The Authenticity Project question

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Happy ever after?

Colin Aug 22, 2024 12:08PM

(view spoiler)[ Some thoughts on the final 'Monica' chapter (74). Although this is followed by chapter 75 in which Julian dies, and then the Epilogue, 74 feels like the real conclusion. Superficially, all of the loose ends are tied up here, and the characters' stories brought to a neat closure. For me, though, this chapter raises more questions than it answers, and has quite a bittersweet feel to it. I can't see many guaranteed 'happy ever afters' here (not that there are in real life either). The only likely happy endings I can see are for Benji and Baz, Monica's barista and his partner, who are getting married, and Mary and Anthony, Julian's wife and her new partner. As for the rest... there's obviously no happy ending for Julian, as he dies in the following chapter! I suppose all that can be said is that he became honest and authentic at the end, which perhaps brings him some final peace and closure.

Alice has escaped from a failing and unhappy marriage, and has found support and friendship with Lizzie, but her future is uncertain, and she will always have a connection with her husband, Max, through their daughter Bunty.

Poor old Riley, for all his superficial happy-go-luckiness, is so clearly not over Monica, and unlikely to be so for a long time, if ever. The two of them did have something special, and he will have a hard job putting it behind him.

And then, Hazard and Monica. Monica seems to have given up on her desire for a baby, but perhaps 'suppressed' would more accurately describe it. Can any woman really just switch off that urge? If her wish remains unfulfilled, I feel that her life will always be tinged with sadness. And while Hazard seems to have turned his life around and become quite a decent guy by the end of the book, we can't forget that he is an addict, and addicts can relapse. He has done once already - at Daphne and Rita's wedding - and was pretty revolting to Monica in the process. I'm not sure what that means for their relationship long term, and it would be interesting to see what's become of these two a few years down the line.

Of course, this is fiction, and none of these are real people! It's a mark of Clare Pooley's fantastic characterisation that we can get so wrapped up in their lives. (hide spoiler)]

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