Review: A short character study full of unusual relationships
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 05 8, 2012
Dan cares for his wife, even if he finds his sex life a bit lame.  To get the thrill he needs without breaking his marriage vows, he has an agreement with the gardener, Francie, to watch and not touch.  But, he feels sorry for Francie who doesn't have anyone to slack her frustration (since Dan can't touch, yet he still has his wife), so Dan asks his old friend, Simon, to sleep with Francie and act as his surrogate... while Dan watches and calls the shots.Dan's wife, Bel, has found her own outlet to her boring sex life.  Bel has a secret relationship with her masseuse, a woman.  In her mind, she hasn't been cheating on Dan because she is with a woman and not another man.When all of the secret relationships come out in the open, will everyone be able to save face?  Will Bel and Dan get divorced, or will they be able to work out their differences?For a novella, there are a bunch of characters in this story!Simon and Francie tie for the best characters.  Both know what they want, even if they allow themselves to be manipulated by Dan.  But, sometimes manipulation isn't always a bad thing.  I liked how they worked together and Francie even had time to grow.Bel is confused and disappointed with her sex life, that's why she jumped on Ellen, the first person that expressed interest in Bel.  Although I felt uncomfortable with Bel and Ellen's relationship since Bel is blatantly cheating on her husband, I liked how Ellen opened Bel's eyes to other possibilities.Unfortunately, Dan is the worst character.  He's creepy because he refuses to touch Francie, even if they are having an inappropriate relationship in the first place.  Then, he becomes awkwardly controlling and egotistical, which adds to the creepy.The story is jam-packed full of people where the plot is a twisted character study.  Sadly, there isn't enough time in the story to really get the depth I craved for a character study.  Although I wanted more character growth, Surrogates balances story and characters well where I did feel the story reached a logical end without belaboring any issues.Surrogates is full of unusual relationships.  Even though the characters do not have much time to grow, the story does play itself out within a reasonable amount of time.  Nothing shines about this novella, but then again, nothing is actually wrong with it, either.BookingIt Grade:  B+