to Mr. Theroux. yes, it follows the lives of multiple characters connected through the Hotel Honolulu (as the previous reviewer said. No, they are not tragic as in the term 'victimized' would imply but real people that unless you are extremely sheltered, you would have met. What makes it great is that in their ordinary lives, they speak to us through the novel, & remind us of our fallibilities--but that we can get on with it all the same. Not everyone is looking for a light at the end of the tunnel and why should everyone have to? The characters and stories here represent this realism without justifying it, apologizing for it ...but it is nonetheless exceptionally entertaining and need not be read on a deep level.