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Mazarine
Intrigue mounts in this search for a missing daughter - and for love.
From award-winning author Charlotte Grimshaw, this is a beautifully evocative, sensual portrayal of a woman’s search for freedom and love.
When her daughter vanishes during a heatwave in Europe, writer Frances Sinclair embarks on a hunt that takes her across continents and into her own past. What clues can Frances find in her own history, and who is the mysterious Mazarine? Following the narrative thread left by her daughter, she travels through cities touched by terrorism and surveillance, where ways of relating are subtly changed, and a startling new fiction seems to be constructing itself.
From award-winning author Charlotte Grimshaw, this is a beautifully evocative, sensual portrayal of a woman’s search for freedom and love.
When her daughter vanishes during a heatwave in Europe, writer Frances Sinclair embarks on a hunt that takes her across continents and into her own past. What clues can Frances find in her own history, and who is the mysterious Mazarine? Following the narrative thread left by her daughter, she travels through cities touched by terrorism and surveillance, where ways of relating are subtly changed, and a startling new fiction seems to be constructing itself.
- GenresFiction
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2018
12 people are currently reading
98 people want to read
About the author
Charlotte Grimshaw
21 books56 followersCharlotte Grimshaw is the author of a number of critically acclaimed novels and outstanding collections of short stories. She has been a double finalist and prize winner in the Sunday Star-Times short story competition, and in 2006 she won the BNZ Katherine Mansfield Award. In 2007 she won a Book Council Six Pack prize. Her story collection Opportunity was shortlisted for the 2007 Frank O'Connor International Prize, and in 2008 Opportunity won New Zealand's premier Montana Award for Fiction or Poetry. She was also the 2008 Montana Book Reviewer of the Year. Her story collection Singularity was shortlisted for the 2009 Frank O'Connor International Prize and the South East Asia and Pacific section of the Commonwealth Writers' Prize. Grimshaw's fourth novel, The Night Book was shortlisted for the 2011 NZ Post Award. She writes a monthly column in Metro magazine, for which she won a 2009 Qantas Media Award.
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
April 16, 2018
I have mixed feelings about Mazarine. Some parts I absolutely loved, but there were a few things about this book that didn't quite feel right. And that is a shame because as a big fan of Charlotte Grimshaw's books (I thought The Night Book and Starlight Peninsula were fantastic) I wanted to be more enthusiastic.
It is hard to review this book without giving too much away about the story. Francis hasn't heard from her daughter Maya for two and a half weeks, and that is odd. They are always in touch, even from different sides of the world. Nor can she contact Joe, Maya's boyfriend. Then strange things start happening. She encounters Nick, her ex-lover in the local park and a few days later finds in in her house standing in Maya's bedroom. She panics and flees Auckland altogether.
Out in the Waikato she ends up looking for Joe's mum, and that is how she encounters Mazarine. The two mothers unite over their missing children and are drawn to each other. They are at odds over how go about a search. We then start a journey around the world, first to London where Maya and Joe live, then to Paris and Mazarine's ex-husband and finally to Buenos Aires.
The locations are well drawn and realistic, this is not simply some travelogue of holiday snapshots. There is depth and humour. There are flashbacks to family, to Francis' difficult relationship with her parents, and to Werner Bismark her shrink. All these add colour and flavour to the dish.
The end, when it comes in the last four pages, is a rush and so is something of an anti-climax. There are loose ends, such as Nick the ex, who has turned up in London and in Paris, but seems to be forgotten in the sudden ending. Perhaps we are meant to assume he is something sinister or is working for the government, but who knows. Perhaps there are just too many plots and sub-plots going on with so many ex-husbands wives and lovers, dead publishers, difficult parental relationships, the many remembered visits to the shrink and then for good measure some European terrorism, Chechen spies and a Russian flash drive. All of those elements are beautifully drawn by Grimshaw, but perhaps the failing is that there are just too many mingled into life. Is it really that complicated?
It is hard to review this book without giving too much away about the story. Francis hasn't heard from her daughter Maya for two and a half weeks, and that is odd. They are always in touch, even from different sides of the world. Nor can she contact Joe, Maya's boyfriend. Then strange things start happening. She encounters Nick, her ex-lover in the local park and a few days later finds in in her house standing in Maya's bedroom. She panics and flees Auckland altogether.
Out in the Waikato she ends up looking for Joe's mum, and that is how she encounters Mazarine. The two mothers unite over their missing children and are drawn to each other. They are at odds over how go about a search. We then start a journey around the world, first to London where Maya and Joe live, then to Paris and Mazarine's ex-husband and finally to Buenos Aires.
The locations are well drawn and realistic, this is not simply some travelogue of holiday snapshots. There is depth and humour. There are flashbacks to family, to Francis' difficult relationship with her parents, and to Werner Bismark her shrink. All these add colour and flavour to the dish.
The end, when it comes in the last four pages, is a rush and so is something of an anti-climax. There are loose ends, such as Nick the ex, who has turned up in London and in Paris, but seems to be forgotten in the sudden ending. Perhaps we are meant to assume he is something sinister or is working for the government, but who knows. Perhaps there are just too many plots and sub-plots going on with so many ex-husbands wives and lovers, dead publishers, difficult parental relationships, the many remembered visits to the shrink and then for good measure some European terrorism, Chechen spies and a Russian flash drive. All of those elements are beautifully drawn by Grimshaw, but perhaps the failing is that there are just too many mingled into life. Is it really that complicated?
July 28, 2018
It is hard to pin down exactly what sort of novel this is. It could be a thriller-mystery; it could be a change of life (ie menopausal) story; it could be a tale of sexual identity; it could be how to fulfil one's writing self; it could be a middle aged OE. In fact it could be a whole host of things. This is actually why I find it confusing, at times directionless, and because of its abrupt and strangely dissatisfying end, really not very enjoyable at all. Aside from that and in a much more positive light, the author's writing as per usual is outstanding. Her insight into the minds of her characters, their motivations, flaws, process of decision making is lovely to read.
Frances lives in Auckland, she is the mother of Maya who is currently on her OE with her boyfriend Joe. They are based in London, and like thousands of young NZers before them, they travel regularly around Europe, the UK, living on the smell of an oily rag. Like their parents back in little old NZ, Frances frets and worries about her only child, daily scanning Facebook and emails for updates on her daughter's life. Frances herself is in a state of flux. She is a writer of sorts, and is keen to get started on a thriller novel. Her long term relationship with possibly unstable Nick (or is it Frances who is the unstable one) has recently finished, she has little to do with her ex husband who is Maya's father. Suddenly Maya is no longer communicating on social media, emails to her go unanswered. Frances, convinced she is being stalked by Nick, and wanting to find out where her daughter could be, flees to a motel in Hamilton, intending to also track down Joe's mother, Mazarine.
And the confusion now begins to set in. The narrative could go in any direction as Frances travels to London, Paris, London, Buenos Aires, Auckland. Sometimes Mazarine is there, sometimes she isn't. Nick randomly appears in London, Paris. Is Frances going mad? Does she even know who she is, is she even real? Is Mazarine even real or just another figment of Frances' imagination? Is her daughter in danger or not? What is on the tiny USB stick she is given by the widow of a man who has unexpectedly died? Hardly surprising that I became impatient with this twisting and turning. Being a Charlotte fan, I kept reading in the hope that it would all come together into some devastating and/or amazing conclusion. But no, Frances continues her meandering, her indecisiveness, her obsession with Mazarine. By the end of the book nothing has changed from the beginning except that Frances has travelled, has emptied her bank account, and the disappearance of Maya has been resolved. Disappointing.
Frances lives in Auckland, she is the mother of Maya who is currently on her OE with her boyfriend Joe. They are based in London, and like thousands of young NZers before them, they travel regularly around Europe, the UK, living on the smell of an oily rag. Like their parents back in little old NZ, Frances frets and worries about her only child, daily scanning Facebook and emails for updates on her daughter's life. Frances herself is in a state of flux. She is a writer of sorts, and is keen to get started on a thriller novel. Her long term relationship with possibly unstable Nick (or is it Frances who is the unstable one) has recently finished, she has little to do with her ex husband who is Maya's father. Suddenly Maya is no longer communicating on social media, emails to her go unanswered. Frances, convinced she is being stalked by Nick, and wanting to find out where her daughter could be, flees to a motel in Hamilton, intending to also track down Joe's mother, Mazarine.
And the confusion now begins to set in. The narrative could go in any direction as Frances travels to London, Paris, London, Buenos Aires, Auckland. Sometimes Mazarine is there, sometimes she isn't. Nick randomly appears in London, Paris. Is Frances going mad? Does she even know who she is, is she even real? Is Mazarine even real or just another figment of Frances' imagination? Is her daughter in danger or not? What is on the tiny USB stick she is given by the widow of a man who has unexpectedly died? Hardly surprising that I became impatient with this twisting and turning. Being a Charlotte fan, I kept reading in the hope that it would all come together into some devastating and/or amazing conclusion. But no, Frances continues her meandering, her indecisiveness, her obsession with Mazarine. By the end of the book nothing has changed from the beginning except that Frances has travelled, has emptied her bank account, and the disappearance of Maya has been resolved. Disappointing.
October 23, 2018
Pointless
May 6, 2018
Something of a disappointment. None of the characters are likeable and some of the dialogue is jus odd. The story seems so highly unlikely and the ending is a huge anticlimax. Some parts are well written but the whole thing just doesn’t hang together sadly.
May 19, 2018
I really didn't enjoy this.
Terrible ending.
Horrible characters.
Lovely descriptions.
Really repetitive.
I feel bad because this is a New Zealand author and I feel like I am being tratorious to a fellow countrywoman. But it really sucked for me.
Terrible ending.
Horrible characters.
Lovely descriptions.
Really repetitive.
I feel bad because this is a New Zealand author and I feel like I am being tratorious to a fellow countrywoman. But it really sucked for me.
September 3, 2018
I didn't get it. Such a disappointing read.
January 23, 2019
This was a lovely little read from a Kiwi author. Grimshaw is clearly inspired by the great Jorge Borges, with very similar notions of the non-linearity of time being thrown around; and the extremely unreliable narrator I'm reminded of Borges style "mysteries" which are rather mysteries of the mind; and the novel ends up in Borges' hometown of Buenos Aires (there's even a conspicuous reference to Borges' beloved labyrinths).
Well paced, well written, and very funny in parts in a self-aware (or is that self-conscious) manner (the sequence in which the narrator pouts at a seemingly "contemporary literary fiction" novel being pigeon-holed as a "psychological thriller" was apt). I will eagerly devour the rest of Grimshaw's oeuvre.
Well paced, well written, and very funny in parts in a self-aware (or is that self-conscious) manner (the sequence in which the narrator pouts at a seemingly "contemporary literary fiction" novel being pigeon-holed as a "psychological thriller" was apt). I will eagerly devour the rest of Grimshaw's oeuvre.
April 28, 2018
Love the edginess and brilliance of her writing
July 24, 2018
I love Charlotte Grimshaw's writing, but I have to say this latest offering was not my favourite. As always, I like her contemporary, topical subject matter and the interesting well-drawn characters, but felt the ending was rushed, flat and anti-climactic. Also I was left with some unanswered questions about characters and events. Was this because she will develop characters and storylines in a future novel as she has done before? Or were we meant to feel that this is a snapshot of life; we don't know all the answers, we may never know what people think, that people's motivations are often inexplicable?
Still love her books and hope something else is on the horizon.
Still love her books and hope something else is on the horizon.
April 28, 2018
I have read and loved all of Charlotte Grimshaw's books but was quite disappointed with this one. I have always enjoyed her characterisation and her sense of place. I didn't like either of the main characters which is ok but more than that there was just a lot of annoying and pointless repetition. eg Mazarine's curvy body, how wonderful her daughter Maya was, how awful Mazarine's sons were - it just went on and on and in the end didn't really go anywhere. Disappointing, but still the only one of her's that I haven't liked!
April 20, 2019
Charlotte Grimshaw (b.1968) is one of the most high profile authors in New Zealand. While she has yet to win a major award outside New Zealand, her books are reviewed internationally and she has been nominated for and won numerous awards at home. I disliked the widely acclaimed Opportunity (2007) and didn't finish it (though you should read the comments below my review to see the opinion of someone who really liked it), but I really admired Starlight Peninsula (2015) because of the interesting issues it raised. So I didn't hesitate when I saw Grimshaw's latest title, Mazarine, at the library...
Mazarine was longlisted for the 2019 Ockhams and my explorations at Wikipedia tell me that her intention with her last five books has been to create her own version of a Human Comedy, after Balzac - a series of linked novels and short story collections about life in New Zealand. Well, what Mazarine gives us is a view of New Zealanders who are multicultural, cosmopolitan and widely travelled. This is the blurb:
There is a moment mid-way through the book when the text specifically addresses this issue of a new kind of fiction. Frances, the central character, who has a kind of face blindness affecting her ability to recognise faces, is an author. She's had some short stories published, and she's toying with ideas for her first novel:
If Grimshaw's intent was to explore these kinds of limits on fiction, then I would say that she has succeeded. But the novel does more than that, it touches on some significant issues, not least the impact that surveillance has had on ordinary people. When Maya goes missing and Frances makes contact with the mother of Joe, (the boyfriend travelling with Maya), Mazarine cautions against asking the police for help. It's not just that an email that doesn't seem quite right in tone isn't likely to be taken seriously because police would say that in a digital world the missing person had been in contact. It's also that while Mazarine's son Joe is an atheist, her other son Mikail is Muslim like his father Emin (who's from Chechnya, though living in Paris). Mikail is 'political' and has been living in Molenbeek, a part of Brussels which has a reputation for being a hotbed of terrorist activity. Mazarine understands why he's angry:
*Entirely by coincidence, I've just started reading Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie, and her first chapter features a Muslim woman who misses her flight because of a lengthy airport interrogation.
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2019/04/20/m...
Mazarine was longlisted for the 2019 Ockhams and my explorations at Wikipedia tell me that her intention with her last five books has been to create her own version of a Human Comedy, after Balzac - a series of linked novels and short story collections about life in New Zealand. Well, what Mazarine gives us is a view of New Zealanders who are multicultural, cosmopolitan and widely travelled. This is the blurb:
When her daughter vanishes during a heatwave in Europe, writer Frances Sinclair embarks on a hunt that takes her across continents and into her own past. What clues can Frances find in her own history, and who is the mysterious Mazarine? Following the narrative thread left by her daughter, she travels through cities touched by terrorism and surveillance, where ways of relating are subtly changed, and a startling new fiction seems to be constructing itself.
There is a moment mid-way through the book when the text specifically addresses this issue of a new kind of fiction. Frances, the central character, who has a kind of face blindness affecting her ability to recognise faces, is an author. She's had some short stories published, and she's toying with ideas for her first novel:
Absurd that I'd told her [Angela Lang, a journalist] about my supposed novel, a project I couldn't even begin until I'd found Maya. A woman who couldn't read women: how could you hang a plot on that? A woman wanting answers to her strange, isolating illiteracy, searching for answers to a lost mother while at the same time seeking — in a sense, seeking blind — her beloved daughter, who was missing in the ether, the futureworld. Could you construct a narrative out of blank spaces, out of disconnection? (p.172)
If Grimshaw's intent was to explore these kinds of limits on fiction, then I would say that she has succeeded. But the novel does more than that, it touches on some significant issues, not least the impact that surveillance has had on ordinary people. When Maya goes missing and Frances makes contact with the mother of Joe, (the boyfriend travelling with Maya), Mazarine cautions against asking the police for help. It's not just that an email that doesn't seem quite right in tone isn't likely to be taken seriously because police would say that in a digital world the missing person had been in contact. It's also that while Mazarine's son Joe is an atheist, her other son Mikail is Muslim like his father Emin (who's from Chechnya, though living in Paris). Mikail is 'political' and has been living in Molenbeek, a part of Brussels which has a reputation for being a hotbed of terrorist activity. Mazarine understands why he's angry:
'In my opinion it's quite rational for Mikail to be political and angry. I'm occasionally quite political and angry myself. But I don't get put on lists, stopped at airports*, hassled in the street. According to my ex-husband, Mikail was angry about the way he'd been treated by authorities since he moved to Brussels, there were some incidents where he was stopped by police, and then since the terror attacks in Paris it was getting worse, a sort of vicious cycle, distrust and resentment on all sides. Mikail isn't easy-going like Joe, he broods, he gets upset. I'm just saying, don't go to the police yet; let's think about it first.' (p.76)
*Entirely by coincidence, I've just started reading Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie, and her first chapter features a Muslim woman who misses her flight because of a lengthy airport interrogation.
To read the rest of my review please visit https://anzlitlovers.com/2019/04/20/m...
June 3, 2018
When Frances Sinclair loses contact with her daughter Maya, travelling in Europe with her boyfriend Joe, the Auckland writer begins to feel alarmed as, “It was unusual. My girl had always kept in touch”.
But when she came home to find her ex-partner Nick inside her townhouse and an assault takes place she borrows her neighbour’s car and drives away.
“The only idea I had was to get out of town, to go south and find a nice motel where I could decide what to do next”.
Award winning author Charlotte Grimshaw is a wonderful descriptive writer and her use of short and long sentences intensifies her writing.
“For half an hour, the downpour slowed and there was a last showing of watery evening light, then the squalls intensified, and huge rain roared on the corrugated iron roof .Still I lay on the sofa, not moving.”
Grimshaw takes the reader on a road trip to the Waikato where Frances meets Joe’s Mum Mazarine and they share their family concerns and Frances makes a decision to fly to London.
“I’m going to tell everyone I’m doing research for a book. And when I find the kids, that’s what I’ll do, I’ll make a start on a novel set in London and Paris.”
Following the narrative thread left by her daughter, Frances travels through cities touched by terrorism and surveillance, joined at times by Mazarine, and was it just in her imagination that she sighted Nick around London?
This is a complex read the author touches on many modern issues, which have been well researched, but brings them together is a very gripping novel which has enough mystery to keep the reader guessing until the end.
I enjoyed this book and anyone who enjoys reading about modern family life, and taking a deeper look inside oneself will find this a rewarding read. “Two selves. One understood: the situation had changed and Mazarine’s reaction was rational, there was no reason for us to stick together, after all we had just as much chance of finding our children if we separated. This self processed : words, reasons, solutions. The other self didn’t understand and wouldn’t be calmed or soothed, this other self cried out and smashed its own face and beat its hands against-”.
Even the cover of this book is a joy, the beautiful design by Kate Barraclough is fresh and original. Mazarine explains in the book, “A Mazarine Blue is a kind of butterfly….. …..Actually, Frances, the male of the species is deep blue, but the female Mazarine is brown, which is kind of confusing”.
Charlotte Grimshaw is based in Auckland where she writes a monthly column in Metro magazine which won her a Qantas Media Award. She has written a number of novels and short stories which are featured in the back of this book alongside three pages of reviews.
But when she came home to find her ex-partner Nick inside her townhouse and an assault takes place she borrows her neighbour’s car and drives away.
“The only idea I had was to get out of town, to go south and find a nice motel where I could decide what to do next”.
Award winning author Charlotte Grimshaw is a wonderful descriptive writer and her use of short and long sentences intensifies her writing.
“For half an hour, the downpour slowed and there was a last showing of watery evening light, then the squalls intensified, and huge rain roared on the corrugated iron roof .Still I lay on the sofa, not moving.”
Grimshaw takes the reader on a road trip to the Waikato where Frances meets Joe’s Mum Mazarine and they share their family concerns and Frances makes a decision to fly to London.
“I’m going to tell everyone I’m doing research for a book. And when I find the kids, that’s what I’ll do, I’ll make a start on a novel set in London and Paris.”
Following the narrative thread left by her daughter, Frances travels through cities touched by terrorism and surveillance, joined at times by Mazarine, and was it just in her imagination that she sighted Nick around London?
This is a complex read the author touches on many modern issues, which have been well researched, but brings them together is a very gripping novel which has enough mystery to keep the reader guessing until the end.
I enjoyed this book and anyone who enjoys reading about modern family life, and taking a deeper look inside oneself will find this a rewarding read. “Two selves. One understood: the situation had changed and Mazarine’s reaction was rational, there was no reason for us to stick together, after all we had just as much chance of finding our children if we separated. This self processed : words, reasons, solutions. The other self didn’t understand and wouldn’t be calmed or soothed, this other self cried out and smashed its own face and beat its hands against-”.
Even the cover of this book is a joy, the beautiful design by Kate Barraclough is fresh and original. Mazarine explains in the book, “A Mazarine Blue is a kind of butterfly….. …..Actually, Frances, the male of the species is deep blue, but the female Mazarine is brown, which is kind of confusing”.
Charlotte Grimshaw is based in Auckland where she writes a monthly column in Metro magazine which won her a Qantas Media Award. She has written a number of novels and short stories which are featured in the back of this book alongside three pages of reviews.
May 12, 2018
This was a really good read and I'm not sure why. The story kept me turning the pages and wanting to know what was going to happen. The plot was a little unbelievable and the ending weak but the characterisation was very good. The relationship that developed made the story interesting and authentic. It took several pages to warm to the author's style, and I found some of her words a little pretentious.....pedagogical...to describe how a character was speaking. Even so, I'll definitely read more of her books.
November 11, 2018
This was nearly a DNF. I started to skip read towards the end, just looking for the conclusion, which was not particularly satisfying anyway.
The language was good, but the protagonist was difficult to like and the plot appeared to have many holes in it.
Maybe I'm missing something in it? Some sub-text?
The language was good, but the protagonist was difficult to like and the plot appeared to have many holes in it.
Maybe I'm missing something in it? Some sub-text?
November 19, 2018
It was just a really odd read. I don’t think we ever really got a true insight into with Frances or Mazarine and the whole journey they took was just underwhelming. Maybe I just didn’t get the intention, but I felt the whole story - even though in the first person - was written from a peripheral point of view. I finished it, as the writing itself was ok, but the story was kind of pointless.
August 16, 2020
Fascinating, compelling, totally unique. Really enjoyed it until 3/4 of the way through then started to lose enthusiasm. A bit too much navel gazing but a beautiful development of the main character. Will read more of hers.
July 1, 2018
Charlotte Grimshaw brilliantly nails the voice of the awkward and unreliable narrator. I only wish the narrator's circumstances of birth had been explained more as it was so intriguing.
August 10, 2018
This month's book group choice. An unreliable narrator book where you don't know quite what to believe. It made for a lively discussion.
December 13, 2018
Some wonderful descriptive prose in this book. The ending left me dissatisfied though. Too many unanswered questions.
April 30, 2019
I persevered with this book long after I should have just put it down. The ending was particularly disappointing. I don't think books should take such effort. Perhaps I just didn't "get" it.
October 25, 2019
An interesting read but an unsatisfying conclusion to the story - didn't pick up all the threads.
October 17, 2021
Love her writing
June 6, 2022
Was super anti climatic! So many random sub plots that were mentioned and never came back to!
Guy who committed suicide, terrorists, flash drive! Ending was very rushed.
Guy who committed suicide, terrorists, flash drive! Ending was very rushed.
Read
June 29, 2023Didn't like.
March 14, 2025
I liked some parts but the plot felt just really random and confusing.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews