Canadian Shields (The Orange Soul, Swann, etc.) is mostly a miniaturist, but in this clever, erudite novel she adapts her metaphorical bons mots to a larger landscape, wherein a lovelorn folklorist who studies mermaids and a late-night talk-show host three times divorced find each other. The two middle-aged protagonists, who live in Winnipeg, meet about midway through the story—until that point, chapters alternate between Fay (with her mermaids, her seemingly happy parents, and her 65-year-old godmother Onion) and Tom (``This business of being a guy, it never lets up''). The structure allows Shields a good deal of fun—Tom, for instance, attends a lecture on ``The Ghettoization of the Single in Contemporary Urban Society''- -but also allows her to chronicle, with the lightest of touches, the usual midlife tragedies in both lives: an acquaintance of Tom's falls down dead; Fay spends her first few chapters breaking up with a man she no longer loves before planning a research trip to Europe. When the two meet, bells ring. They both come alive to the erotic nature of the world and urban life, and Shields chronicles the initial infatuation, and the subsequent engagement, with an understated lyrical touch: ``The smell of food fattened the air.'' She is always an ironist, however, and her lovers do not find happiness so easily: ``Belief, Fay knows, is sometimes perverse.'' After she receives a bottle of urine as an engagement present (Tom has much earlier received a package of excrement) and leaves Tom to stay with her mother after her father leaves, she calls off the wedding. But all's well that ends well—in this case with marriage and happiness. Shields again displays a comic touch that is at once satirical and touching: a familiar story given an original treatment and a western Canadian setting.
Pub Date: Feb. 1, 1992
ISBN: 0-670-83875-6
Page Count: 368
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 1, 1991
Hoover is one of the freshest voices in new-adult fiction, and her latest resonates with true emotion, unforgettable...
Sydney and Ridge make beautiful music together in a love triangle written by Hoover (Losing Hope, 2013, etc.), with a link to a digital soundtrack by American Idol contestant Griffin Peterson.
Hoover is a master at writing scenes from dual perspectives. While music student Sydney is watching her neighbor Ridge play guitar on his balcony across the courtyard, Ridge is watching Sydney’s boyfriend, Hunter, secretly make out with her best friend on her balcony. The two begin a songwriting partnership that grows into something more once Sydney dumps Hunter and decides to crash with Ridge and his two roommates while she gets back on her feet. She finds out after the fact that Ridge already has a long-distance girlfriend, Maggie—and that he's deaf. Ridge’s deafness doesn’t impede their relationship or their music. In fact, it creates opportunities for sexy nonverbal communication and witty text messages: Ridge tenderly washes off a message he wrote on Sydney’s hand in ink, and when Sydney adds a few too many e’s to the word “squee” in her text, Ridge replies, “If those letters really make up a sound, I am so, so glad I can’t hear it.” While they fight their mutual attraction, their hope that “maybe someday” they can be together playfully comes out in their music. Peterson’s eight original songs flesh out Sydney’s lyrics with a good mix of moody musical styles: “Living a Lie” has the drama of a Coldplay piano ballad, while the chorus of “Maybe Someday” marches to the rhythm of the Lumineers. But Ridge’s lingering feelings for Maggie cause heartache for all three of them. Independent Maggie never complains about Ridge’s friendship with Sydney, and it's hard to even want Ridge to leave Maggie when she reveals her devastating secret. But Ridge can’t hide his feelings for Sydney long—and they face their dilemma with refreshing emotional honesty.
Hoover is one of the freshest voices in new-adult fiction, and her latest resonates with true emotion, unforgettable characters and just the right amount of sexual tension.Pub Date: March 18, 2014
ISBN: 978-1-4767-5316-4
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 6, 2014
Roberts’ newest is part thriller, part romance, part survivors’ psychological study with a touch of New Age magic—and a...
The victims of a mass shooting—including two young heroes from the tragedy—are moving forward in their lives, affected in different ways, when they're stunned to discover a serial killer is targeting survivors.
Simone Knox and Reed Quartermaine were both survivors of a mass shooting at a mall in Portland, Maine. Afterward, Simone, grateful to be alive, vows to be a better daughter and at first tries to conform to her parents’ conservative expectations. However, she soon realizes she’ll never be happy appeasing them and finally chooses to follow her artistic dreams in order to lead a more authentic life. Reed, inspired by Essie McVee, the first police officer on the scene, becomes a detective, eventually becoming Essie's partner and close friend. Years later, survivors of the massacre begin to die, and Reed is convinced the deaths are connected—but not even Essie takes him seriously until the killer targets him. Reed is wounded but survives, and suddenly everyone believes him. The cunning psychopath escapes into the ether, armed with money, lots of false identification, and a seething desire for revenge. Taking time to heal, Reed visits Tranquility Island, Maine, his childhood vacation spot, and falls in love with the place. He also meets a charismatic older woman who helps him land the house of his dreams and the position of police chief. Falling in love with her granddaughter, Simone—whom he had been aware of since the tragedy but had never met—seems like fate. Reed settles into his new job and hooks up with the FBI regarding the case, convinced their face-off has frustrated the vengeful killer. As heroic survivors, Reed and Simone are prime targets, and now that they’ve found each other, the stakes are higher than ever. Facing the hunter means fighting for their lives, love, and happiness while silencing the violent echoes of the worst day of their lives. Fascinating characters—Simone's grandmother is a standout—and a sprawling plot that covers a lot of ground yet keeps the reader engaged offer a surprisingly compelling and poignant redemption story that begins with a tragic mass shooting.
Roberts’ newest is part thriller, part romance, part survivors’ psychological study with a touch of New Age magic—and a lively, captivating read.Pub Date: May 29, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-250-16159-8
Page Count: 448
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: March 4, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2018
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