Susie's Review: Her Fearful Symmetry by Audrey Niffeneger

The synopsis: When Elspeth Noblin dies of cancer, she leaves her London apartment to her twin nieces, Julia and Valentina. These two American girls never met their English aunt, only knew that their mother, too, was a twin, and Elspeth her sister.

The girls move to Elspeth's flat, which borders the historic Highgate Cemetery in London. They come to know the building's other residents. There is Martin, a brilliant and charming man suffering from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder; Marjike, Martin's devoted but trapped wife; and Robert, Elspeth's lover, a scholar of the cemetery. As the girls become embroiled in the fraying lives of their aunt's neighbors, they also discover that much is still alive in Highgate, including - perhaps - their aunt, who can't seem to leave her old apartment and life behind.


I was very excited to pick up this book, as I'd thoroughly enjoyed Niffeneger's The Time Traveler's Wife. However, I was sadly disappointed. It kept me interested through the first half, and then I found myself having to try hard to ignore the glaring holes in logic. I have no problem with a ghost story; but it has to be well-crafted, and the ghost can't wander around magically wearing fancy clothes, when in fact the ghost is invisible and can't even lift a pencil on her own - much less change wardrobes. Yes, that really bothered me. The ghost can be invisible yes, but where is she getting these invisible ghost-clothes? Doesn't make sense! This, along with the fact that Elsbeth is a despicable character and the decisions made by the characters were completely absurd made this a book I didn't really enjoy; particularly after thinking about it months later.


What Niffeneger did do very well is provide one thoroughly realized, lovable character. The agoraphobic Martin was my favorite; an obsessive-compulsive hermit on a quest to win back the affections of his wife. That was the real love story to me in this novel. Sadly, his character plays a relatively minor role in the story and he isn't all that relevant to the main plot.

I give this a 2 out of 5 stars. I know Audrey Niffeneger can do way better, so I'm hoping her next book is more like her first!