Book Review: The Portrait Of A Mirror by A. Natasha Joukovsky

 GOODREADS SUMMARY:

Wes and Diana are the kind of privileged, well-educated, self-involved New Yorkers you may not want to like but can't help wanting to like you. With his boyish good looks, blue-blood pedigree, and the recent tidy valuation of his tech startup, Wes would have made any woman weak in the knees—any woman, that is, except perhaps his wife. Brilliant to the point of cunning, Diana possesses her own arsenal of charms, handily deployed against Wes in their constant wars of will and rhetorical sparring.

Vivien and Dale live in Philadelphia, but with ties to the same prep schools and management consulting firms as Wes and Diana, they’re of the same ilk. With a wedding date on the horizon and carefully curated life of coupledom, Vivien and Dale make a picture-perfect pair on Instagram. But when Vivien becomes a visiting curator at The Metropolitan Museum of Art just as Diana is starting a new consulting project in Philadelphia, the two couples’ lives cross and tangle. It’s the summer of 2015 and they’re all enraptured by one another and too engulfed in desire to know what they want—despite knowing just how to act.

In this wickedly fun debut, A. Natasha Joukovsky crafts an absorbing portrait of modern romance, rousing real sympathy for these flawed characters even as she skewers them. Shrewdly observed, whip-smart, and shot through with wit and good humor, The Portrait of a Mirror is a piercing exploration of narcissism, desire, self-delusion, and the great mythology of love. 

TEE'S REVIEW

Portrait Of A Mirror is Natasha Joukovsky’s debut novel and after reading or rather, listening to it- I think she has a great career ahead of her. It is also a book that I totally picked up because I love the cover. 

 This is the story of two elite east coast couples whose lives intersect in many ways. It is funny, clever, and beautifully written and you will find yourself drawn to the characters. They all seem to have a magnetism to them, the kind that makes you want to be near them but you are not sure why or even if you really like them. Honestly, they have few great qualities about them, so that I was rooting for them in their lives was a bit of a shock to me.

The story is a take on the myth of Narcissus,  all made new and shiny, which works wonderfully for these two couples, as each is so into themselves they could probably give Narcissus a run for his money. And oh my was this s pretentious story with the wordiness, the art, and the literature that was laid out on the pages, and I cannot fail to mention the egos of the characters, over-inflated to the point of combustion!  I would have to say however that it was that pretentiousness that kept me entertained so much in the book.

A bit of a warning… this isn’t a book where anything major happens, and it tells you that, it is just two couples coming across each other and their lives becoming entangled. So, if you are a reader that likes some action or romance to propel you quickly through a book- you might be disappointed. 

But, if you are a reader who prizes words over action, then grab The Portrait of A Mirror, because it is a treat bag worth of razor-sharp sarcasm and very flawed characters.