Main Characters: Elspeth, Julia, Valentina, Robert, Martin

Summary:

When Elspeth Noblin dies of cancer, she leaves her London apartment to her twin nieces, Julia and Valentina. These two American girls never met their English aunt, only knew that their mother, too, was a twin, and Elspeth her sister. Julia and Valentina are semi-normal American teenagers–with seemingly little interest in college, finding jobs, or anything outside their cozy home in the suburbs of Chicago, and with an abnormally intense attachment to one another.

The girls move to Elspeth’s flat, which borders Highgate Cemetery in London. They come to know the building’s other residents. There is Martin, a brilliant and charming crossword puzzle setter suffering from crippling Obsessive Compulsive Disorder; Marjike, Martin’s devoted but trapped wife; and Robert, Elspeth’s elusive lover, a scholar of the cemetery. As the girls become embroiled in the fraying lives of their aunt’s neighbors, they also discover that much is still alive in Highgate, including–perhaps–their aunt, who can’t seem to leave her old apartment and life behind.

Anna’s Thoughts

You see that summary up there? Yup, that one. Unless you’re really into stories, to the point where you want to know what a character ate for breakfast, there is really no reason to read Her Fearful Symmetry because that summary about says it all. And it’s disappointing. In all honesty, I expected a ghost story, not in the ‘there’s a ghost hanging around’ type story, a ghost story – the semi-spooky kind. Knowing the authors past work, I was a little apprehensive about it, but I figure she could have branched out and I was so hyped for Her Fearful Symmetry, I was also so disappointed.

My biggest issue with Her Fearful Symmetry is that to me it was being promoted as a ghost story, a spooky/scary/what-have-you ghost story, as the synopsis lead me to believe that there is a ghost but only MAYBE is it their aunt – not that it absolutely without a doubt is – which you learn in the first couple chapters that it is. Personally that right there takes out a lot of the interest to me, Her Fearful Symmetry is less of a ghost story and more of a coming of age story with a supernatural twist. The biggest draw to finish the book was the secret between Elspeth and Edie, and once that is learned, I was close to the end I figured I might as well finish it. The twist in the book (because isn’t there always one?) was predictable, I was able to guess that it was going to happen about half way through the book, it was a gut feeling.

Having said that though, it wasn’t a complete waste of time, I did enjoy the imagery and the dynamic between the characters. Whether Audrey’s version of London really exists is beyond me as I’ve never been out of the U.S. however it’s certainly clear in my mind. I can see the building where the twins lived, their flat as well as the cemetery and the little alley between the two. I can clearly see both of the twins, Robert, Martin, and Elspeth. Although, through it all the only characters I could actually bring myself to care about were Julia and Valentina, and I think that’s merely because I have a sister who I’m extremely close with. I felt bad for Robert in the end, and eventually Elspeth, but that was more because of the hole/rut the had dug themselves into, not because they deserved it.

Overall it was a slightly entertaining story, although it did take me a while to read. There wasn’t really any arc to me where I had to sit back and think and go ‘Wow’, and I certainly didn’t expect the secret between Edie and Elspeth to be what it was. Even so, it majorly confused me since you figure it out about 3/4th of the way through the book and everything has already happened, it takes time (or it did for me) to sort things out. I liked the characters, and the story itself, although for the most part it felt flat. There are certain authors whose books I won’t read, such as Jodi Picoult and Nicholas Sparks, because they have the habit of writing the same story over and over again and people end up losing more than they ever gain, and I’m afraid Audrey Niffenegger might have just been added to that list. Personally, I don’t want to read a book that is completely depressing, and as I told Daisy, if I wanted to read/hear about a sad story, I’d turn on the news.

By the way, for any who don’t know, this is completely not in anyway a YA book, I wouldn’t recommend anyone handing it to their children, unless they’re considered adults.