Genres
Collection
Publication
Open Road Media (2010), 304 pages
Description
A complex Shakespearean comedy of intertwined relationships, as nine closely linked characters search for love. After his wife's death, Hugh contemplates returning to his former mistress. His son, Randall, longs to abandon his shapeless marriage for a perfect partner. Randall's young daughter, Miranda, is adored by her Australian cousin Penn, but has attachments elsewhere. Her mother Ann has her own private dream, while taking upon herself the strains and pains of all the others. Impelled by affection, lust and illusion, these characters search for love within a tightly woven web.
User reviews
LibraryThing member lauriebrown54
‘An Unofficial Rose’ is a family story- a very dysfunctional family. The matriarch has just died, and the day of her funeral starts the book. With Fanny dead, Hugh Peronett is now free to rekindle an old relationship with Emma. His son, Randall, wants to be free of his wife, Ann, so that he can
The book, written in 1962, is of course a product of its time. Ann is encouraged by the priest to stay married to Randall, even though he has deserted her for another woman, because marriage is forever and she can help Randall-even if he never comes back- by forgiving him and praying for him. A straight woman and a gay man stay together in an open marriage of convenience. It’s all right to have Randall, when asked by Lindsey what he would do if she changed her mind about having sex with him that night, say “I shall probably beat you and certainly rape you” and she accepts that rather than run screaming into the night.
In the end, the identity of the prime manipulator is a surprise. While there are some clues throughout the book, it’s still not what you expect; it must have been a bit shocking in 1962.
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pursue Emma’s companion, Lindsey. Hugh’s grandson by his absent daughter, Penn, is visiting for the summer, and he pursues Randall and Ann’s daughter, Miranda-and he is in turn pursued by another character. Meanwhile, members of another family also pursue various members of the Peronett family. Everyone wants someone else and there is not one simple relationship in the whole thing. This is a very flawed cast of characters; only Ann and Penn seem to be unafflicted with the urge to manipulate people that the others seem to have so strongly. The book, written in 1962, is of course a product of its time. Ann is encouraged by the priest to stay married to Randall, even though he has deserted her for another woman, because marriage is forever and she can help Randall-even if he never comes back- by forgiving him and praying for him. A straight woman and a gay man stay together in an open marriage of convenience. It’s all right to have Randall, when asked by Lindsey what he would do if she changed her mind about having sex with him that night, say “I shall probably beat you and certainly rape you” and she accepts that rather than run screaming into the night.
In the end, the identity of the prime manipulator is a surprise. While there are some clues throughout the book, it’s still not what you expect; it must have been a bit shocking in 1962.
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LibraryThing member thesmellofbooks
It is such a pleasure to be in the hands of such a brilliant prose writer. On the other hand her characters are a piece of work, every one, and mercilessly depicted, which has me liking all of them less than I probably would if I knew them or had a chance to be inside their heads. It's strange to
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reach the end of a book and breathe a sigh of relief at my release, yet to be stilled by the dénouement and led to reflect on a resolution that (spoiler?)seems so unsatisfactory and yet on a deeper human level, is probably not. Wonderful Murdoch. Thank you again. Show Less
LibraryThing member ivanfranko
Good to see an Aussie boy come out trumps after all the characters go through the Murdoch Particle Collider and emerge confused, freer and in some cases better.
Another wonderful IM novel.
Another wonderful IM novel.
LibraryThing member jgoodwll
Fairly familiar Iris Murdoch English middle-class setting. Various love entanglements, not all of which seem credible.
Language
Original publication date
1962