Author: Audrey Burges
Publication Information: Berkley. 2023. 352 pages.
ISBN: 0593546474 / 978-0593546475
Rating: ★★★
Book Source: I received this book through NetGalley free of cost in exchange for an honest review.
Opening Sentence: "Once upon a time, there was a house."
Favorite Quote: "We can't always choose the details of our burden. But we bear it just the same."
Myra Malone lives in Parkhurst, Arizona. She is famous - viral, even. Yet, she never leaves her house. She is known to millions. Yet, she rarely ever actually interacts with anyone. She is a recluse, tied to her real and miniature, imaginary life by demons and traumas of the past. "You can be surrounded by people and still be lonely. And some people ... some people make lonely seems like the best way to be."
Myra Malone lives in Parkhurst, Arizona. She is famous - viral, even. Yet, she never leaves her house. She is known to millions. Yet, she rarely ever actually interacts with anyone. She is a recluse, tied to her real and miniature, imaginary life by demons and traumas of the past. "You can be surrounded by people and still be lonely. And some people ... some people make lonely seems like the best way to be."
Alex Rake lives across the country from Myra Malone. Somewhat accidentally, he discovers that the miniature Myra Malone curates is none other than his own family home. The book descriptions tells us that Alex's grandmother disappeared out of that very home years ago. Given that, stories about Alex's grandmother abound. "People tell stories about things they don't understand. And when that thing is a lady, the stories take a lot of different forms. Some become miracles... Or they can become myths... Ot they can become even darker or scarier... And the ladies who turn into that kind of story? Well... Thou shalt not suffer a witch to live."
What is the connection? How can both Alex and Myra both discover and explore that connection? Do they even want to?
I love the premise of The Minuscule Mansion of Myra Malone - the magic, the idea of a house as an anchor, the idea of a full size and a miniature mirroring each other, the idea of a caretaker through the ages, and, most of all, the idea of a refuge. The issue I have is that with this wonderful premise, I keep waiting for the unusual and the unexpected. The storyline and the connections between the characters seem obvious to me early on in the book. I keep waiting to be surprised. Unfortunately, the surprise never does come.
In addition, the entire build up of the book - in fact, the majority of the book - focuses on Myra and her inability to do certain things and the constraints she puts on her life given the events of the past. Yet, the ending comes, almost matter of fact and suddenly. The words state the time it takes. However, in the telling of the story, it is a short read compared to the rest of the book. As a result, the ending feels lacking and somewhat contrived. Odd as it might be to say about a book based in magic, the ending which is real life feels the least real.
Nevertheless, I did enjoy the premise of the book and do wish I could see the minuscule mansion.
Please share your thoughts and leave a comment. I would love to "talk" to you.
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