A Great Marriage by Frances Mayes
I love a family-drama-meets-moral-thriller and based on the blurb of this novel, I was all in. However, despite the promising start, this book was a disappointment. The dialogue was clunky, with characters sharing details to give context or backstory that you would assume a family member or friend would already know – that always feels strained and awkward to me. In addition, the writing was overwrought; the descriptions laboured; and there were far too many characters (the majority of which were people who were opinionated and quick to to judge).
My biggest issue though, was the way that one of the characters was villainised – I appreciate that this was ‘necessary’ for the plot but it was overdone and came off as one dimensional and lazy. I want nuance and moments that have me pausing and thinking ‘what would I do?’ and this book offered none of that.
1.5/5
Table for One by Emma Gannon
The trials and tribulations of a thirty-something-year-old woman who finds herself suddenly single, while those around her are settling down and starting families. The layer of disenfranchised grief, and some pondering on the role of influencers and social media provide interest and a small point-of-difference compared to similar novels. I enjoyed some of the characters but overall, the book would have benefited from a decent 50-page prune.
2.5/5
Ordinary Saints by Niamh Ní Mhaoileoin
I don’t know enough about the creation of modern-day saints to know what was factual in this story but maybe that doesn’t matter, because it was all very interesting and believable. Jay, a young woman living in London with her girlfriend, is forced to reckon with her upbringing in a devout Catholic family when there is a campaign to have her beloved older brother, who died in a terrible accident, made into a saint.
Mhaoileoin examines varying degrees of shame, and the way it presents (in my experience, when a person feels deep shame they will either over-function, lash out or shrink back). For Jay –
It’s the secret that creates the shame…
Additionally, we see through Jay how shame grows over time – she was never given an opportunity to discuss the trauma associated with her brother’s death, and this had ramifications in terms of her family relationships.
The writing loses a little momentum toward the end but overall, I look forward to whatever Mhaoileoin writes next.
3/5
Pingback: 20 Books of Summer (except that it’s Winter) | booksaremyfavouriteandbest
I listen to maybe two books a week, about two thirds from the local library – crime and domestic drama; and one third from Audible – some SF and African and Indigenous fiction. Sometimes I am lucky and the library comes up with something I would have paid for.
Either way, I don’t get much contemporary fiction. My last trip away I listened to a Peter Temple and a Gail Jones, and at least one other I don’t remember.
I go through phases of listening to audiobooks, most often from Borrowbox but I have noticed that the Spotify library of audiobooks is huge (15hrs a month included in my plan). I tend to choose lighter/ beach reads that I don’t have to concentrate on too much, or nonfiction books that I’m not sure if I want to commit to (and I often end up getting a hard copy if I start listening and it’s really interesting). The latest Gail Jones popped up on BorrowBox – will probably give that a listen.
Too bad about A Great Marriage. Good reviews.