We are all afraid to show our true selves at some point in our lives. We keep little bits of ourselves tucked away in the dark corners of our minds waiting for the right moment, the right place, the right people. What will they think of me? Will they hate me? Worrying about others’ judgments is what holds a lot of us back from belonging. Sometimes being held under a microscope by those that love us can have the same effect. Deuce by Vivian Zenari explores these issues and many more as we follow twins Gilda and Pete through a challenging time in their lives.
“The plot of this story is incredibly interesting and will make you really think about life, existence and belonging.”
Pete Peterborough suddenly deletes his Facebook account and gets rid of his phone, craving a complete disconnect from the digital world and his meddlesome mother and twin sister. His plan is to become a professional house sitter and travel around the world while he works on the board game he has been creating. When he packs up and moves from Edmonton to Montreal for a house-sitting job without informing his family, his twin sister Gilda cannot handle not knowing where he is. Gilda has always worried about Pete because he is intersex. Pete (a.k.a. Phillipa) sees Gilda’s worry for him as an intrusion of his privacy and wishes she would leave him alone. As Pete begins to get comfortable with who he is while meeting new people in Montreal, Gilda will stop at nothing to track down his whereabouts. Their paths in Montreal eventually converge as they both search out information relating to their past.
The plot of this story is incredibly interesting and will make you really think about life, existence and belonging. Pete/Phillipa, born intersex, struggles to be comfortable in his own skin. His thoughts as he discovers his true self are powerful and moving. Gilda, knowing that her sister was born physically different, has never allowed herself to have a life as she has been in constant worry over Pete. Having a somewhat non-existent father who was never truly accepting of either child certainly makes Pete and Gilda’s lives more difficult. Zenari has done a wonderful job of telling Pete’s story and allowing the reader to see both sides of Pete/Phillipa as well as showing that it is ok to be different. Although this story deals with a heavy subject, Zenari handles it with grace and sensitivity while also throwing in a bit of humour.
Every character in this novel was very annoying and at times I wondered how I enjoyed the story as much as I did. However, as the story progressed, the characters evolved, gaining depth and wisdom as if they were being reborn. Although irritating at times, the characters were incredibly relatable because Zenari was able to expertly describe their moods and set the scenes perfectly. The family dynamic was wonderfully dysfunctional just like every family in real life and their attempt to work through their issues and reconcile their past was what held my interest from the first page to the last.
I read another review of this novel which said that this story has many layers, and this is the perfect way to describe it. I highly recommend you read this novel as it just might change your views and make you think long and hard about what love and acceptance truly mean. Pete’s move to Montreal and the social interactions he had there demonstrate that outside appearances do not dictate what is on the inside and that people should be free to explore their sexuality without judgment for it is the heart and soul of the individual that truly makes the person.
Born in Edmonton to Italian immigrant parents, Vivian Zenari has worked as a librarian, technical editor, and post-secondary instructor of English literature and writing. She lives in Edmonton with her husband, son, and cat. Deuce is her debut novel.
- Publisher : Inanna Publications; 1st edition (July 12 2022)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 300 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1771338997
- ISBN-13 : 978-1771338998
Laura Patterson is a Registered Acupuncturist and a QA Lab Technician from rural New Brunswick where she lives with her husband and twin boys. She has a BSc in Biology and a Diploma in Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture. When she's not working in the lab or in her clinic, she enjoys camping and adventuring with her family, reading many books, and writing book reviews.
