A review by syndierella
Cleopatra and Frankenstein by Coco Mellors

adventurous dark reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I’d have liked to rate this book higher because I really enjoyed it, however something that really bothered me was the handling of queer characters in the novel (something that i immediately felt on reflection having just finished the book).
There is one queer character, Quentin, who forms part of the main storyline but his character is not developed as much as some of the other characters as the book progresses. Big spoilers ahead.
he only gets one chapter which is written from his perspective, in which you see him beginning to question his gender identity and also get introduced to the idea of meth/chem sex. Whereas other characters you meet that only have one or two chapters from their perspective (Zoe, Santiago, Anders) all show character development within those and you hear a resolution / see some character growth from them even through others, later in the novel. Whereas Quentin’s character is mostly ignored after his chapter early on until you learn from Cleo at the end that he got hooked on Meth and she doesn’t see him anymore. The gender identity point isn’t explored any further. I just thought it was really sad that the tropes of gay best friend and tragic ending for the only queer character were both employed in a book that deals well with topics of feminism, mental health and privilege including some commentary (albeit small) on race, including nuance within these
the other clumsy queer reference used is in reference to Eleanor’s father who we learn (tiny spoiler but you learn this pretty early on in her character and it doesn’t mean anything for the plot)
left her mother for a woman who in turn left him for another woman. This is then referred to throughout the rest of the novel as “he left you for a lesbian!”, with no comment/reference to the fact she might have been bi+, and it’s like some extra slight on her father not just that he left her mother for another woman but _for a “lesbian”_ as if the fact of her sexual orientation worsens his infidelity when obviously he wouldn’t have known that and maybe she didn’t either!
. I get it’s barely a plot point, but in that case, why put it in? It just feels clumsy compared to the nuanced treatment of & comments made by other characters in the book when it comes to other topics.
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