A nastier and more hapless individual than Lindsey, the narrator and protagonist of British author Chris Manby’s romance comedy The Matchbreaker (2006, Hodder and Stoughton, London, 340 pages), is tough to imagine.
Manby, whose previous books include Flatmates, Second Prize, Getting Personal, Seven Sunny Days, Deep Heat and Girl Meets Ape, has taxed her far-reaching imagination to devise a zany plot. Lindsey schemes to foil a planned marriage between her father and his latest lover, a fitness trainer named Karen. She succeeds by nearly murdering her would-be stepmother. But after observing her father’s heartbreak and feeling the sting of his fury, she decides to repair the damage by winning back his fiancee.
Lindsey does much that most parents would call unforgivable. How can she redeem herself?
Despite the spotlight on Lindsey, the real hero may be Poupeh Gharani, a nerdy friend long ridiculed, yet still rushing to the rescue. For proof of Lindsey’s nasty streak, consider her introduction of Poupeh: “Let me explain about Poupeh Gharani. She absolutely wasn’t the kind of girl who could slip unnoticed through a crowd. She may have been only five-feet, two-inches tall, but she always seemed a great deal bigger. It was partly because she was at least as wide as she was high and partly because she always dressed like a Chinese circus tent.”
Readers may take a mighty dislike to Lindsey, and the need to accompany this loathsome narrator dampens much of the enjoyment. Fortunately, Lindsey finally learns a few life-lessons and matures slightly.
Much that happens sounds improbable, and readers must strain to suspend disbelief. For those who succeed, Manby leads the way on a fast-paced adventure of the heartstrings. Less than hilarious, the book’s mildly amusing.
For the author’s sake, we trust that she hasn’t based the Lindsey character on anyone in her own family.
Approval rating: 51 per cent.
For more information: www.madaboutbooks.com
(March 30, 2007)
ARCHIVES
|
Chris Manby crafts a zany plot.
|
