Delicacy - A Review

French novelist and screenwriter Foenkinos tells the story of Natalie and Markus, two young coworkers traversing the uneasy terrain between love and friendship.

Natalie's life abruptly halts when her husband of seven years dies. With barely enough energy to continue on, Natalie returns to work but allows her friendships to lapse and her love life to disintegrate into nothingness. Enter Markus, a self-effacing Swede, who stumbles into her office at precisely the right moment. Taken over by the need to feel feminine, Natalie gives into a sudden and impulsive act that sends both her and Markus down a muddled path toward love. As with all stories of would-be-lovers, a number of obstacles are thrown in their way. Natalie and Markus must contend with their lovesick boss, Charles, and a horde of nosy coworkers who can't seem to understand Natalie's interest in the geeky Markus. The reader, unfortunately, will have to contend with the opposite problem as they are left to wonder what is so magnificent about Natalie. The fault lies with Foenkinos’s decision to present Natalie as a feminine ideal rather than a fully fleshed character. He tells the reader of Natalie’s love of reading, fascination with Pez dispensers, and educational background. None of these facts, however, make her personality any more decipherable as Foenkinos focuses more on her beauty than her character. Foenkinos's stylistic prose can also be faulted for this lack of character depth. This is unfortunate since his prose is also his greatest strength. The narrative style of Delicacy can best be described as ethereal ¾ concerned far more with style than substance. The reader sorts through pages and pages of aesthetically appealing prose without finding any true emotional connection to the characters. Hearts are broken and love restored, but the reader has difficulty caring. Foenkinos may believe that pretty words are an acceptable substitute for characters and story, but the reader may not be so convinced.

Delicacy is a meringue of a novel, and those wishing for meatier fiction should look elsewhere.