An absorbing political tale undermined by sententious preaching and verbose prose.
In this historical novel, three couples join forces in the murky underworld of espionage to help defeat Hitler’s march to European domination.
Emil and Magda Franz, an accomplished Jewish couple, are compelled to leave their native Germany when Nazi anti-Semitism overtakes it. They move to balmy Southern California. But they do not live quietly, marshaling their considerable political influence—Emil takes secret meetings with President Franklin D. Roosevelt—to form a “group with extraordinary abilities” that they can “trust implicitly to look for the strings, the gears moving the theater of the macabre that is this war.” To that end, Emil assembles six talented young adults: two married couples (Laura and Greg Macklin and Rory and Sybil Ellis-Rhys) and two individuals destined to become one (Nessa Eiles and Drax Shaw). One of Nessa’s high school teachers, Steven Etchberry, works closely with Emil, and as a result she comes to his attention—he’s inexplicably impressed by her high school valedictory speech, a long-winded sermon about the evils of selfish ambition. Nessa is at first recruited as an information liaison, a way for Emil’s organization to deliver communications to Roosevelt and Winston Churchill without involving their untrustworthy intelligence services. Later, she graduates to more dangerous work, using her expertise in physics (peculiar for a budding screenwriter) to spy on the German government’s progress in making an atomic bomb. McGinnis (The House on Kalalua, 2016, etc.) follows the group beyond World War II and documents the United States’ embattled relations with the Soviet Union and the pernicious rise of McCarthyism. The plot is brimming with action, intrigue, and captivating characters (Emil and Magda appeared in the author’s 2015 debut novel, Five Cats of Hamburg). In addition, the romance between Nessa and Drax—and the strain put on it by the war—is sensitively depicted. But this unabashedly moralizing work is drawn in heavy-handed brushstrokes—the author seems more eager to proselytize against “rabid capitalist profiteers” than tell a story. McGinnis is inclined to caricature—Nessa’s boss, a “tight-assed Republican,” even has a cartoonish name: Buckley Brentwood. Finally, the dialogue is ham-fistedly overwrought and follows Nessa’s achingly earnest desire to “replace the god Mammon with a social conscience.”
An absorbing political tale undermined by sententious preaching and verbose prose.Pub Date: Nov. 12, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5394-9929-9
Page Count: 348
Publisher: CreateSpace
Review Posted Online: July 31, 2019
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
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BOOK REVIEW
A thoughtful and pensive tale with intelligent characters and a satisfying romance.
A promise to his best friend leads an Army serviceman to a family in need and a chance at true love in this novel.
Beckett Gentry is surprised when his Army buddy Ryan MacKenzie gives him a letter from Ryan’s sister, Ella. Abandoned by his mother, Beckett grew up in a series of foster homes. He is wary of attachments until he reads Ella’s letter. A single mother, Ella lives with her twins, Maisie and Colt, at Solitude, the resort she operates in Telluride, Colorado. They begin a correspondence, although Beckett can only identify himself by his call sign, Chaos. After Ryan’s death during a mission, Beckett travels to Telluride as his friend had requested. He bonds with the twins while falling deeply in love with Ella. Reluctant to reveal details of Ryan’s death and risk causing her pain, Beckett declines to disclose to Ella that he is Chaos. Maisie needs treatment for neuroblastoma, and Beckett formally adopts the twins as a sign of his commitment to support Ella and her children. He and Ella pursue a romance, but when an insurance investigator questions the adoption, Beckett is faced with revealing the truth about the letters and Ryan’s death, risking losing the family he loves. Yarros’ (Wilder, 2016, etc.) novel is a deeply felt and emotionally nuanced contemporary romance bolstered by well-drawn characters and strong, confident storytelling. Beckett and Ella are sympathetic protagonists whose past experiences leave them cautious when it comes to love. Beckett never knew the security of a stable home life. Ella impulsively married her high school boyfriend, but the marriage ended when he discovered she was pregnant. The author is especially adept at developing the characters through subtle but significant details, like Beckett’s aversion to swearing. Beckett and Ella’s romance unfolds slowly in chapters that alternate between their first-person viewpoints. The letters they exchanged are pivotal to their connection, and almost every chapter opens with one. Yarros’ writing is crisp and sharp, with passages that are poetic without being florid. For example, in a letter to Beckett, Ella writes of motherhood: “But I’m not the center of their universe. I’m more like their gravity.” While the love story is the book’s focus, the subplot involving Maisie’s illness is equally well-developed, and the link between Beckett and the twins is heartfelt and sincere.
A thoughtful and pensive tale with intelligent characters and a satisfying romance.Pub Date: Feb. 26, 2019
ISBN: 978-1-64063-533-3
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Entangled: Amara
Review Posted Online: Jan. 2, 2019
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2019
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
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