Even in Paradise

February 1, 2016
Nunez’s (Not for Everyday Use) novel riffs on a classic Shakespearean tale, but her handling of the setting and contemporary elements lift it above mere pastiche. Émile Baxter is the son of the most famous surgeon of Trinidad and, as it happens, is of partial African descent. His best friend Albert Glazal is from a wealthy Trinidadian mercantile family, whose Christian Syrian-Lebanese ancestors moved to the islands generations ago. Émile’s life also intersects that of Peter Ducksworth and his three daughters, a rich family of English stock: the eldest, Glynis, is Albert’s fiancée, while Émile is drawn to Ducksworth’s youngest, the vivacious Corinne. Glynis and Rebecca, the middle sister, are schemers, wanting their father’s land and his beautiful house for their own real estate plans. Émile remarks on parallels to King Lear repeatedly, but there is much more to unpack here. The issue of racism is woven throughout, as are regional problems such as access to Barbados’s beaches and poverty in Jamaica’s Tivoli Gardens. This is also a celebration of the arts, culture, and natural beauty of the islands. Shakespeare’s work is a tragedy, but for Émile “the future shimmers before full of wondrous possibilities.” Nunez treats her source material with a deft touch, making this story impressive in its own right.

Starred review from February 1, 2016
Nunez (Not for Everyday Use, 2014, etc.) spins a Shakespearean tale of patriarch Peter Duckworth, a wealthy Trinidadian landowner of European descent who divides his Barbados estate among his three daughters and sets off a disastrous series of events. When narrator Emile Baxter, who's black, meets Corinne Duckworth, he's 16 and she's 12, but it's love at first sight. Corinne is well-known as Peter Duckworth's "favorite child, the youngest of three daughters, the apple of his eye." But, after a near-death experience, Peter is bent on leaving Trinidad and fulfilling his dream of moving to Barbados. The Trini islanders, however, see Duckworth's move as an effort to "find white husbands for his daughters." So it's not until Emile arrives at the University of the West Indies, when his Lebanese best friend, Albert Glazal, proposes to Corinne's eldest sister, Glynis, that he meets Corinne again. On the night of Glynis' engagement party, Peter gives his land away to his three daughters. Corrine is given the extravagant mansion and its grounds--but can only take possession after Duckworth's death. "I will not be put out of my house," says Peter, calling upon the fate of that famous Shakespearean king whose actions Duckworth has just repeated. And, immediately, Glynis hatches a plan to evict her father from his house and turn the land into a real estate development. What follows is an epic tale of family betrayal and manipulation couched in superbly engaging prose and peopled with deftly drawn characters. In a story structure as rhythmic as the ebb and flow of the water surrounding Trinidad and Barbados, this revisiting of the classic story of King Lear becomes a subtle, organic exploration of politics, class, race, and privilege. A dazzling, epic triumph.

COPYRIGHT(2016) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

January 1, 2017

Novelist Nunez, who tackled The Tempest in her 2006 novel, Prospero's Daughter, here offers a retelling of King Lear. Both novels feature a cast of multicultural characters and a Caribbean setting.

Copyright 2017 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2016
Nunez's (Not for Everyday Use, 2014) textured and engaging novel explores familial discord, along with questions of kinship and self-identity. Trinidadian narrator Emile is at college in Jamaica when his close friend becomes engaged to the beautiful Glynis, eldest of Peter Ducksworth's three daughters. Emile and Albert travel to Barbados to meet Albert's future in-laws, including the recently eloped middle daughter, Rebecca, and the youngest, 18-year-old Corinne. Wealthy, boozy Ducksworth announces that he is dividing his land among the sisters now in order to stave off future conflicts. Corinne, however, won't receive her share until after Ducksworth's death, a slight that causes irreparable harm to their once-close bond and provokes the ire of her sisters. Relationships further spiral down when Corinne pushes back against her family's increasingly nefarious demands. Meanwhile, Emile's postcollege journey has its own challenges, and his bond with Corinne deepens as he struggles to reconcile his relationship with his father. With a nod to King Lear, Nunez crafts an introspective tale as her vividly drawn characters navigate complications of heritage, race, and loyalty.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2016, American Library Association.)