Rating: 
Summary: No Place For A Woman...Or For A Man Either
Review:
British citizen Frances Shore accompanies her husband to his new job in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The author, Hilary Mantel, lived there herself for five years, so the reader can place some trust in her description of life there. Frances stay home in their little apartment, and cleans, and watches the giant cockroaches who also live there. A cartographer by profession, she really has no hope of working while living in the Kingdom. The heat is oppressive, and the air is full of blowing dust. All the expatriates make beer and wine in their bathtub because liquor is a big no-no. You never call the police about anything because you might end up in jail yourself. Traffic is horrible, and if you are in an accident you better have enough cash on hand to bribe your way out trouble with the police. When in the store with your husband the clerks will only speak with him, as you, the wife, don't exist. Frances is not timid, and sometimes walks the streets alone, which causes every male driver to shout obscenities at her as he drives by.
So far it's an interesting sort of travelogue story, but something sinister seems to be developing in a supposedly unused apartment directly above the Shore's flat. Then there are her new neighbor friends, a Saudi couple, and a Pakistani family. Are they somehow involved in the strange goings on? A tale that so far has been about women and their adaptation to the rigors of Saudi life now turns into a thriller.
Hilary Mantel writes intelligent novels, and is known for her sometimes black humor. This novel is particularly interesting because of the locale. On finishing it you will probably immediately cross Saudi Arabia off your list of places to visit.
Rating:
Summary: The dark at the top of the stairs
Review: Frances Shore is a worldly, well-traveled woman, who would never entertain paranoia. When her husband is posted to Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in 1984, after their last few years in Africa, the couple has no idea of the cultural adjustments that await them, but look forward to a new city and its opportunities. In Saudi Arabia, the Europeans make a useful contribution to the infrastructure of a country with a surplus of oil and wealth. Happy to oblige for spectacular remuneration, the men are not nearly as constricted as the few wives who accompany their husbands.
Living quarters are provided through the construction company Andrew Shore has contracted with, as well as a daily stipend and a set of rules unlike any in their experience.
Before the journey, Frances educates herself about the country where she will reside, understanding the complex cultural and religious differences of this new posting. What she isn't prepared for is the emotional toll of living in a repressed society, the streets patrolled by vigilant religious police. Increasing her uneasiness, watchful, mocking eyes follow her every move. Curiosity is fleeting to those who live in the Kingdom; not all information is available, but foreigners will be told whatever they are allowed to know.
Much is forbidden and it is imperative not to offend the host country. Their apartment complex is surrounded by walls blocking any view of the outside world; women cannot drive, but must be driven by a male. At the mercy of such restrictions, Fran draws inward, conscious of those who live in the building but are never seen, watching and listening. Thus begins an assault on Fran's senses; in her hyper-vigilant state, Fran becomes convinced that something sinister is going on in the empty apartment above theirs. "First unease and then fear become her habitual state of mind."
Mantel has masterfully created a psychological thriller that takes root Frances's first day on Ghazzah Street. Surrounded by oppressive silence and mysterious comings and goings, Frances Shore is more than a victim of her own fears and delusions, a reality that time and tragedy will bear out. It isn't that no one wants to listen to Frances' concerns; rather, they are fearful for their own safety, trying to maintain a delicate balance in a host country intolerant of Western arrogance, contemptuous of Western values. Eventually, even Andrew Shore is forced to admit that not everything is as it seems. The Shores have one last hurdle: no one leaves the Kingdom without permission. Luan Gaines/2004.
Rating: 
Summary: Suspense and paranoia in the "real" Saudi Arabia ?
Review: Frances Shore is a young English bride joining her prototypical bland English engineer husband as expats living in Saudi Arabia. She's been fully warned that life for w woman in Saudi Arabia is "unpleasant", but she quickly learns that "unpleasant" is truly an understatement. The repressive and authoritarian aspects of fundamentalist Muslim society, and the cynicism it breeds among the educated middle classes within it, are on full display here.Moreover, though the day-to-day grind of Saudi life is stressful enough, Frances begins to suspect that something truly ugly is occurring in their apartment building. She is alone in her concern about this though--her husband is a fairly crass and indifferent sort can't be bothered and, as a woman, she has no standing whatsoever to engage anyone else into looking into things. This book has been much criticized as "negative" and "exaggerated" but as recent events illuminate the realities of life for women in the Muslim world in general, and Saudi Arabia in particular, one has the sense that the book renders a much more realistic picture than many would like to believe. This is a low key suspense novel. There are no "grand" moments and it does not build to any sort of crescendo. The ending is open and quite ambiguous. However, I see this not as the flaw many proclaim it to be but as a part of the whole. When I finished the book I felt weighted down and oppressed--yet disappointed the story was over. I realized that the books real accomplishment was to render for me in as much a physical as an intellectual way the weight and anxiety that simple day to day life imposes on women in the Muslim world. And that is no small accomplishment.
Rating:
Summary: Suspense and paranoia in the "real" Saudi Arabia ?
Review: Frances Shore is a young English bride joining her prototypical bland English engineer husband as expats living in Saudi Arabia. She's been fully warned that life for w woman in Saudi Arabia is "unpleasant", but she quickly learns that "unpleasant" is truly an understatement. The repressive and authoritarian aspects of fundamentalist Muslim society, and the cynicism it breeds among the educated middle classes within it, are on full display here. Moreover, though the day-to-day grind of Saudi life is stressful enough, Frances begins to suspect that something truly ugly is occurring in their apartment building. She is alone in her concern about this though--her husband is a fairly crass and indifferent sort can't be bothered and, as a woman, she has no standing whatsoever to engage anyone else into looking into things. This book has been much criticized as "negative" and "exaggerated" but as recent events illuminate the realities of life for women in the Muslim world in general, and Saudi Arabia in particular, one has the sense that the book renders a much more realistic picture than many would like to believe. This is a low key suspense novel. There are no "grand" moments and it does not build to any sort of crescendo. The ending is open and quite ambiguous. However, I see this not as the flaw many proclaim it to be but as a part of the whole. When I finished the book I felt weighted down and oppressed--yet disappointed the story was over. I realized that the books real accomplishment was to render for me in as much a physical as an intellectual way the weight and anxiety that simple day to day life imposes on women in the Muslim world. And that is no small accomplishment.
Rating:
Summary: A fascinating, frustrating peek into another world
Review: Frances Shore is a youngish British woman most women will relate to easily. She has an innate curiosity that probably serves her well back home--but is a danger in Saudi Arabia. Like Frances, we never do find out what really happens in Jeddah: hence my reluctance to rate this book higher than 7. But it kept my attention to the end, and the insight gained into Saudi culture is well worth the effort.
Rating: 
Summary: Good beginning and held to the middle, failed in the end
Review: Having travelled to the middle east, though only briefly, I still was able to recognize some of the lifestyle described in the book. The plot was intriguing throughout the majority of the book but began to fall apart when the main character did. It never regained its footing and I finished the book never really sure what was taking place in the upstairs apartment.
Rating: 
Summary: Negative and exaggerated
Review: I base my opinion on Mantel's novel from 18 years of living in Saudi Arabia. In defence of this book it is obvious she writes from first hand experience of Jeddah and she suceeds in creating an uneasy atmosphere from the start. However, the characters are, without exception, somewhat bland, empty people, lacking strength or depth. This may well be Mantel's intention together with the lack of substantial conclusion to the plot. Mantel dwells entirely on the negatives in Saudi and very little on the positives, such as the genuine friendships one acquires by getting to know people from a wide variety of backgrounds and cultures.The success of this novel must surely lie in its negative sensationalism rather than its literary credibility. It would be tragic if readers were put off visiting Saudi Arabia on the strength of this book which portrays bigotry and ignorance.
Rating:
Summary: so-so
Review: I bought this book reccomended by Amazon,and found it to be a letdown.Although it had its moments of paronoia in a foreign land and the reader gets insights into Saudi Arabian customs;its a plodding read particularly when listening to the characters rather boring afternoon teas.The ending is also a disapointment.If only Ms. Mantel would have given Her characters more life followed with more action and thrills,this book would have been a winner.
Rating:
Summary: Captures the feel of contemporary Saudi Arabia
Review: I lived in Jiddah for three years. I still want to go back some day. As a man, I often thought how much freedom I had there, although paradoxically this may have been because I knew how limited it was, and how quickly it could be taken away. Mantell's world -- the woman's one --is totally different. I really enjoyed the sense of confinement, and the feeling of always looking over one's shoulder. This isn't a happy book, but the writing is very good, and she captures the flavour of Jiddah extremely well.
Rating:
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: I wish I could give a 2-part review of this book. For writing, I'd give it a 4. Well written and interesting. For content, I would give it a 2. I am a woman, and I have spent time in Middle Eastern countries. While I have not lived in Saudi, I must agree with other readers that she gives a valid yet exaggerated picture of life there. It is valid because things can be like that. Yet it is exaggerated because they are also not that way. Any culture (as every American knows) can be viewed through the lens that portrays it as venal, banal, empty. Or it can be viewed as rich in possibilities and adventure if you approach it from where it stands. To be fair, I think the character of Fran tries to do that. And yet, the people she is with remind me of one set of people I know in Dubai. And they are a handful of empty-headed Brits and Aussies who would rather drink than do anything else. And yet I know Brits, Aussies, Americans, Indians, Arabs, Pakistanis, and Persians in the city who have endlessly enriched my life through what I've experienced in my time there. Also, the explanations of Islam are annoyingly one-sided. For once and for all it is NOT written in the Koran that women must cover themselves. It says only that they must be modest in their dress, and the definition of modest is what changes from culture to culture and from generation to generation. I feel that Mantel never really tries to show us the rich complexity which would make the odd alienation Fran feels that much more profound, nor does she give any insight into why certain people would stay for years. As a final note, if nothing else the book obviously works on one level, because so very many of its reviewers are responding so strongly and passionately to what lies therein. The author has done a good job of touching something for all of us. For a richer understanding of the life of a woman in the Middle East, read Ahdaf Souief's books. She is phenomenal.
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