Wednesday, April 23, 2008

A Quilted Heart

by R.M. Vaughan

I became interested in looking for one of Vaughan's books after hearing the poet/author/artist interviewed by Jian Ghomeshi on the CBC radio program "Q." His first novel, A Quilted Heart, was available at my public library, and judging the book by its cover (front and back), I concluded that "A murder-mystery-ghost-story-romance that manages to subvert all the traps of such genres" was worth looking into.

I was not bowled over by this gothic tale of ghostly revenge set in 1970's Montreal. The author is clever with language and his descriptive passages are vivid and moody, but I feel that the book's climax is a little thin given the intriguing possibilities Vaughan establishes earlier on. I anticipated a more satisfying confrontation between the characters than he delivers.

To his credit, however, Vaughan infuses a potentially trite melodrama with a degree of originality and wit. He is aware of literary conventions, and avoids generic pit-falls in an effective and subtle manner. Although the book is not entirely successful, it is interesting in the way that it weaves threads of the author's contemporary gay sensibility into a classical form of storytelling. At a novella length of 160 pages, A Quilted Heart is not daunting; should you stumble upon it, the book is worth a read, but I would not suggest seeking it out before finishing the stack on your bedside table.



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