📘 A Glittering Chaos
by Lisa de Nikolits
Genre Fiction
Format & Source Print ◦ For review
Publication 2013
Dates Read June 4 – 16, 2013
Rating ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆
📚 What It's About
Melusine is a German librarian who accompanies her husband on a trip to Las Vegas for his business conference. Their son has just left home for school, and things seem kind of boring at home so Melusine jumps at the chance for some excitement and change of scenery. Shortly after arriving, she meets Gunther, and quickly falls into a romantic and passionate affair, unlike anything she has ever done or experienced before. Her formerly boring husband, Hans, has some secrets of his own too, as he has lied about his reasons for traveling to Vegas. Hans past secret obsession collides with Melusine’s passionate affair, and life will never be the same again for this couple after what happens in Vegas…
📝 My Review
When I first started reading this book, I was taken aback quite a bit. At the beginning, it was almost immediately very sexual, as well as very strange. I was surprised and kind of confused, unsure of how I would feel about it. However, I kept reading, and right around the time that Melusine encounters Gunther, I was hooked. I got really into the story and didn’t want to stop reading. The descriptive details of Las Vegas pulled me in and made me so anxious to visit there someday. In fact, Jerry and I had actually considered Vegas for our honeymoon this October, but eventually settled on a cruise instead. I’ve always wanted to visit, but this book made me want to even more so. All the lights, action, and “glittering chaos” captured my attention.
Aside from the magnificent and breathtaking setting, I was just plain astounded by the actions of Melusine and her weird husband, Hans. While I obviously disliked that Melusine was cheating, I was still rooting for her and Gunther because it was evident that 1. they had something special, and 2. something with Hans was not quite right at all. Gunther changed Melusine, and brought out a whole new side of her.
Then there’s the story of Hans and his past which was incredibly creepy. I could not believe the secrets he was keeping. While his story was very interesting, what kept me the most interested was the story of Melusine and Gunther… their passionate whirlwind of an affair, their heartbreak upon leaving, and their effort to keep the relationship going via written correspondence upon returning home.
This is just what happened in Vegas… when Melusine and Hans return home, things get even weirder when Hans remains obsessed with his past and slips into a severe insanity. Watching Melusine, her son, and friends cope with this is fascinating and heartbreaking all at once.
This book is incredibly dark and very, very bizarre… but anyone who knows me knows that I love bizarre (Chuck Palahniuk being one of my favorite authors)! This book is not for everyone, but if you’re looking for something different, this would definitely fit the bill. I am anxious to read more of this author’s work.
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