REVIEW: Drowning by Jassy De Jong
De Jong’s Drowning is a story of love and lust as tantalizing as the exotic locale it’s set in. Drowning follows Erin Mitchell, a photographer who’s rescued by the mysterious Nicholas de Lanoy after her car is swept off a flooded bridge and she drowns. Intrigue and mystery build as she begins, very slowly, to learn more about Nicholas. Though desperate to be reunited with her husband Vince, who was in a different car at the time of the flood, Erin finds her time stranded on Nicholas’ private estate tempting and, eventually, enlightening.
Though the story is predictable, the book is good in that it holds just enough smut to keep you flipping page after page, waiting for Erin and Nicholas’ sexual chemistry to come to an explosive head. De Jong’s greatest accomplishment here maybe that Drowning sheds light on the gray zones of marriage. Vince’s atrocious behaviour reminds us that marriage vows don’t equal a promise to tolerate a vile partner. Marriage isn’t as simple as the vows you make and love is not about being what your partner wants you to be, but rather finding someone who loves exactly who you are.
Added bonus: De Jong paints a picture so beautiful we want to go on safari.
