by Katie,
I can’t remember any other books we’ve read so far being set in Scandinavia. How do we feel about this different atmosphere? Is it the same as any other part of the world we’ve visited with our reading?
Goodreads calls May’s book a riveting psychological suspense that “asks the question, ‘how far would you go to hold on to what you have?’” How tightly do we hold on to things we deem important? Maybe we should think about this while we read.
In addition, our protagonist, Cecilia, has a dark secret from her past. How much of a mistake was Cecilia’s secret truly? Particularly as children, we tend to make big deals out of insignificant events. Is her past something that her husband could overlook and forgive if Cecilia is just open and honest? Or is it a truly unforgivable sin?
We also meet Annika whose life isn’t going the way she would like. She knows Cecilia’s secret and may use it to help herself. This makes me think of Nina from Pretty Things. How does Annika compare to Nina? Are the two women similar or different? Does Cecilia compared to Vanessa? Is Cecilia an easy mark or does she have an underlying tenacity that will be exposed when she is pushed too far?
Hi Nancy!
ReplyDeleteHope you’re doing well. No rush for your post, I just devoured this book. So there are some spoilers here if you haven’t finished.
Well Goodreads called it “riveting” and I have to say that I agreed. I was trying so hard to figure out Cecilia’s secrets. I came up with some pretty wild ideas in my head while reading as to how Annika and Cecilia could be connected. I thought that maybe Annika would be similar to Nina but I feel the two were nothing alike. Nina was a strong, determined woman whereas Annika was a weak, easily manipulated mouse. I felt so much sympathy for Annika. Krysz, ultimately, destroyed every chance Annika had for a good life. Poor Annika was too weak to leave him, whereas Nina turned the game around when she discovered that Lachlan was using her.
As for Cecilia and Vanessa, the two were only alike in the superficial point that they were well off. There were moments when I empathized with Cecilia and other moments when I absolutely hated her. I understand her feelings of needing to be “perfect”. There is so much pressure for moms to look and be perfect here in America. I guess it is a similar mentality in the Scandinavian countries. However, she was an extremely selfish character. In the beginning of the novel when she was relatable, she was concerned with appearance but toward the end, when she was detestable, she was only concerned about her getting her way.
How did you feel about the ending? I don’t think I like the way Ms. Dahl left it. I know we can decide for ourselves whether Cecilia lived or died but I think I would have preferred a more definitive outcome. And it leaves me with too many questions. What happens to the girls and Tobias? Would Johan take Tobias or would Tobias go back to living with Cecilia’s father if she were dead? I didn’t appreciate the story being left open ended like that.
How did you feel about Cecilia seemingly getting away with all of her crimes? While reading, I was so torn between wanting Cecilia to get what she “deserved” for being such a liar and her getting her happy family. I suppose I wanted the warm ending for Tobias who had gone through so much. Did Ms. Dahl kill her so Cecilia would finally get some karmatic justice? But this again leads me to sympathy for Tobias. I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this book.
Much love,
Katie
Hi Katie,
ReplyDeleteWe are finally getting some fine sunny weather here so there has been much activity doing yard work and the mountains of washing that seem to pile up. There have been some beautiful winter days with temps hovering around 19-20 degrees C.
I hope all is well with you and the family. We are hearing so much about the mass shootings over there and I hope you are all safe.
I have some minor knee surgery coming up next month so I’ll have plenty of time to catch up on my reading list other than that we are both well and keeping busy.
I have read a few novels set in Scandinavia. The Nordic noir trilogy The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Steg Larsson and a beautiful story set in Sweden by Linda Olsson called Let Me Sing You Gentle Songs. I have also visited Norway and Denmark both beautiful but very different places.
I enjoyed this story very much and was quite involved with detesting Cecilla so investing emotion in the characters signals a good story for me.
I felt Ms Dahl was making quite a comment on mental illness and addiction and even in Norway the most equal of countries, things are very much not equal.
I agree with you about the pressure to be perfect as a mother. The pressure from ourselves , society and sadly other mothers.
Was Cecilla’s secret unforgivable?
I don’t know, possibly, if she confessed at the time instead of compounding it with layer upon layer of elaborate deceits. I feel it was more for her than keeping up appearances and keeping her family together, although I ‘m sure she didn’t want to give up her wealth and privilege . Cecilla was a pathological liar with a mean demand to be centre of attention. So many times I lost my temper with herald her total disregard for the feelings of others, I think she was a sociopath. Leaving
Tobias with his Grandad and completely ignoring him and then a sudden re awakening affection for him just seemed a step beyond post natal depression.
Annika on the other hand I felt so much sympathy for. I differ from you her though when you describe her as weak and a mouse. Considering her addictions and her fight for survival under very poor conditions, the fact that she got clean and kept trying I find very courageous and shows much strength .I agree Kryz easily manipulated her and I was so sad that in the end that’s where she saw safety. Essentially I found her a much better person than Cecillia.
I agree I initially thought there would be parallels with the characters in Pretty Things and The Boy At The Door but after reading I didn’t find this.
There were so many interesting characters in this well crafted novels but Cecilla seemed to over shadow them and again claim centre stage.
I loved the relationship between Moffa and Tobias. I’m glad Tobias had that love at the beginning of his life to hold onto when times became dark and was hoping he’d go back to live with his Granddad.
You asked the question, How far would you go to hold onto what you have?
It seems there were some contrasting ideas in this novel.
Moffa keeping Cecilla’s secret to protect his grandchildren, and in the end risk his own life to save his wayward daughter from her attempted suicide.
Cecilla keeping her secret to protect herself and Annika accepting a life of abuse because she couldn’t see anything better for herself.
So I personally feel as a parent there is nothing I wouldn’t do for my kids.
Thankyou for this suggestion, so much to think about with this one.
Sending love to all, Nancy