A fairy tale mash up? Gothic horror? A tragic classic? None of them! It’s modern day New York in all its ugly beauty. Cleopatra and Frankenstein:
Cleopatra coming at ya
This one immediately reminded me of My Year of Rest and Relaxation that I had read recently. Modern day New York with copious amounts of drugs, depression and dysfunctional relationships. It’s a world I don’t understand and quite honestly hope never have to. In amongst the alcohol and meth however there were moments of pure clarity and emotion – the sugar glider for one – and I was unprepared for how the ending would affect me emotionally. I found it very moving, much to my surprise.
Despite the very modern feel, it almost at times read like a traditional romantic fiction, especially as the story between Frank and Eleanor progressed. The short snappy paragraphs that introduced Eleanor certainly gave the book an injection of pace that I hadn’t realised it needed.
I found the whole book an enigma. It puzzled me, wriggling out of my grasp just as I thought I’d ‘got’ it. Cleo in particular was a mystery. She had the ability to be cold and unlikeable but Mellors always reigned it in so that you still somehow liked her – even if she was like that distant cousin who you had only really spoken to twice. Same with Frank – he had the potential to be the stereotypical crap husband yet, whilst he walked a very close line, you somehow also wanted him to have a happy ending. My favorite character ended up being Frank’s sister which surprised me the most as I was convinced I wouldn’t like the bitchy teenager when Mellors first introduced her at the wedding.
I suppose that is Cleopatra and Frankenstein in a nutshell, challenging, puzzling yet somehow good. Think Conversations with Friends with more drugs and a hefty dose of the red, white and blue. It’s a cracking piece of writing for a debut and I can’t wait to see what Coco Mellors delivers next.
