A deft examination of hefty existential questions, hampered by a lightweight plot and characters.
A heartbroken journalist explores the dark complexities of love, loss and memory in Chabot’s debut romance.
When Derry Danaher and Amedee Beauchene meet in the offices of the Milwaukee Ledger in 1971, it’s love at first sight. The story initially seems to be a straightforward account of their quirky romance; halfway through, however, a sudden twist changes the course of their lives, and the book transforms into a deeper meditation on the ways that love, honor and mortality clash with the day-to-day business of living. Derry embarks on an intensely romantic, if ethically hazy, quest to make his love for Amedee mean something to the world at large, and Chabot’s nuanced portrayal of these efforts is the book’s greatest strength. The plot itself, however, somewhat meanders—particularly in the idyllic first half, in which the characters face no conflicts. The novel also often relies on long expository sections, rather than letting characters and events speak for themselves. During one of Derry and Amedee’s first dates, for example, Chabot writes that “both were finding it surprisingly easy to bare innermost secrets they seldom disclosed,” without demonstrating why or how they came to feel that way. As a result, the romance, so central to the plot, progresses rapidly but remains opaque to readers. The book describes many secondary characters and key events at a remove, only providing superficial facts and backstory. The characters often end up seeming more like caricatures than actual people after multiple pages of description with little action or dialogue, and many events lack emotional immediacy. That said, the descriptions do allow for some witty asides, and Chabot’s grasp of historical detail helps make the environments feel vivid, genuine and immersive. Ultimately, the book seems almost like a parable, focused more on ideas and philosophy than on narrative tension or character development; for readers willing to accept that, Derry’s journey may serve as a thought-provoking exploration of profoundly human dilemmas.
A deft examination of hefty existential questions, hampered by a lightweight plot and characters.Pub Date: June 20, 2012
ISBN: 978-1477435366
Page Count: 306
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: Oct. 9, 2013
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Anyone who believes in true love or is simply willing to accept it as the premise of a winding tale will find this debut an...
True love flares between two people, but they find that circumstances always impede it.
On a winter day in London, Laurie spots Jack from her bus home and he sparks a feeling in her so deep that she spends the next year searching for him. Her roommate and best friend, Sarah, is the perfect wing-woman but ultimately—and unknowingly—ends the search by finding Jack and falling for him herself. Laurie’s hasty decision not to tell Sarah is the second painful missed opportunity (after not getting off the bus), but Sarah’s happiness is so important to Laurie that she dedicates ample energy into retraining her heart not to love Jack. Laurie is misguided, but her effort and loyalty spring from a true heart, and she considers her project mostly successful. Perhaps she would have total success, but the fact of the matter is that Jack feels the same deep connection to Laurie. His reasons for not acting on them are less admirable: He likes Sarah and she’s the total package; why would he give that up just because every time he and Laurie have enough time together (and just enough alcohol) they nearly fall into each other’s arms? Laurie finally begins to move on, creating a mostly satisfying life for herself, whereas Jack’s inability to be genuine tortures him and turns him into an ever bigger jerk. Patriarchy—it hurts men, too! There’s no question where the book is going, but the pacing is just right, the tone warm, and the characters sympathetic, even when making dumb decisions.
Anyone who believes in true love or is simply willing to accept it as the premise of a winding tale will find this debut an emotional, satisfying read.Pub Date: Oct. 16, 2018
ISBN: 978-0-525-57468-2
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: July 30, 2018
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2018
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK TO SCREEN
To her usual mix of love, mystery, and passion, Roberts (Sanctuary, 1997, etc.)—author of 115 romancers in some 17 years—adds Renaissance art and a decidedly Medici-like family: the Joneses of Maine. Dr. Miranda Jones, nearly six feet with flaming red hair and a glacial reserve, is an archeometrist who specializes in the analyzing and dating of Renaissance bronze sculpture. Miranda hopes to secure a world-class reputation for herself by authenticating a 15th-century statue of the Dark Lady, one of the mistresses of Lorenzo the Magnificent, as the undiscovered work of a young Michelangelo. Miranda's mother, Dr. Elizabeth Standford-Jones, the emotionally remote director of the Standjo art lab in Florence, has summoned her daughter from the family's Victorian cliffside home in Jones Point, Maine, to test the statue. Meanwhile, Miranda's father, equally remote, is an archaeologist who spends more time at his digs than at home. In fact, no one in the Jones family has made a successful run at marriage, a failure that Miranda and her alcoholic brother Andrew call the Jones curse. As for the statue, when it's discovered to be a fake, Miranda sets out to prove that someone stole the original. In this she's helped by gorgeous art thief Ryan Boldari (half-Italian, half-Irish), who's come to Jones Point to steal yet another bronze, which also turns out to be a forgery. Ryan's plan had been to use Miranda as a pawn, but now, naturally, he finds himself falling hard for her. While the two search for bronzes, a standard-issue romance-novel psychotic is stalking them. Most readers will twig to the killer's identity: Here, as always, Roberts's sexual tension is more compelling than her suspense. Perhaps it's time to take a sabbatical from the pink sweatshop and turn her considerable wit and narrative skills to a more original piece of work.
Pub Date: March 23, 1998
ISBN: 0-399-14387-4
Page Count: 464
Publisher: Putnam
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 1998
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