Rose and Pierrot have little to expect of life; conceived in violence and abandoned at an orphanage, they aren’t exactly situated to find happiness or joy, but when Pierrot sees Rose as she’s punished by one of the nuns running the orphanage, they find themselves in love. However, despite they mild success they find in entertaining the children with their performances, they’re soon separated. Pierrot gets placed in a wealthy home where he is the apple of his elderly guardian’s eye, while Rose gets forced to be a maid in the home of a crime boss to make ends meet. As different as their two paths are, they soon find that life’s hardships can test the veracity of even the strongest love.
The Lonely Hearts Hotel by Heather O’Neil is an intriguing novel for its depiction of early 20th-century Canada, but even more so for its cast of characters that are simultaneously deeply flawed and hopeful at the same time. The narrative seems to be a love story at the outset, but it quickly blends into something far more complicated as Rose and Pierrot are faced with challenges that every child must face: the realization that not everyone has your best interests at heart, that the employment relationship is ripe for exploitation, and that childhood dreams are frequently difficult to realize when faced with the realities of adulthood.
Even though the story does offer some hope for love as both Rose and Pierrot end up together, O’Neil doesn’t allow the story to end there, which may be off-putting for some readers, but adds a level of depth to the story that made it challenging for me to stop thinking about the book.
For casual readers, The Lonely Hearts Hotel would appeal to those seeking a complicated romance, similar to books like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid or The Invisible Life of Addie Larue by V.E. Scwab. Since the novel doesn’t offer the same lightness that traditional romance does and explores traumatic events involving organized crime, relationships with minors, and drug use, it might not be a good fit if a reader is expecting a feel-good romance novel; however these elements would open the door to a crime novel or gothic novel, as it deals in elements of crime, but doesn’t build the kind of suspense more typical of most modern crime novels.
For writers, O’Neil’s book offers an intriguing approach to melding romance into a gritty, coming-of-age story. If the characters were real, few would expect them to have a shot at a good life, but because of the way O’Neil portrays them, there’s a lighthearted childishness that hangs about the characters of Rose and Pierrot that offers a few strands of hope that things may end up alright after all. Even when the ultimate end of the novel comes and it becomes clear there is no “happily ever after” ending, O’Neil still creates a sense of lightness in her storytelling which can offer a unique element to any story, but would particularly benefit stories that deal in harder topics to help counterbalance the content.
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Next Up: Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft
A Final Note
The Coffeehouse Creative is a place to flex creative muscle while working on other projects. That means that alongside book reviews, you’re likely to find:
Travel pieces that have brought joy the writer’s life
Reflections on writing and the life that it brings with it
Recommendations on marketing and management practices
Notes from a graduate student looking to survive the studies
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