Inspiring Older Readers

posted on 08 Aug 2016

The Muse by Jessie Burton

I was really looking forward to this second novel by Jessie Burton as I had enjoyed The Miniaturist very much. I loved the design of the book with its strong blues and reds and especially liked the sumptuous red edged pages. I settled down to devour what promised to be a delicious big read.

I don't know about you but the first few pages of any novel are really important to me. Many years ago I worked as a Saturday girl in a shoe shop and so was immediately captivated by the opening scene where the main character, Odelle is wearily serving the last customer on a very hot day:

'It was nearing closing time, which meant that all the crumbs of dry skin- toe jam, as we called it- would have to be hoovered out of the carpet. Cynth always said we could have moulded a whole foot out of those scrapings, a monster to dance a jig all of its own'.

Such happy memories and so beautifully described! The start of the story is set in mid 1960s London and we learn that she is a young burgeoning writer who has come from Trinidad with her friend Cynthia to live in England. After a few years she has been bitterly disappointed to find that the mother country continues to fall way below her initial expectations. She has struggled to find work to match her academic qualifications and also has had her share of the overt racism of the time. She and her friend find work in a Dolcis shoe shop and share modest lodgings but this feels very unsatisfactory, particularly as Cynthia is about to get married and move out to begin a very different life. After making many job applications and failing to be appointed Odelle eventually lands what looks like a very interesting position as a typist at a rather exclusive London gallery, The Skelton Institute of Art. Here she meets her employer, the enigmatic, eccentric but very stylish Marjorie Quicke who immediately takes her under her wing.

The scene then moves back in time to 1930s Spain where we meet Olivia, another young woman who is this time a very talented artist who has been offered a place to study at Slade Art School. She is keeping all this a secret from her art dealer father, Harold and her beautiful, wealthy but mentally fragile mother, Sarah. Soon after they arrive from England at the house they are renting in rural Spain, the family is approached by a local girl Teresa Robles who offers to help with housework and cooking and is accompanied her half brother Isaac, who is also an artist. More significantly he is also active political agitator who spends his time educating the workers and becoming increasingly involved in opposing the emerging powerful Right wing forces. The mother commissions Isaac to paint a portrait of herself and Olivia as a surprise birthday present for her father and at the same time, Olivia is inspired by her obsession for Isaac to secretly begin painting some extraordinary pieces herself.

I don't want to give too much away here because this is essentially a mystery novel but the plot revolves around a huge art deception that is the link between the different time periods. The stories connect in the structure of the book which  moves backwards and forwards between the two gradually revealing snippets of information to complete the puzzle. Odelle's  newly acquired boyfriend Lawrie has inherited a painting of unknown provenance and research by the gallery seems to suggest that it might be by a relatively unknown but important Spanish artist, Isaac Robles. In the 1960s setting there is plenty of social commentary about working on the fringes of the bohemian art world for instance where celebrities like Julie Christie and Mick Jaggar are invited to the launch of the exhibition of the newly discovered painting, ostensibly by Isaac Robles. I liked the way in which her changing circumstances allow Odelle to become both more confident in her writing abilities and in her relationship with Quicke, who becomes increasingly important as a link between the two time periods.

The earlier setting gives us fascinating glimpses of the early stages of The Spanish Civil War which are vividly described and sometimes gruesome. It has clearly been extremely well researched, as has the background to the international art world of that time, particularly in relation to the effect of World War Two. Several reviews that I have read about this ambitious novel are concerned that Burton has not been careful enough about the authenticity of the language she has used or the sensibilities expressed in this part of the story and that this is a serious flaw. In other words, the desire to communicate and reflect the historical research has interfered with the conviction of the prose. 

I think that this criticism is a bit harsh as overall it was a very satisfying read for anyone who enjoys big themes, solid period detail and an awful lot of co incidences. On reflection, I think that there was perhaps more than enough potential substance in both stories for two very interesting novels rather than switching back and forth and trying to tie everything together at the end.

Karen Argent

August 2016