Twenty-four-year-old British painter Cleo is still finding her place after escaping from England to New York and in the sleepless city, she meets Frank a few months before her student visa ends. Frank is twenty years older and a self-made success, his life is full of all the excesses Cleo's lacks. Soon, their impulsive marriage will irrevocably change their life and unpredictably, the lives of those around them.
Akin to the modern melancholic novel, there is a supposed hyper-focus on the protagonists and an ultimate separation-but-not-a-separation between them. The writing style too is eccentric and sparsely crowded.
The main characters are Cleo and Frank who live with their pet flying squirrel named Oh Jesus How I Adore You. In supporting roles are: Frank’s half-black college-going sister Zoe who is an aspiring actress; Quentin, Cleo’s Polish gay best friend who lives a lavish life style financed for by his grandmother; and Eleanor, Frank’s other love interest. Other people like Anders—a Swedish model turned fashion magazine editor and all-round playboy—and Santiago—professional chef and restaurateur—are also introduced.
It must be noted that this story surely has one of the most clichéd casts with the compe tent hero, gay best friend, geeky girl next door, hellish jock, jealous sister, mean stepmother, senseless blonde, and undermined Latin lover…
The plot begins with a meet cute in an elevator during a New Year’s party, fast-forwarding to Cleo and Frank’s hasty marriage. Right from the point where they are gifted drugs from Quentin as a wedding present, the storyline sets itself in an indulgent tone where all the characters freely engage in alcohol, betrayal, narcotics, and sex. Since this behaviour is practiced thoughtlessly by almost all of them, it comes across as carelessness in dealing with the people that they are close to. And this in turn, disconnects the reader from the characters because the characters disconnect from each other.
Even with the most differing points-of-view, authors manage to pull the string through the beads; but it is clear that Mellors was too ambiguous and unclear about the stories inside her story.
“When the darkest part of you meets the darkest part of me, it creates light.”
The dialogue remains conversational and witty, throughout. It is Mellors’ gift to be able to convey the most about the people and the things in her story by what they say, how much they say, and how often they say it. Her descriptions are lucid and more intellectually intricate than physically intricate.
Instead of the usual throw-around of big and fancy words to convey simple erudition, her deep and suggestive way of interspersing information through her characters shows true knowledge about various topics.
Cleopatra and Frankenstein is a beautifully written novel, but it fails to deliver because of its unfinished and unrefined plot line with missing conclusions and erratically unexpected irregularities.
By Sriya J. N.
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