Lead Review
- Book: Violet
- Location: Mongolia, Russia, Ulan Bator / Ulaanbaatar
- Author: S J I Holliday
This disturbing thriller opens in Beijing where Violet has landed after her relationship with Sam ended in Australia. She is trying to buy a ticket for the Trans-Siberian Express, leaving the next morning but she is thwarted. Carrie, who is also on her travels, happens to have a spare ticket, as her erstwhile travelling companion has broken her leg and is unable to travel. And thus Violet and Carrie head off together on their travels.
Violet establishes that she has some kind of agenda early on, but what it exactly is remains to be seen. The pervading sense of menace as the narrative progresses left me avidly turning the pages as “V” and Carrie stop in Ulaanbaatar in Mongolia and then alight in Irkutsk (Siberia). They of course meet up with other travellers and Carrie has a natural charm and flair with people that draws her into the crowd, leaving Violet very much on the edge (in more ways than one!). Violet grumps and feels hard done by.
Violet falls for Carrie and awkwardly tries to engineer a committed relationship but Carrie is not one to be tied down. They rub along well enough at the beginning, it is an adventure after all, but soon there is friction that becomes untenable. As the journey continues, the death toll rises… That naughty Villanelle came to mind at times. Tensions are fuelled by excessive alcohol and drug consumption and once they have attended a festival and had their futures read by a Shaman, all hell breaks loose.
I found myself palming my forehead on several occasions as the women accepted lifts and invitations from strangers. No, no, don’t do that…. but of course they did.
The author is really skilled at setting a good pace, adding twists and turns that veer off track (no pun intended) and writing psychologically damaged characters. Things are certainly not always as they seem.
The settings – the monotonous drone of the wheels clacking their way West and the stoping points, terminating in Berlin (via a flight) – are all very evocative. Who knew there was a buzzing Irish Bar scene in remote UB – perhaps it is not as remote as one imagines? The young women, for example, head out into the desert and a savvy young man shares his top tips of bringing vanilla drops to make the tea palatable and Soy Sauce to mask the flavour of the mutton stews. Who knew?
It is so clear from the detail of setting that the author has in depth knowledge of the journey from Beijing onwards and indeed you can read more of her experience on her own blog, where she shares wonderful photos over several posts of her own journey taken in 2006. Recommended.
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