Mosquito
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Review
‘Heart-rending…Readers of this powerful novel cannot fail to be moved…but they will also realise that, as well as being a rebuke to indifference, the book is also about hope and survival.’ Christopher Ondaatje, Spectator
‘“Mosquito” plays with sensuous mixes of human bestiality and natural beauty…It is in this continuing agency of remembered love – presented as the colours, sounds and smells of art, in dialogue with beauty and horror – that the uplifting politics of this fine novel lies.’ Independent
‘“Mosquito” lyrically captures a country drenched in both incomparable beauty and the stink of hatred.’ Guardian
‘Lovely, vividly described.’ The Times
‘Tearne brings her skills as a painter to her writing, creating some extraordinarily lovely portraits of Sri Lankan land and seascapes, a stunning backdrop to the changing horrors of the country’s 20-year civil war. Anyone who has visited, or has a passing interest in Sri Lanka, should read this beautiful novel.’ Sunday Telegraph
‘“Mosquito” is a complex, ambitious book from a writer with a real talent for language. We will be hearing a great deal about Ms. Tearne in the future.’ Lauren B. Davis, author of ‘The Stubborn Season’ and ‘The Radiant City’
The Spectator
'Heart-rending...readers of this powerful novel cannot fail to be
moved.' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
moved.' --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
I bought this book because I already knew and loved the author's work as a painter, and was curious to see what her fiction would be like. I was not disappointed. The artist is evident in the way that Roma Tearne's writing evokes a sense of place, making you feel that you have visited Sri Lanka yourself. You feel the heat, hear sound of the sea and monsoon rain and sense and smell the fruits and flowers. However, what was new and exiting for me was the strength of the narrative. The book skillfully interweaves tender and beautiful love stories through a powerful telling of the desperate and senseless violence and human exploitation that is civil war. The book does not shrink from showing us the horror of bombings and torture, but at no time are the descriptions merely there to shock: she knows exactly when to stop and when less is more. Ultimately though, Mosquito is a story that inspires hope, achieved through moving and unsentimental stories of love: the hero Theo's love for Anna his dead wife and for the young Sri Lankan girl Nulani, the love of the housekeeper for Theo and Nulani, and the love between Theo's oldest friends, whose relationship is tested to the core by the dark events of the civil war. I couldn't put it down, and thoroughly recommend it.
21 of 22 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
The blurb on the back says Roma Tearne is an artist. I might have guessed, because this book is an assault on the senses - the thin whine of swarming mosquitoes, night flowers blooming in ghostly clusters, smells of coconut and linseed oil, of hot steam and rainy morning breakfast. Tearne has the deftest way of capturing an image and giving it her own wry twist:
'It was a useless house really, everything was broken or badly mended, everything was covered in fine sea sand, caked in old sweat and unhappiness.'
So what is Mosquito about? It's a love story and it's set in Sri Lanka. A middle-aged English writer falls for a local girl, who flits in and out of his life in much the same way as the iridescent butterflies. He can't quite keep a hold of her. And then there is the rival - a boy of her own age with a complicated past. For Sri Lanka is a complicated country, torn by war and the scars of that war. Tearne is a story teller - she's not out to make political points - but the war does intrude, it brings menace and bitterness and ultimately, violence.
Tearne's writing is so achingly vivid, it's hard to believe that she left Sri Lanka when she was only ten years old. It's equally hard to believe this is her first novel. It was a joy to read - and I hope she's writing another.
'It was a useless house really, everything was broken or badly mended, everything was covered in fine sea sand, caked in old sweat and unhappiness.'
So what is Mosquito about? It's a love story and it's set in Sri Lanka. A middle-aged English writer falls for a local girl, who flits in and out of his life in much the same way as the iridescent butterflies. He can't quite keep a hold of her. And then there is the rival - a boy of her own age with a complicated past. For Sri Lanka is a complicated country, torn by war and the scars of that war. Tearne is a story teller - she's not out to make political points - but the war does intrude, it brings menace and bitterness and ultimately, violence.
Tearne's writing is so achingly vivid, it's hard to believe that she left Sri Lanka when she was only ten years old. It's equally hard to believe this is her first novel. It was a joy to read - and I hope she's writing another.
14 of 15 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a truly remarkable first novel. In it Roma Tearne has managed
to combine a fast moving and exciting story with the most splendid
evocation of tropical Sri Lanka in the context of a war which is as
relevant today as it was several years ago. The story powerfully
gripping, and few people will be able to put it down once they begin
it. The narrative builds slowly and lyrically at first but then
starts to move along with and almost vertiginous speed producing
surprising and arresting twists and turns. The story is set mainly in
the author's native Sri Lanka, with its dense, wet forests, its long
open beaches, its turquoise seas and its vividly coloured plants. The
characters pass their life in what should be an Edenic world but the
shadow of war falls across the land as it falls, too, across the
lives of the characters. Without warning this fertile and burgeoning
world is split open and the exotic idyll is disturbed in the most
violent and unexpected way. The conflict is, of course, the same one
which breeds death and destruction in Sri Lanka today, the civil war
which broke out between the Tamils and the Singhalese after the
withdrawal of British rule in 1945. According to the book jacket it
was this struggle which forced author's parents to flee the island in
the 1960s, and the incidents have clearly made an indelible
impression on the child's imagination.
The dominant impression of reading this book involves light and
colour, of shade, of dark and of half-light. For many years Roma
Tearne has been a painter and her sensitivity to the subtle nuances
of colour makes itself felt on every page. It was this aspect of the
writing which is most impressive. Roma Tearne's command of language
is economic, flexible and vivid. This is not a book that that has
been written in haste. Every sentence has been weighed not just for
its sense, but for its rhythm, its stresses and for the nuance of
each word that goes to make it up. The pleasures for the reader of
'Mosquito' are enormous and though the ending moved me to tears, I
still did not want the story to end.
to combine a fast moving and exciting story with the most splendid
evocation of tropical Sri Lanka in the context of a war which is as
relevant today as it was several years ago. The story powerfully
gripping, and few people will be able to put it down once they begin
it. The narrative builds slowly and lyrically at first but then
starts to move along with and almost vertiginous speed producing
surprising and arresting twists and turns. The story is set mainly in
the author's native Sri Lanka, with its dense, wet forests, its long
open beaches, its turquoise seas and its vividly coloured plants. The
characters pass their life in what should be an Edenic world but the
shadow of war falls across the land as it falls, too, across the
lives of the characters. Without warning this fertile and burgeoning
world is split open and the exotic idyll is disturbed in the most
violent and unexpected way. The conflict is, of course, the same one
which breeds death and destruction in Sri Lanka today, the civil war
which broke out between the Tamils and the Singhalese after the
withdrawal of British rule in 1945. According to the book jacket it
was this struggle which forced author's parents to flee the island in
the 1960s, and the incidents have clearly made an indelible
impression on the child's imagination.
The dominant impression of reading this book involves light and
colour, of shade, of dark and of half-light. For many years Roma
Tearne has been a painter and her sensitivity to the subtle nuances
of colour makes itself felt on every page. It was this aspect of the
writing which is most impressive. Roma Tearne's command of language
is economic, flexible and vivid. This is not a book that that has
been written in haste. Every sentence has been weighed not just for
its sense, but for its rhythm, its stresses and for the nuance of
each word that goes to make it up. The pleasures for the reader of
'Mosquito' are enormous and though the ending moved me to tears, I
still did not want the story to end.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
I loved this book.
I bought this on Kindle, so there couldn't be a problem with delivery as, of course, it arrived as soon as I clicked 'buy'! Read more
Published 1 month ago by Jude
A beautiful and compellling read
This is a beautiful and compelling book, which vividly paints both the horror of war and the beauty of the Sri Lankan landscape, written as it is, by an artist. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Ms. J. M. Austin
Thoughtful topic
I really wanted to like this book a lot more than I actually did. It has all the elements of a good story - a poignant love story with the sort of love that survives against all... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Debs
A story painted with words
Roma Tearne immerses the reader in her story of true unconditional love set against the horrors of civil war in the beautiful island of Sri Lanka. Read more
Published 9 months ago by G. A. Graham
This book stays with you long after you have put it down
This is the third book I have read by Roma Tearne. Having read Brixton Beach first I promptly ordered Bone China, Mosquito and the Swimmer from Amazon, the latter being my next... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Zozie
An insight into the tamil/singhalese conflict in Sri Lanka
Being english and having been brought up in Sri Lanka, I fully connected with the reading.
Although fiction, it somehow portrayed the ongoing conflict in Sri Lanka which... Read more
Although fiction, it somehow portrayed the ongoing conflict in Sri Lanka which... Read more
Published 20 months ago by neptune
Emotional Romance
This is the first book I have read by Roma Tearne. It certainly improved as it went along. I found the growing relationship between Nulani and Theo a little slow at the... Read more
Published on 11 April 2010 by C. A. Osborne
"We are not normal. We can not speak in normal voices ever again. Even...
Theo Saramajeeva, a successful writer and film-maker in London, has returned to his native country, Sri Lanka, seeking solace in his spiritual "home" following the traumatic death... Read more
Published on 15 Sep 2008 by Mary Whipple
Very descriptive and a really nice book.
We read this book as part of our small reading group and everyone really enjoyed it. The authors description of Sri Lanka is so well written it brings you right in. Read more
Published on 26 Aug 2008 by monkey1chickenflea
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