Book Review: Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors
Twenty-four-year-old British painter Cleo has escaped from England to New York and is still finding her place in the sleepless city when, a few months before her student visa ends, she meets Frank. Twenty years older and a self-made success, Frank’s life is full of all the excesses Cleo’s lacks. He offers her the chance to be happy, the freedom to paint, and the opportunity to apply for a Green Card. But their impulsive marriage irreversibly changes both their lives, and the lives of those close to them, in ways they never could’ve predicted.
Each compulsively readable chapter explores the lives of Cleo, Frank, and an unforgettable cast of their closest friends and family as they grow up and grow older. Whether it’s Cleo’s best friend struggling to embrace his gender queerness in the wake of Cleo’s marriage, or Frank’s financially dependent sister arranging sugar daddy dates to support herself after being cut off, or Cleo and Frank themselves as they discover the trials of marriage and mental illness, each character is as absorbing, and painfully relatable, as the last.
As hilarious as it is heartbreaking, entertaining as it is deeply moving, Cleopatra and Frankenstein marks the entry of a brilliant and bold new talent.
My Thoughts:I’ve been immersed in this glorious novel all week, indulging in a hybrid read/listen. Almost impossible to believe this is a debut novel. The genius of Coco Mellors is stunning. I adored Blue Sisters, but I have to say, Cleopatra and Frankenstein would have been a hard act for her to follow.
The brilliance of this novel lies in the way the story is told. This is a story of two people who rush headlong into marriage but the story unfolds from a range of perspectives, so that in effect, it’s not just the story of Cleo and Frank, but the story of others who are within their circle.
Each chapter is like a jigsaw piece fitting neatly into the whole. Each character added a perspective to the story of Cleo and Frank that could not be garnered from either of them. So many moments throughout, that squeezed me dry and made my heart ache. And then there was the joy. A magnificent love story that will stand the test of time.
The reading year is off to a very good start.
