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A review by amyvl93
Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I somehow avoided hearing anything about this book until it was chosen to my book club's read for May.
Cleopatra and Frankenstein is centred around the titular characters of Cleo and Frank, who have a chance meeting one New Year's Eve and fall into a whirlwind romance; and follows them and their social circle in the aftermath of this meeting.
I had a bit of a weird experience reading this, I was hooked on the first few pages and then it lost me slightly and then picked up again when, ironically, Cleo and Frank took a backseat in the novel. Mellors is good at a character study; whilst some of them may well tiptoe around the edge of stereotype, Cleo and Frank's extended circle feel very alive on the page - particularly Frank's half-sister, his co-worker Eleanor and chef friend Santiago. I found Cleo and Frank to be the least realised characters in the novel, despite us being repeatedly told that they are an 'It' couple. Frank at least I could slightly understand (he's rich, funny, charismatic) but Cleo felt like a bit of a non-entity, her main personality traits appear to be that she's British and attractive - but I didn't really get a sense of why she was such a magnet for people (and as others have said it is a little cringe to see how Mellors may have used her as a self-insert in the novel).
New York itself is a great supporting character to the novel and I can understand why the 'vibes' of the book have so captured TikTok - but I think the mixed bag of characterisation and some plot detours that contained some slightly questionable mental health representation didn't make it land quite as well as it could have done.
Cleopatra and Frankenstein is centred around the titular characters of Cleo and Frank, who have a chance meeting one New Year's Eve and fall into a whirlwind romance; and follows them and their social circle in the aftermath of this meeting.
I had a bit of a weird experience reading this, I was hooked on the first few pages and then it lost me slightly and then picked up again when, ironically, Cleo and Frank took a backseat in the novel. Mellors is good at a character study; whilst some of them may well tiptoe around the edge of stereotype, Cleo and Frank's extended circle feel very alive on the page - particularly Frank's half-sister, his co-worker Eleanor and chef friend Santiago. I found Cleo and Frank to be the least realised characters in the novel, despite us being repeatedly told that they are an 'It' couple. Frank at least I could slightly understand (he's rich, funny, charismatic) but Cleo felt like a bit of a non-entity, her main personality traits appear to be that she's British and attractive - but I didn't really get a sense of why she was such a magnet for people (and as others have said it is a little cringe to see how Mellors may have used her as a self-insert in the novel).
New York itself is a great supporting character to the novel and I can understand why the 'vibes' of the book have so captured TikTok - but I think the mixed bag of characterisation and some plot detours that contained some slightly questionable mental health representation didn't make it land quite as well as it could have done.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Self harm and Suicide attempt