It is about Hugo, a man living by himself at the family home and his interaction with various characters.

.. characters with voices so strong and attitudes so egregious that reading about them becomes a long, tricky balancing act between the reflexive sympathy we feel for whoever tells us a story and our suspicion that we’re dealing with a rather bad man."

and concluded "The Epicure’s Lament becomes funnier the more Hugo begins to engage with the people he purports to loathe, and the more it becomes clear he’s not quite ready to leave yet.

Why an author would set herself the formidable task of creating such a creature — and then convincing us to like him — is a bit puzzling, but why look a gift horse in the mouth?

"[1] and The New York Times called it "readable, but it's also clever to a fault and often static.