I don’t know about you, but I love a good “dysfunctional life/marriage” tale. Gone Girl, The Girl on the Train, Silver Linings Playbook – in these we find characters who, if known in real life, would instantly garner the classic “Wow, I am SO glad I am not him/her”. In fiction, however, they become fascinating glimpses into what we may or may not be hiding from the ones we love. Such is the case with Lauren Groff’s Fates and Furies, which takes the traditional dual perspective view of a marriage and spins in into something deeply emotional and extremely rewarding.
The novel follows Lotto and Mathilde, a young couple who, at first glance, are perfect. Though not traditionally beautiful – Lotto bears the scars of horrific childhood acne and Mathilde appears too thin and severe for some – but the strength of their love and fullness of their marriage sends waves of jealousy through their friends. We follow the couple from the beginnings of their whirlwind courtship through twenty-plus years of marriage. Groff divides the story into two sections – “Fates”, told through the eyes of Lotto, and “Furies”, through those of Mathilde. Lotto, ever the charming, dreaming optimist, tells a story of struggle without ever reaching too deep into the emotional turmoil he faces. This is not a negative on Groff’s storytelling – Lotto simply wishes to be universally loved, and his story reflects that. From the beginning, we are told that Lotto is “the one we can’t look away from…the shining one”. Women love him, men want to be him, young actors want to work for him, but all he wants is for the woman who stole his heart completely to feel for him what he does for her (there are also some Mommy issues in there, but that’s for you to discover). Mathilde, on the other hand, “boiled beneath a placid skin”. Reserved, severe, never showing her true self, her backstory contains far more meat that that of her husband. I will admit that I found the jumps in time somewhat jarring at first, but Groff manages to perfectly connect moments from the past with current events. We quickly learn that Mathilde’s devotion to Lotto is as complete as his for her, but their marriage is not without bitterness. I particularly enjoyed Mathilde’s side of those previously mentioned Mommy issues – what dysfunctional family is complete without secrets and manipulation? Both leading characters in this novel are interesting and complex. They come with complicated childhoods, personal agendas, and more than one bomb drop of a revelation. Their histories are not the most comfortable to swallow, but Groff’s prose comes with fluidity and ease. I thoroughly enjoyed diving deeper into the story of Lotto and Mathilde and all that comes with creating and maintaining a happy (to everyone else, at least) marriage.
There are a few side characters in the novel on whom I failed to touch. In addition to the families of our leading characters (Lotto’s parents, aunt, and sister, Mathilde’s parents, grandmother, and uncle), we meet a number of the couple’s acquaintances from their childhood and college years. A few of these lesser characters seemed to blend into one another as the story went along, but I didn’t find them disctracting or unnecessary. In fact, it is comments from said characters in the early stages of the novel that first alert the reader that something is going on beneath the surface of this marriage. They are the reader, and we are them – who hasn’t said something about a friend behind his or her back (or been personally victimized by Regina George, for that matter?) when a burgeoning relationship appears questionable?
Overall, I would give Fates and Furies a seven out of ten. It’s not a novel for everyone, and it’s not something I see myself clamoring to reread every year, but it is an extremely well-written story with interesting characters that truly makes you think. What about you, reader? Has anyone else taken a change on Fates and Furies? What are your thoughts?
Next up: Robert Galbraith’s Career of Evil (love you, JKR!)
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