The Summer of Katya

I have never tried my hand at reviews. My opinions of books usually are "Wow! You really should read it!", "Hmmm it was okay, if you have some time on your hands, read it", and the like. But this fascinating book, and the fact that I blog nowadays, and this neat review, drove me to write this.

The Summer of Katya is a powerful tale, set in the Basque region in France, just before the First World War. The story is told by Jean-Marc Montjean, a young doctor, who is enchanted by Katya, a beautiful and elusive young woman.

Jean-Marc, just out of medical school, works as an assistant to a doctor who specialises in pandering to the hypochondriac ailments of middle-aged women. With a lot of time on his hands, and being of a romantic temperament, the young doctor, intoxicated by the beautiful spring, spends most of his time wandering around the picturesque Basque village and penning random thoughts in his book.

On one such idyllic day, he meets Katya, and his world changes entirely. Katya is unlike any other girl of that time. She roams about on a bicycle, escortless and hatless. She loves nature and the outdoors, and has a zest for life that Jean-Marc cannot believe could ever exist. She is charming, witty and intelligent. Jean-Marc falls in love with her almost immediately.

He goes to her home, which is a derelict old building, situated away from the main village, to treat her twin brother Paul's broken arm. The twins, and their father, Monsieur Treville, an old and forgetful, but brilliant scientist, are reclusives, and hardly interact with anybody in the village. Jean-Marc finds the family, and of course, Katya, very interesting and frequents their home, often staying on for supper.

But the Trevilles are shrouded in mystery. the entire village speculates about them and many rumours are whispered about their past. Even as Jean-Marc tries to woo Katya, indulges in sharp and sometimes caustic banters with Paul, and listens patiently to Monsieur Trevilles' long-winded scientific monologues, he senses that there is something wrong in the family. Some sadness, some fear, something is lurking all around. In the enthusiasm of youth and his love for Katya, he tries to dig in, find out their secrets to help them, but is prevented from doing so by an adamant Paul. What the secrets are, and how Jean-Marc finds out about them makes the rest of the engrossing story.

The characterization is brilliant. Jean-Marc is a young, idealistic, over-confident, yet self-conscious youth who is a bit like each one of us. His is a very endearing personality. Paul is enigmatic, prone to mood changes, and very secretive, keeps you guessing as to his intentions, and Jean-Marc is never sure if Paul likes him or not. He himself is slightly wary of Paul. The old scientist, with his lapses in memory, comes across as a very likeable, albeit crazy man. Katya herself, wild, charming, witty, full of life, and elusive - drives Jean-Marc crazy.

With very strong characters, and a wonderful use of words, the story flies to a thundering and electrifying climax.

Rodney Whitaker, writing with the nom-de-plume Trevanian, is brilliant. I had not read any stories of his before, but this one made me sit up and want to read the others.

Go for it.