THE LAST ONE HOME

A first novel that tries but fails to invest a story of high-school friendships—and love revisited—with meaning and emotion. When high-flying lawyer Gia Scarpino, now in her late 50s, learns that Tony, the Italian-American uncle who raised her, is dying, she returns to the small Pennsylvania town she had left right after high school. Gia’s father had died during WWII, and her Italian mother, pregnant when she immigrated to the States, was killed in an accident while Gia was just a toddler. Though Gia’s aunts clothed and fed her, it was Uncle Tony who taught her how to think. Her hometown, like many others in the region, has since slid into decline: many familiar landmarks have disappeared, but Gia discovers that some of the old passions and friendships survive, and she is soon reunited with three friends who shared her past. There’s Yozo, for one, now a successful businessman (though unhappy husband), who loves Uncle Tony almost as much as Gia does. For another, there’s Barbara, Gia’s best friend, who’s now usually sloshed (she too has a bad marriage), and for whom Yozo is still carrying a torch. And, most importantly for Gia, there’s Willie, now Father William Cunningham, who serves the local parish. As Tony lies dying, the four meet and hash over what’s been happening to each of them: Gia’s second husband committed suicide; Barbara had a shotgun wedding; and Willie pursued the priesthood mainly because Gia took off. He still loves her (as she does him), and, hardly a surprise, he almost breaks his vows. As for the rest, Tony dies, Gia gets ready to go, but then Barbara is put on life support, and . . . Despite vivid enough characters, including Gia herself, whose feistiness is a tad grating, Appollo’s debut remains pretty much a storyboard concept.