My rating: 4 of 5 stars
You rarely come across those authors who have the ability to pull you into his/her story so easily and blend us among one of his/her characters so casually. Kerry Hudson is definitely one such author who knows how to make her readers believe that her naive protagonist who is a full-grown adult woman having a dream and goal of her own, has easily been sweet-talked to work in the flesh-trade in London. I believed it and I loved the way Kerry Hudson has put the spotlight into the situation, well, it's easily evident that she has that power and talent to make her readers look into the deepest bottom of the Devil's Sinkhole.
Kerry Hudson's new book, Thirst is a heart-touching love-story set-up amidst of the dark and dangerous flesh-trade of immigrants at Clapham in London to the behind the windows of the posh stores located in the Bond Street of London. And an intelligent author like Kerry Hudson, demands a lot of your attention focused in to the book. Well it was not hard to blend into the story and but it requires quite a lot of effort to read the words!
Synopsis:
Alana, the resident of Siberia, immigrates to London for a brighter future and a good job prospect from one of Alan's mother's best-friend. But soon she steps in the Heathrow Airport, Alana gets sucked into the flesh-trade and stars living as a sex-worker/ girlfriend of an old man and his son, named Fredir who used to torture her physically. But soon she finds herself on the street away from Fredir's clutches, but soon gets caught on stealing a pair of shoes for one of her friend from a store in the Bond Street. David used to work as a security guard in a shoe store in the Bond Street and used to live in a one-room crappy apartment and after meeting Alana, he falls in love in one shot. But unfortunately for David who gives shelter to this poor, little, helpless woman, Alana never opens up herself to David, thus leading to tearing apart with what little hope they held on to each other. Will Alana ever learn to trust David and will she narrate her horrifying experience to David?
I was mesmerized by Hudson's elegant use of the retrospective voice, which is always questioning its own accuracy and exploring the nature of memory. David and Alana's past both were narrated by the author so strikingly and at the right moments. Alana's relationship with her own mother and David's relationship with his own mother, tells us about that undying love that is so rare to be found and when found is cherished for a lifetime. David and Alana emotionally and passionately fell in love with each other, it was the only good thing happening in Alana's painful life in London and Alana was no-doubt got overwhelmed with the fear of losing David and his heart. From London to Moscow, the journey, that is traveled both by Alana and David separately is different both the times and the author has made the beauty of architectural designs and their marble designs of Moscow so alive with her words. The characters, from Fredir to David's ex-wife, Shelley, each and every one of them were so poetic and equally flawed and that what made them so easily believable. This tale is surely going to touch your very soul and make you grip to its very end and will compel you to remain on its very edge.
Don't miss this epic love story set between two countries- London and Russia, from the darkest alleys in the London to the poorest town in Siberia.
Courtesy: I can't thank the author, Kerry Hudson, enough for giving me such a grand opportunity to read and review her incredible novel.
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Author Info:
Kerry Hudson was born in Aberdeen. Growing up in a succession of council estates, B&Bs and caravan parks provided her with a keen eye for idiosyncratic behaviour, material for life, and a love of travel. Her first novel, TONY HOGAN BOUGHT ME AN ICE-CREAM FLOAT BEFORE HE STOLE MY MA was winner of the Scottish First Book Award and has been shortlisted for the Southbank Sky Arts Literature Award, Guardian First Book Award, Green Carnation Prize, Author’s Club First Novel Prize and the Polari First Book Award. Kerry’s second novel, THIRST, was published in July 2014. Her novels will be published in the US (Penguin), France (Editions Phillipe Rey) and Italy (Minimum Fax). Kerry has written for Grazia, Guardian Review and YOU Magazine and also teaches with the National Academy of Writing, Arvon and the Writers’ Centre Norwich. She currently lives and writes in Hackney.
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