Customer Reviews

Queen Lear (King Penguin)

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I bought this book because I was stunned by the perfection of "Good Behavior" which I expect to read again and again over the years. (I've read it at least 5 times over the past year alone.)

"Queen Lear" isn't up to the standard Molly Keane set in "Good Behavior." Where does it fall down, exactly? The dominant characters are largely unappealing, but that doesn't explain it. They are equally unappealing in "Good Behavior" and still Ms. Keane made me care about Aroon. In contrast, I can't care about the fate of Nicandra in "Queen Lear."

Molly Keane seems to attempt a repeat of the magnificent knockout punch she delivered in "Good Behavior" (an ending which perfectly and shockingly fulfills and transforms the beginning, built logically and inevitably on everything in between). For me, "Queen Lear" just doesn't deliver.

Why not? Some of the reason is technical, but there's also the unfortunate fact that the herione is a thorough pill with no redeeming qualities. By the time I reached the last pages of the book, I was heartily sick of Nicandra and her self-created, richly deserved misery. The final "revelation" from her childhood destroyed what little (very little) sympathy she might have earned.

In "Good Behavior," Molly Keane made me sympathize with and finally, grudgingly admire a truly fascinating herione, Iris Aroon. She's warped, stunted, horrifyingly self-deluded, and her unquestioning acceptance of the shallow values of her tormentors is rather disgusting. Still, there's the hidden audacity and sly creative stubborness with which she copes. The cards are certainly stacked against her, emotionally speaking--she's got the "underdog" thing nailed!

Reading "Queen Lear," I cannot summon sympathy for Nicandra. Amply gifted with almost everything Aroon lacks, she chooses a cruel, animalistic path that leaves her ripe for exploitation. Worse, she's not even interesting.

There are some fairly good supporting characters in "Queen Lear," but they're not enough to carry the story and can't compare with the beautifully drawn, perfectly cast supporting roles in "Good Behavior." The psychological elements Keane introduces never quite gel into anything authentic or even definite. I highly recommend that you read "Good Behavior" if you appreciate brilliant writing and characterization. Read "Queen Lear" for scholarly or comparative purposes only.