BUTTERFLY PINNED

A naïve college student is drawn into a glamorous and dangerous new lifestyle in Liautaud’s novel.

Marin Finch arrives in Chicago to begin her freshman year of college eager to leave her small-town life behind and make a fresh start, but she realizes right away that she’s just as awkward, insecure, and anxious in the big city as she was back home with her fractured family in Missouri. Then, she meets beautiful, sophisticated Bette Winston, who showers her with flattering attention and introduces her to her wealthy friends Ozzie and Harry and their expensive tastes. Soon, Marin is immersed in an exciting new world, sipping fancy cocktails, attending art gallery openings, and staying overnight in Bette’s luxurious apartment. Showered with expensive gifts, cash, and pills, Marin ignores Bette’s odd, mercurial moods and unexplained absences in spite of warnings and hints about dark secrets in Bette’s mysterious past. Marin skips classes (endangering her hard-won scholarship), blows off her housemates, and dodges calls from home, choosing to spend the Thanksgiving break with her new friends. Thrilled to be dressing in chic, sexy outfits and attending lavish parties with famous artists, Marin refuses to recognize how much Bette is manipulating her, convincing herself that she’s finding the confidence, closeness, and admiration she yearns for: “It was a false confidence, but I craved it with an insatiable hunger.” Bette’s behavior becomes increasingly erratic and destructive as copious amounts of alcohol and drugs (including cocaine, Xanax, ecstasy, and absinthe) blunt Marin’s judgment, blurring the line between fantasy and reality. Marin must hit rock bottom before she can finally reject her false transformation, learn to value her true gifts, and find the strength to break free and follow her own path.

Liautaud’s writing is lively and fast-paced, with vivid, pithy descriptions and sharp observations about the nuances of social status. (The author vividly limns a pretentious, market-driven avant-garde art scene in which artists are treated like celebrities and hypocrisy rules.) Both major and minor characters, including Harry, Ozzie, and Marin’s roommate Cassie, a conventional, bubbly sorority girl, are well drawn. At first, Marin’s passivity and misplaced trust are frustrating to the reader as she dismisses one red flag after another, never suspecting that Bette’s world is too good to be true or that her seeming generosity might have an ulterior motive. She simply follows Bette to the point of being little more than her puppet, but she becomes more interesting and relatable as she begins to question others and think for herself. Marin’s story is framed by an opening and closing scene that make it obvious from the start that Bette is dangerously unbalanced and that Marin is willfully heading for serious trouble; the suspense comes from not knowing exactly what form that will take. The story highlights the desperation inherent in seeking acceptance as a substitute for genuine self-worth and the importance of separating reality from illusion; it also deftly illustrates the ways in which rich and privileged people can shield themselves from taking responsibility for their damaging actions.

An absorbing tale of dark psychological suspense.