I had been eagerly awaiting Mannion’s second novel since her amazing debut, A Crooked Tree; nor have I been disappointed. This read equally well, the kind of novel that draws a reader in quickly and holds the reader’s attention effortlessly all the way to the end, when the reader is left feeling sorry only that that great read is over.
This novel is structured as chapters and episodes going back and forth between past and present, from 2018 to 2003 when Ruby, when one of our protagonists, was just a little girl, and to even before that, to before Ruby was born. The other protagonist is Ruby’s aunt, Nessa. The chapters are written from both their perspectives, sewing together the mystery of what happened to Deena, Ruby’s mother and Nessa’s beloved sister.
When the novel begins, we see her father, Lucas, being questioned by officials as to his home schooling, because he has not submitted a curriculum. At this point, one feels a sneaking sympathy for the parent who is trying to bring up his child as he sees fit, without the interference of officialdom. But as the novel progresses, we begin to move away from this sympathetic viewpoint, a long way away, in fact. The novel is beautifully structured and developed, peeling back layers of this mystery, seen through Ruby’s eyes as well as Nessa’s, and changing one’s perspective on the situation through a lot of showing, not telling.
The back and forthing in time and across 2 protagonists is executed well enough so that the reader is never left confused or lost – actually, for all its mystery as created by the perspectives and temporal changes, it is remarkably easy to follow. Nessa is upset when her older sister, Deena, lets herself be controlled by boyfriend, Lucas. However, when Ruby is born, Nessa is delighted and loves the child as fiercely as if it were her own. Deena disappears under mysterious circumstances, and Nessa loses access to Ruby as a result. Although this book contains domestic abuse in its story, it is not a book of villains and victims. And not a book about abused children either. Ruby is loved by everyone who has a hand in bringing her up, and if her father and grandmother are strict and undemonstrative, it is not for lack of love. What worries this bright, largely well balanced, sweet-natured child, is the secrecy over her mother and the lack of information about her. And correspondingly, what eats Nessa up, is the unexplained loss of her sister and fully explained loss of her niece. Put like this, without revealing any spoilers and reducing the complexity of the story to the bare facts, it doesn’t necessarily sound riveting, but Mannion’s magic is in how she unspools the tale, how she conveys the emotions of her characters, and how realistic and natural it all seems to be. A case of art imitating life so beautifully that one forgets it is an imitation.
When Deena remains missing, the family had to petition for a death certificate. When the petition is granted, Nessa and her brother, Joey, and other family and friends have a coffee together. Nessa raises the issue of investigating Lucas and reopening Deena’s case. The usually calm, stoical, kind, dependable, gentle Joey explodes at his sister,
“Are you for fucking real? We are all sitting here having just declared her dead and we’re trying to process that, and you’re still banging on about the investigation and Lucas and Ruby. For fuck’s sake Nessa, you are fucking wrecking my head. As far as I’m concerned, I just buried my sister. It’s over. Have some respect. Just shut up. Be fucking normal. Get your own life. I can’t take it” (p223).
“[…] it broke her – how Joey saw her. She wasn’t loyal, she wasn’t vigilant; she was aberrant and embarrassing. Disrespectful. Nessa was mortified” (p224).
Just a sample of how Mannion combines drama with reflexivity, how she writes heartbreak so powerfully and yet understatedly.
A marvellous novel, told with such seeming ease which conceals the immense and controlled artistry of the writing. I just wish I had a whole shelf of Mannion’s books – and perhaps, in time, I will have!
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