‘Tigers in Red Weather’ by Liza Klaussmann

Let me start by saying that I don’t think I’ve ever had such a schizophrenic reaction to a work of fiction. If you asked me what I thought of Tigers in Red Weather as a writer my response would be a monosyllabic ‘meh’ or, failing that, a shrug. But if you asked for my opinion as a general reader of books I would be much more gracious and would most likely press the volume into your open hands, urging you to find out for yourself. For the evocatively titled Tigers in Red Weather is a slow-burner in the purest sense of the term, and as a reader your patience and perseverance will most certainly pay off as you close in on the tantalising - and unexpectedly sinister - finale. Allow me to explain…

Tigers in Red Weather is former New York Times journalist Liza Klaussmann’s debut novel - remember, we’re still in debut novel month round here - a mutable thriller set against the languid and faintly glamorous backdrop of Martha’s Vineyard in Massachusetts, where the two main characters, cousins Nick and Helena, keep a summer house which has been in their family for generations. The novel is told from five different points of view and skips imperceptibly back and forth in time, however most of the action takes place between the years 1945 and 1969 so, as you might expect, the Second World War is of certain import. Tigers in Red Weather was published, quite fittingly, just this past summer, and it has featured in almost every glossy magazine I’ve had my paws on since, with one title - I believe it was Harper’s Bazaar - dedicating an entire two-page spread to the book. For a debut novel, this is a pretty impressive feat, and it was this immense hype which led me to buy it for my own perusal. So, what did I make of Tigers?

I’ll start with what I didn’t like about the novel as my initial response, particularly to the first hundred or so pages, was far from enthusiastic. My first gripe is with the writing. While Tigers in Red Weather is not badly written by any means, Klaussmann’s writing style is rather inert and lacking in life, particularly throughout the first two segments. I have read some reviews which herald the writing as 'minimalist’ and 'sultry’, however where these reviewers are getting minimalism I myself am getting nothing but bland and unremarkable prose. The dialogue is especially dire, with immense overuse of words like 'goddamn and the general, unavoidable feeling that you are in fact scanning the screenplay for a made-for-TV movie, or something equally dispensable. And the tepid dialogue probably wouldn’t be too big an issue if there wasn’t…so…much…of…it. Yes, at least three-quarters of Tigers in Red Weather is dialogue, however if you can stomach some of the more platitudinal quips you will be rewarded with lovely bouquets of detail: the peculiar scent of summer, the clink of martini glasses, the ebb and flow of the water between the island and the mainland. Another issue I have is with the characters, or rather the sad absence thereof. The only truly interesting character in Tigers is Ed, Helena’s wayward son, and yet we only get to know him towards the end of the novel when the story switches to his perspective. Furthermore, for a female writer, Klaussmann doesn’t do women well at all. Nick and Helena are irritatingly one-dimensional and they only become remotely interesting when they are being manipulative (Nick) or popping lots and lots of pretty prescription pills (Helena). Now I appreciate that Tigers in Red Weather is set amid the Second World War and all but, come on, such portrayals of women are neither helpful nor original. And, above all, one hundred pages of a woman fretting over how to prepare the perfect dinner for her husband just isn’t entertaining. Not in the slightest.

Now for what I really did like about the novel, because, in spite of the above barrage of criticism, I did enjoy reading it. First off, the pace of the thing. UN-BEL-IEVABLE. I have no idea how Klaussmann does it, but even in spite of all that starchy dialogue and 'he said, she said’ nonsense I just could not stop reading; the pages were practically turning of their own accord. For all of its character and style-related shortcomings, Tigers in Red Weather is extremely well plotted and paced. One cannot help but read on due to the feeling that something darker and more interesting is only a chapter or two away. And it is, or rather was, for the last parts of the novel, the two narrated by Hughes and Ed, are far and away the most intriguing and suspenseful. Annoyingly, however, to circle back to an earlier grievance, these are the two sections that are told from a male perspective. Bah humbug. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: for a woman, Liza Klaussmann does not do women well. At all. And this is a real shame, for Daisy (Nick’s daughter) could well have been a strong moral centre to Tigers were she not so GODDAMN underwritten. Anyway, given that this is supposed to be where I detail what I liked about Tigers in Red Weather I should probably wrap up with a more pointedly favourable comment: it is a real 'page-turner’ as they say, and I was barely able to relinquish it yesterday.

So I suppose I should conclude by reconciling these weirdly apposite views of mine. Tigers in Red Weather is a slow-burner, a bottom-heavy novel which takes rather a long time to reveal its true worth. The limp dialogue and lacklustre prose are redeemed somewhat by Klaussmann’s undoubted ability to create atmosphere and suspense, plus a meticulously structured plot. Tigers in Red Weather has been compared to The Great Gatsby, however anyone who has read both will no doubt agree that any similarities between the two are purely superficial, to do with the setting and the setting alone. In terms of the writing style, characters and time frame it has much more in common with Jacqueline Susann’s Valley of the Dolls. That said, Tigers was the My Chemical Romance to my 2006 Reading Festival audience. In plain English, the book managed to win me over. If you’re looking for a good read, something to while away the hours with, Tigers in Red Weather could be ideal. Overall, however, I appreciate the idea but feel rather lukewarm about the execution. It is a promising debut, but by no means a future classic.

This piece was originally published on alisonlaurabell.tumblr.com in September 2012.