Tony, Charis and Roz have more in common
than their regular ladies-who-lunch date. More even that they were at college
together, a long while since, where their paths rarely crossed. The glue that
binds them is Zenia, who was also at college and who did cross all three of
their paths, separately, and not in a pleasant way.
However having some time since attended Zenia’s
funeral, she is far from their minds as they lunch at the Toxique in downtown
Ottawa; until she walks into the restaurant, studiously ignoring them as she
passes. The girls scatter in confusion.
Back at their respective safe havens of
home, each of them looks back on Zenia’s impact on their lives. These are not
thumbnail sketches to serve the plotline but in each case a full rounded life
story is unfolded. Any one of them would make a novel in its own right; such is
Atwood’s consummate skill in story-telling, use of prose, characterisation and
nuance.
Back to the present, the girls reconvene to
compare notes and discuss who has found out what about their un-deceased
‘friend’ and her Lazarus trick; more importantly they need to decide what to do
about it.
No more need be said here, no spoilers
given. It is a rich and satisfying read; its length (550 pages) is immaterial
as it is one of those books where the urge to get on and enjoy it is tempered
by never wanting it to end.
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