Publication Date: March 27, 2018
Publisher: Ecco
“As if Donna Tartt, Gillian Flynn, and Patricia
Highsmith had collaborated on a screenplay to be filmed by
Hitchcock—suspenseful and atmospheric.”
—Joyce Carol Oates, author of The Book of American Martyrs
—Joyce Carol Oates, author of The Book of American Martyrs
The last person Alice Shipley expected to see
since arriving in Tangier with her new husband was Lucy Mason. After the
accident at Bennington, the two friends—once inseparable roommates—haven’t
spoken in over a year. But there Lucy was, trying to make things right and
return to their old rhythms. Perhaps Alice should be happy. She has not
adjusted to life in Morocco, too afraid to venture out into the bustling
medinas and oppressive heat. Lucy—always fearless and independent—helps Alice
emerge from her flat and explore the country.
But soon a familiar feeling starts to overtake
Alice—she feels controlled and stifled by Lucy at every turn. Then Alice’s
husband, John, goes missing, and Alice starts to question everything around
her: her relationship with her enigmatic friend, her decision to ever come to
Tangier, and her very own state of mind.
Tangerine is a sharp dagger
of a book—a debut so tightly wound, so replete with exotic imagery and charm,
so full of precise details and extraordinary craftsmanship, it will leave you
absolutely breathless.
This story follows the alternating viewpoints of
Alice Shipley and Lucy Mason. Alice and her husband, John, have just recently
moved to Tangier and Alice is not successfully adapting to her new life there.
Then, Lucy Mason shows up unexpectedly, followed by the disappearance of her
husband. Alice starts to questions everything around her, including Lucy.
Alice and Lucy are distinctly different
characters. Alice is the frail, innocent housewife who seems to be harboring
anxiety from past experiences. Lucy is the ambitious, unpredictable friend who
will stop at nothing to get what she wants. Their characters start to develop
very clearly from the start and readers can easily see who is being manipulated
and who is doing the manipulating.
A past tragedy, during her college years, keeps
Alice from acting on urges or doing anything out of her comfort zone. Readers
learn early on that Lucy was possibly involved in this traumatic event that led
Alice on a downward spiral and will become immediately suspicious of Lucy’s
motives. However, Lucy is intriguing and her perspective is questionable,
making her an interesting and versatile unreliable narrator.
Mangan’s writing is atmospheric, poetic, and
lyrical. The 1950’s Moroccan setting helps transport readers to a time and
place that is vibrant and seemingly almost magical. Mangan writes tension with
such expertise. The alternating point of views of Alice and Lucy help add to
the suspense as readers try to unravel and understand all that these two women
have shared – the good and the bad. Their perspectives often contradict the
other, which leaves readers guessing as to who is unreliable or if either of
them can be trusted.
The story is dark, mysterious and two large
secrets are revealed that add to the lush, eerie writing style. Each chapter
brings you closer to understanding what happened between these two women and
what happened to Alice’s husband, John.
The setting of Tangier is beautiful and breathtaking
and adds to the suspense of the story. The heat and hustle and bustle of the city
streets makes the tension between Alice and Lucy all the more sweltering. I
loved the city and reading the descriptions of a place in the world that is far
different from the one where I live.
“Tangier and Lucy were the same, I thought. Both
unsolvable riddles that refused to leave me in peace. And I had tired of it -
of the not knowing, of always feeling as though I were on the outside of
things, just on the periphery.”
“I did not ask her where she had spent her day, or
whom she had spent it with. I did not ask what she was doing in Tangier, why
she was here, what she wanted - still too afraid of the answers I might
receive.”
“The feelings I had felt toward Lucy, I often
thought, were something like this - something sharper than a normal friendship,
something that I felt threatened to overwhelm and, quite possibly, destroy.
There were moments when I had thought that I did not so much as want her, as I
wanted to be her.”
“She was put together nicely, with the intention
of others not noticing. There was nothing about her that clamored for
attention, nothing that demanded to be seen, and yet, everything was done
exactly in anticipation of such notice.”
I was pleasantly surprised and shocked to learn
that this is a debut novel. Christine Mangan has a bright future ahead of her
in her field as a writer. This story transported me to another world, gripped
me from page one, and kept me guessing until the end. Both of the main
characters were interesting to read about and the pacing was consistently fast all
the way through. I will add Mangan to my auto-read author list.
***A free copy of this book was provided to me by
the publishers at Ecco in exchange for my honest review***
Woow I'm glad you enjoyed the book
ReplyDeleteRuty @Reading…Dreaming
I have the audiobook of Tangerine on my phone and I can't wait to get to it. Wonderful review!
ReplyDelete