Darling Jim

Christian Moerk's Darling Jim is hard to classify.  It isn't a mystery and it's not a crime novel, though there is a mystery of sorts to solve and from the first page the reader learns of the horrific crimes that occur in the book.  It's more of a story within a story within yet another story.  You might really call this a storyteller's smorgasbord; a little bit fairy tale, a little bit myth with a dash of modern gothic thrown in for good measure.  At the heart of the story is Jim Quick, a seanchaí, or itinerant storyteller whose smooth talking and good looks leave all the girls and women swooning in his wake, though I couldn't discern many attractive qualities in him (perhaps I was privy to a bit more information?).  The thing is, he tends to leave more than broken hearts behind.

"Long after the house had been disinfected for the new occupants and the bodies rested safely in the ground, people still didn't come near it.  'Cursed,' whispered the neighborhood gossips and nodded meaningfully.  'Deadly, a haunted house!' cried the children, but they only ever mustered up the courage to take a step or two into the front yard before losing heart."

This is the Dublin home where three bodies were found in what appeared to have been a bloody battle.  Two sisters and their aunt had been living there, and it took three long days after their deaths before anyone noticed something was wrong.  And something was horribly wrong.  Sisters Fiona and Róisín had been poisoned, slowly weakened, and chained in their rooms to die.  The culprit?  Their aunt Moira.  What would drive a woman, their own family for pity's sake, to commit such a brutal act?  Maybe I should say who would drive?  As the realization came over the sisters of what was happening they wrote their stories down.  Knowing their time was running out, the sisters took their one chance to try and get away, or at least send their journals off safely, and in so doing murdered their aunt, but it ended in tragedy for all three.  Strangely, there was another prisoner who escaped, but left no trace behind.

So one story concerns the sisters, their aunt and the events that led up to the tragedy, which began three years earlier in the small Cork town of Castletownbere with the arrival of a handsome stranger and his seductive power over three sisters and their aunt and the rest of the town.  Moerk cleverly ties this together with another thread, which involves a Dublin postal employee, Niall, who finds Fiona's diary in the dead letter bin.  When he reads Fiona's story he's compelled to look for the Dublin captive who got away, and embarks on an adventure of his own to unravel the mystery of the sisters.  The third narrative is that of Jim himself.  It's the story he tells when he travels from town to town; a dark tale of an enchanted castle and a wolf who's also a man.  If you listen carefully you can see parallels between Jim and the wolf--both of them predators, and their lovely and oh so gullible prey.

Although the story of the sisters is a compelling one, I have to admit that this was a somewhat uneven read for me, and I struggled with it a little at first.  The novel is divided into sections including two diaries, and in the first I found the many colloquialisms a little wearing.  I do like what you might term 'local color', but it somehow felt like a little too much.  Still, I wonder how much of the story was tongue in cheek.  I think there was purposely an outrageousness to the novel, as it felt a little over the top at times, like the author was having fun with his readers--telling his many stories, as he certainly tells them with exuberance.  So I suppose this is a minor quibble in what is probably the most unusual story I've read yet this year.  It's one worth sticking with as the threads twine nicely together as any good storyteller's will.  You can check out the author's website here (be sure and click on the photo gallery link which has pictures of the Ireland that inspired his story).    

Comments

[litlove]

An interesting-sounding book! But I guess this type of plot relies on an absolutely cracking main character. If the reader has any doubts about his credibility, it must make the whole book wobble a bit. Still, I'd be intrigued to have a look at it, if it comes out over here.

[Tara]

It sounds like an intriguing book, sort of the why-done-it variety a la Barbara Vine. I'll keep my eye out for it, keeping your reservations in mind.

[Danielle]

Litlove--Jim was an interesting character, but I never really saw what all the women found so attractive other than his good looks. Really the three sisters were the characters you become attached to--Jim is only the impetus to get the story going. It was definitely an interesting book--very different than my normal reads (and variety is good).
Tara--Yes, you do know the outcome more or less from the start, but it's how it all builds up that's so interesting to read about. I did have some reservations, but it was cleverly put together. B. Vine (Ruth Rendell as well) does often write whydonits rather than whodonits. It's an interesting way to look at a story.

[Dorothy W.]

Well, it's too bad the book was a bit uneven -- I think the colloquialisms would bother me too. But at least it was a good story -- it must be satisfying to watch all the pieces come together.

[Danielle]

Dorothy--I don't mind slang, but the first diarist used a lot of it. Sometimes with me a little bit goes a long way. But the author did a nice job of pulling all these odd threads together at the end--with something I didn't expect as well. Definitely an interesting read.

[Petunia]

I've had this book on my radar since it came out. Just wondering when I'll finally get to read it.

[Danielle]

Petunia--Definitely give it a try--it's gotten loads of good reviews. Other than a few minor little things I enjoyed it as well!