Marion-Jill Bregman

I must admit I had a personal interest in reading this book and have knowledge of the subject matter. Initially I felt the characters were superficial, and I couldn’t understand why other reviewers were referring to their complexity. It seemed that the attraction of both school teacher Marion( who becomes the wife) and Patrick ( museum curator/lover) to Tom, the policeman, was based on lust and little more, and I was surprised the attraction lasted. I wondered why Marion persisted in marrying Tom, and how she managed to sustain the marriage in the face of his ongoing affair with Patrick. I felt this warranted closer scrutiny than was given. However , as the narrative progressed, I became more involved with the characters, especially since there is a surprising twist to the plot. The fact that this novel is based on EM Forster’s love triangle is interesting, but only as an afterthought. The book needs to be appreciated for its own sake. What also resonates in the 21st century is the 1950’s context, and how homosexuality was criminalised, leading to so much deception and secrecy. A good read in which Bethan Robert’s has used an unusual literary device to move between time periods, ( Marion’s character is talking to an “absent” Patrick) and also to showcase how each character views the other. .