Book 196: Maldives (English) – Foiled (Amyna)

He stopped a few feet away from the café. It was not teeming with activity, but most of the tables were occupied. At some of the tables sat a sole person, but most were occupied by couples who looked deeply into each other’s eyes, as most young couples do. The tables were not close enough for the occupants to be disturbed by each others’ conversations. From where Justin stood, he could see that the café was attractively designed. The tables were adorned with red and white checked cloths, and the chairs shone as only the newly lacquered do. He noticed these details even from this distance.

First a disclaimer – a romantic thriller isn’t my normal choice for fiction reading. But this project was meant to get me out of my comfort zone in all senses of the word… And there is sadly almost nothing in the way of fiction from the Maldives to choose from.

The story is not set in any country in particular, but obviously not in the Maldives. Fiona is damaged, and suspicious – perhaps paranoid? Her ‘past’ has left her vulnerable to dubious men. Two men are after her – the (too?) charming Rob, who she falls for, and the possessive Justin (who acts more like a stalker). And she does fear being stalked. Policeman Jim (her friend’s fiancé) wants to find out what’s wrong. It is up to him, and us, to work out who is good and who is evil.

Sometimes it was hard to believe the characters’ motives. Despite her fears, and the scary find of the overturned herb bowl in her kitchen, Fiona continues to leave her door and windows unlocked, and her curtains not drawn, which seems inexplicable. As does the fact that Justin can see her blushing through the window! It also seems strange that she feels relieved when Jim does catch someone stalking in the garden! On the whole I felt that Jim didn’t act like a policeman. It also seems incredible that although Justin is continuously stalking her, he can’t imagine that it’s him she’s scared of. Personally I found it uncomfortable to be watching through a spy’s eyes without knowing his motive.

As usual with a self-published book, there are infelicities and inconsistencies that an editor would have jumped on straight away. For example, one passage (p.130) is clumsily written from Justin’s view point, but presents the observed Fiona’s thoughts. The Portuguese taxi driver Pedro’s English mistakes were inconsistent. Justin is described as a tough man with no feelings for any other human being, but the story belies this. As for his reason for trying to protect Fiona (because she’s beautiful and ‘I know his type’, it seems rather lame.

Despite my reservations about some elements of the plot, the story was not so bad, especially in its portrayal of the fear and uncertainty of being stalked, and for a self-published book the production was comparatively professional.

Amyna, Foiled, USA, 2013, ISBN 9781490498133