The internet tells me that in order to get people to read my books (they’re very good by the way you should go order them), I need to start a blog, which sounds awful. Anyway, I thought I’d try book reviews. Afterall, as a self-published author with tiny sales, I feel more than qualified to rubbish some best seller. Who does she think she is anyway? Let's get on with it.

The Glass Maker – Tracey Chevalier 

The above picture is of cat that sits on my fireplace, it’s more of a photo place these days but anyway.  He was purchased by my wife on the island of Murano, the famous glass making region on the Venetian lagoon.  He’s clearly crap, I mean he is really crap, but I like him for exactly that reason. Look at his silly face.  However, despite his likeable crapness, the glassmakers that inhabit Tracey Chevalier’s most recent releases world would riot in disgust at the sight of his stupid little head. They are the real deal.  Theirs is a trade as respected and guarded as royal dynasties. These are men (and men is the word) dedicated to making goblets and chandeliers for the great houses of Europe, not tourist trinkets.

In "The Glass Maker", Chevalier focuses on one such glass dynasty, the Rossos, specifically, from the point of view of a daughter, Orsola (yes, she’s going to break the glass ceiling… see what I did there? Mad clever.). Through Orsola’s eyes we see the history of Venice from the cheerful plague-ridden 15th century to the cheerful Covid ridden 21st century. Wait what?! Yes, Orsola, a firm believer in a fish diet mixed with generous application of skin moisturiser, manages to accomplish this feat without any explanation other than “time flows differently” on their little island of Murano. She travels centuries while aging only decades along with the rest of her ever expanding (and at times, contracting) family. 

So that’s the premises, how well is it executed? In a word, "very", as in very well, ahem. 

I loved the unexplained magic realism that sits in the background of this story. It allows the author to guide us through the social history of one the world’s most enigmatic cites while being equally enigmatic as to how she can do it. You just have to roll with it. Its not just a device either, it serves to bring the story to a wonderful and highly original conclusion.  

From the get go, the world building is impressive, as we travel from the claustrophobic casa, Orsola lives with her family, to a Venice full of busy merchants, which slowly evolves to a Venice full of tourists. Chevalier takes time to paint her scene and it is deeper than a Canaletto postcard painting (I’m being an arsehole here, I know).  I also, now know how to make glass beads, which I guess is both a positive and a negative, my writing isn’t providing an income at the moment so there is always the option of selling beads to ‘natives’ somewhere.  But as a negative, perhaps this then is the first fault of the novel, much like melted glass and time on Murano, the plot is slow moving, it may not grab the attention of reader who wants their novel to “begin” at the beginning. Chevalier agonises over the detail as Orsola agonises over the making of her beads.

The characters of the central family are formed well and you can anticipate their actions and reactions. However, as the family expands this weakens, as the cast grows, their “screen time” lessons, subsequently, so does their impact. In addition, I might be being a little sensitive here but the male characters tended to be somewhat typecast. There’s the broody sex symbol, the weak but kind and sensitive one, and the macho stupid patriarch. It seemed to me that the only male characters that showed a bit more balance and intelligence held an additional criterion of “outsider”. Now I’m guilty myself of allowing personal ideology seep into my own writing but I would still see it as a weakness.  On the positive, the female characters were well drawn and diverse. I could see them in my mind’s eye. Orsola, while not immediately likeable, is complicated and relatable, in so far as I can relate to 15th century female glassmaker, which actually is a lot (mainly because I'm melodramatic).

The beats of the story were excellent and the drama brought a tension that kept the pages turning.  Its episodic nature is a style of writing I adore, and each chapter felt like a self-contained snapshot and adventure while bringing the overall piece steadily along.  The reader is kept on a hook with a plotline concerning the reoccurring gift of a glass dolphin, the resolution to which is very satisfying. There is no doubt, the story is epic and masterfully told. 

My verdict is a solid 4 out of 5, now if you’re reading this Ms Chevalier, please return the favour and rate “The Grand Couvert” and “Clementine Lane” on Amazon 4/5 and we’re even. Sound.