2023-11-21 21:23:12
Sascha Nebel is in the middle of stealing an SUV when a climate activist suddenly runs up to the same car and wants to demolish it. When the police arrive, the two have to flee and take the first vehicle that comes their way: a bus full of parents on the way to a parents’ evening.
This is where the chaos begins, because shortly after the bus sets off, it becomes clear that all of these parents know each other; after all, their children go to class together. Nobody knows Hector’s parents. They have never shown themselves, which is why everyone believes that Sascha and Christin are these same people. When the entire group finally arrives on an island, Sascha realizes that they have landed at a parents’ evening. But that’s not all, because strictly speaking it’s not an evening, but a whole weekend. Since they don’t want to attract attention as two fugitives, they pretend to be Hector’s parents. Sascha soon realizes that, despite their constant absence, the parents are not particularly well respected by everyone present. A quality that can also be said of her “son”, because he is the focus of many discussions.
Not a thriller
Fitzek finally writes pleasant changes to his usual psychological thrillers. „Parents’ Evening” is over “The First Last Day” the second of his “not a thriller” works. “Parents’ Evening” not only contains some bizarre moments that make you smile, but also jokes that actually make you laugh.
Fitzek puts Sascha in particular into unpredictable and strange situations, and managed to surprise even me in the end. Something that I missed a little about his psychological thrillers, because especially if you’ve already read several of them, it becomes easier to predict things at some point. But one thing remains the same, and that’s Fitzek-esque cliffhangers, and that’s a good thing.
However, not all parts of the book are funny. Topics such as depression (trigger warning) and suicidal thoughts are discussed and, especially if they fall into a kind of autopilot while reading, quickly throw readers back into the action with a lyrical uppercut. Passages that show that the facade of a good-humored person does not always have to reflect the gloomy interior. Sascha also has to struggle with inner demons from his past, which shroud his thoughts in a dark cloud.
Gentle fare like this is unusual for the author, but it finally makes Fitzek really fun to read. I’m not saying that other Fitzek books aren’t fun, but I wouldn’t necessarily call his usual stories “fun content.” You know what I mean. The opposite is true both here and at “The First Last Day” the case. Both books made me laugh, smile and want to read more. At the same time, especially in “Parents’ Evening,” there were also very touching moments that I could even identify with at times. I would now even say that both of them are among my favorite books by him.
Conclusion:
“Parents’ Evening” is a funny book with deep passages and a manageable number of pages of 336 pages, which I would recommend to all those who like easy-to-read entertainment and perhaps have always wanted to read a Fitzek, but are not keen on pages of psychological terror in all sorts of perfidious ways have statements. However, I would advise against the book for those who have difficulty with stories about depression, suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts, because these also find their place in this story.
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