We Are Together Because
by Kerry Andrew
Kerry Andrew is a multi-talented artist, as much at home writing choral music in the “classical” tradition, as performing as an alt-folk musician, while also writing fiction, often inspired by her musical projects and pursuits. We Are Together Because is her third novel. Her debut – Swansong – had really struck me. Skin, on the other hand, left me perplexed. There were aspects of it I really liked, and others I found unconvincing or frustrating. My reaction to her latest book is similarly ambivalent.
We Are Together Because is a novel in two parts and while there is continuity between the two, there is a major gear change half-way through which is one of the work’s more perplexing aspects. The first segment has all the makings of a “coming of age” novel. The premise is, admittedly, somewhat improbable, but still within the broad parameters of what could be deemed a “realistic” plot. Two teenage sisters – Thea and Violet – are sent by their father, a high-flying international lawyer, to spend a holiday with their half-brothers Luke and Connor, at his house in France. The boys don’t know their father very well, as he left their mother when she was pregnant with Connor, settling down with his then-girlfriend who was soon pregnant with Thea. This holiday, on which he plans to join them after his children’s first week alone together, is his idea of uniting the siblings.
The young peoples’ interaction, closely and perceptively observed, brings out their foibles, obsessions and concerns, the majority of which seem to be related to sex. Luke, the eldest of the four, is openly gay. He seems at ease with his sexuality, yet unbeknown to the others, he is hoping that the French holiday will help him break off his current relationship, which has started off as “kinky” and turned abusive. Violet, the youngest of the four, has also experienced a traumatic abusive incident, which has led her to question her attitude towards sex. Connor, who is in certain respects the author’s alter ego, is an upcoming musician with a penchant for avant-garde music and composers (John Cage, Pauline Oliveros). He can only hear properly from one ear, a condition which seems to fuel his introversion. He nurtures an increasingly evident physical attraction towards his half-sister Thea, who is his opposite – gregarious and keen to have as many sexual experiences as possible.
The novel would have been interesting enough had it concentrated solely on the hormonal maelstrom of its protagonists, played out against a languorous French summer. But Kerry Andrew has a twist up her sleeve for the second part of the book. This is hinted at through some tell-tale details in the first segment. Connor hears a strange drone which seems to intensify. Violet notices a plane inexplicably falling from the sky. And we are told, in an off-hand comment by the third-party narrator, that the siblings will never meet their father again.
Since the blurb of the novel speaks of the “end of the world”, it is no spoiler (or at least, not a great one...) to reveal that in its second part, the book turns into a dystopian, post-apocalyptic narrative, in which the siblings try to survive in an increasingly dangerous and hostile world. And it is here that the novel becomes frustrating. The author seems interested in this “end of days” scenario only insofar as it leads to a quick ripening of the relationship between the half-siblings. The way in which the unprecedented developments catapults the protagonists into a forced adulthood is certainly interesting. However, there is no attempt to tap into the typical tropes of dystopian fiction, nor is ultimately, any explanation given for the mysterious and extraordinary events in which the protagonists find themselves. As a result, the narrative feels inconclusive and readers who approach the book primarily for its “speculative” aspects will likely feel short-changed. In my view, the novel could have given greater concessions to the genre, without abandoning its central premise.
Despite my reservations, We Are Together Because is a book I would still recommend. Kerry Andrew has a distinctive and assured literary voice, and even when she doesn’t convince, she certainly intrigues.
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