Vincent and her half-brother Paul aren't close as they grow up on Vancouver Island, and have little to do with each other as adults. After her mother's death, headstrong teenage Vincent goes to live with her aunt.....
.....while brother Paul is flunking out of college and abusing drugs.
Both siblings have a creative bent, Vincent with her video camera and Paul with his interest in music, and these pursuits have important ramifications in the novel.
As young adults both Vincent and Paul are briefly employed at the very upscale Hotel Caiette, on an island off the coast of British Columbia - Vincent as a bartender and Paul as a night caretaker. Paul gets fired for cause on the same day Vincent goes off with a hotel guest named Jonathan Alkaitis - a wealthy, middle-aged widower who runs an investment firm.
Vincent is happy to live in what she calls "the kingdom of money", which includes Jonathan's house in Connecticut - complete with pool and servants; Jonathan's pied-à-terre in Manhattan; a no-limit credit card; private planes; country clubs; travel abroad; and so on. All Vincent has to do is look beautiful, act sophisticated, and pose as Alkaitis' wife....which Jonathan feels has more cachet than 'girlfriend.'
There's a flaw in this picture, however, because Alkaitis' wealth is the result of finanacial fraud, a long-running Ponzi scheme that's going to land Jonathan in prison. [This isn't a spoiler, we learn this early in the book.] For several years Vincent is blissfully unaware of Jonathan's dupery, and enjoys her life traipsing around Manhattan; hanging out with her best friend; shopping; reading international newspapers; visiting the Metropolitan Museum of Art; vacationing; meeting people; and the like.
Then Alkaitis' malfeasance is exposed, and the lives of Vincent and Jonathan go off in different directions. Alkaitis goes to prison......
......and Vincent eventually gets a job as a cook on an international container ship, which means 9 months traveling and 3 months off per year.
That's the bare bones of the plot, but Emily St. John Mandel is a highly sophisticated writer and there's much more going on.
The book skips back in forth in time from the 1990s, to 2008, to 2018 and beyond.....so the reader follows the characters over a number of decades. We observe Alkaitis' attentiveness to his cancer-stricken first wife Suzanne; observe Jonathan's love for his (now deceased) artist brother; and follow Alkaitis' business chicanery with a cadre of assistants.
Once Alkaitis is in prison, we share his 'counterlife', where the convict imagines an alternative existence where he's free; and we note how flattered Jonathan is when a writer interviews him for a book.
The story dips into magical realism as well since Jonathan is haunted by the ghosts of investors he bankrupted, some of whom committed suicide. Wraiths show up elsewhere in the novel as well, when they feel called to appear.
We also observe Vincent's life, from her youthful school vandalism; to her rebelious teenage years; to her life with Jonathan; to her actions post-Jonathan; to her involvement with another man; etc.
Paul is a less ubiquitous character, but we see him becoming besotted with a beautiful musician; accidently giving someone a deadly ecstasy pill; engaging in a bit of thievery; and so on.
Other characters enhance the story, including investors who trusted Alkaitis and lost everything; felonious employees of Alkaitis' investment firm, who go down with him; Jonathan's daughter, who's furious at her dad; Vincent's relatives and friends - some of whom suffered from Alkaitis' deceit; Vincent's co-workers on the containment ship; and more.
One aspect of the novel that fascinated me is the reaction of Alkaitis and his dishonest employees to their plight. Though they know they did wrong (very very wrong) they resent being arrested and prosecuted. The crooks prefer to think they made 'mistakes' and should somehow be excused. I believe this reaction is true to life as many people resent having to suffer the consequences of their actions.
This is a well written book and a good story. HIghly recommended. (In fact I like this book better than the author's highly acclaimed novel 'Station Eleven.')
Rating: 4 stars
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