review: dilemmas of a middle-aged madonna

Cecile Ravell (2022) Warrior Woman Press

Book review Meredith Fuller OAM

Cecile Ravell, a creative memoir author and poet, writes non-fiction and fiction and has a talent for infusing travel writing within her books. Passionate about travel, she brings countries and venues alive. She also scatters some Italian throughout the story. Novellas include ‘Love on a Faultline’ and ‘Child Magical’. Her characters are an amalgam of people throughout her life.

Outline:

‘Spurned by the love of her life, Jessica contemplates walking into the ocean and drowning. A chance meeting leads to a sequence of events which turn her life around. This story lurches from pathos to comedy to romance, as our female protagonist navigates the challenges that life hurls at her.’

The book takes us from Far North Queensland to Nova Scotia, Canada, and New York City.

Having also visited the Frick Museum, I found her information and history about Henry Clay Frick fascinating, similarly for the Met and Times Square.

This isn’t a genre I would normally read (fiction & romance) as I tend to read non-fiction and biographies. Jessica is disengaging from a ‘bad boy’ partner and meets several new men who treat her well. Will she jump out of a disappointing relationship into something that may promise fulfillment? I found this a raunchy read – maybe too raunchy for me!

Some of her metaphors were appealing in their visceral imagery. For example, she talks about how her new lover’s fervour lifted the cold shroud of her former partner’s enveloping.

Purchase autographed copy: ravellc@yahoo.com.au