Red Ink

by Julie Mayhew

[Joséphine]

June 14, 2013

Full review is up on Word Revel.
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June 13, 2013

Initial thoughts: Melon lost her mother to a London bus that knocked her over and killed her. With no family contact left behind, all Melon has is her mother’s story. She knows that even though she was born and raised in London, her original roots lie in Crete. Her whole identity and existence has depended on that story. It is her knowledge of it that allows her to live day by day after her mother’s death. As she pieces the story together again for herself, her path of discovery leads her back to Crete and through the streets of London. She discovers things she didn’t know and in the process also alters the way that she views herself.

To some degree, my own recent experiences influenced the way I read this. I too lost someone dear to me, so I related well on that level. The chapters in this book jumped back and forth in time, revolving around the day Melon’s mother, Maria, died. For some readers, this may be confusing. However, I think that this was a good reflection on the state of Melon’s mind. When someone grieves, time fails to pass in chronological order. Memories will jump out as and when. Even day-to-day life doesn’t seem to occur in order anymore. Writing that way then was clever.

Besides dealing with death, Melon also had to deal with truth and lies. I liked the approach to truth taken here. Issues on why anyone would resort to lies and when truth matters less than perspectives were weaved into the plot, so there definitely were things for the reader to think about too. Melon’s occasional reflective tone also drove me to tears when it mirrored my own thoughts during my grieving period, while also giving me reasons to smile.