The Silver Tattoo - myth, murder and complications
a storyteller trying to weave myth with flashbacks and the present is courageous indeed. when well done, the result is sheer genius. sadly, in this case the result is quite lackluster and ends up being a rug more than a tapestry.
we have 3 characters - Connor, ferdie and Leah who seem to live out parts from a mythical Irish tale. of the 3, Connor is the most fascinating with his genius and his gift of the ‘sight’. do I think its absurd that in the 21st century one can see visions of the future? actually I do not. just because I don’t understand it or because science hasn’t found the method to the madness does not mean that a few gifted people can’t glimpse into the future. refusing to keep an open mind to the possibility is almost like refusing to even listen to Galileo when he said the earth is round. I don’t ‘believe’ in the paranormal but I must admit that yesterday’s paranormal is today’s normal in several cases.
back to the story - Connor has flashes of vision that his wife will one day have to leave him, may be in danger and that his best friend may betray him. the flashbacks that reveal these visions are what tie this weird story of love, loss and betrayal together.
Leah is the miserable wife, who after tending to her comatose husband for 3 years leaves for Ireland to live his dream of studying there. I don’t know whether to love Leah for trying to live through her loss and pain, or hate her for being so wrapped up in someone else’s dreams.
ferdie - here’s a character painted first as the jealous brother, consistent friend, and finally an obsessed, dangerous stalker. I was disappointed by the character as there was no transition from good to evil or even explanation of what lead to the transition. we have only the legend for a guideline.
in this confused story full of pain, death and Irish superstition, the one thing I loved was Connor’s explanation of how being an only child can make one the caretaker and therefore lose one’s own dreams sometimes in prioritizing your parent’s care in illness.
the best example of this is Theodore who cares for his schrizophrenic mother and whose life is almost centered on her care. the time he spends with Leah and the feelings he develops for her are so normal for most others, yet burdened with his mother’s illness its almost a miracle when he can plan to take a woman out on a date or when he can talk about things he likes and enjoys, not just about his mother who occupies most of his time and expenses. Theodore is the most human and poignant of all the characters with his child like vulnerability and hunger for affection. when the author killed him off, my heart broke. shouldn’t there be poetic justice for this good son?
all in all a dark, depressing and often confusing read. avoidable.
1.5/5 for this dark, dark book by Laura Bentley
