The characters’ concerns lead to some provocative ideas and discussions, which can get lost in the meandering narrative.
Michael, his companion Janet, their son, David, and their friends continue their adventures while searching for philosophical and scientific truth in the latest installment of Dimond’s (Return of the Light Prince, 2010, etc.) series.
Michael’s latest adventure begins at the ceremony marking the union of his close friend and confidant John Bran, better known as “Oats,” and his beloved Marmuron. The joyous occasion is also a time of curiosity and reflection as Oats is also exploring Isaac Newton’s theories of gravity and motion. Oats’ discoveries have significant implications for humanity, and he’s eager to share them with his friends. Oats and Marmuron aren’t the only ones enjoying a fulfilling union. Princess Urundayy, also known as Uri, is growing closer to her friend Herron, but she needs to be certain he’s the right one for her before she forms a union with him. Uri’s romantic dilemma coincides with an important new mission: She’s been asked to assist with the formation of a new sanctuary that will unite and protect the animal population. Michael also continues his analyses of the theories of Newton and Charles Darwin with his closest friends in an attempt to re-establish balance in the universe. Dimond’s fast-paced narrative thoughtfully explores a number of ideas and concepts. The strongest element of the novel is the concerns the characters share for understanding the universe and protecting the most vulnerable elements of society. Michael is a likable protagonist surrounded by an extensive supporting cast, including Janet and the young lovers, Uri and Herron. Dimond explores a plethora of ideas in the novel; however, many of the chapters feel truncated, ending just when it looks like a character is going to reveal a significant detail. Sharper editing could have helped refine the story’s focus and clear up confusion regarding some of the characters’ names; for example, one character is referred to as Megs, Meg and Meg’s.
The characters’ concerns lead to some provocative ideas and discussions, which can get lost in the meandering narrative.Pub Date: March 12, 2014
ISBN: 978-1493135653
Page Count: 266
Publisher: Xlibris
Review Posted Online: Nov. 14, 2014
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Heartfelt, yes, but pretty routine.
Life lessons.
Angie Malone, the youngest of a big, warm Italian-American family, returns to her Pacific Northwest hometown to wrestle with various midlife disappointments: her divorce, Papa’s death, a downturn in business at the family restaurant, and, above all, her childlessness. After several miscarriages, she, a successful ad exec, and husband Conlan, a reporter, befriended a pregnant young girl and planned to adopt her baby—and then the birth mother changed her mind. Angie and Conlan drifted apart and soon found they just didn’t love each other anymore. Metaphorically speaking, “her need for a child had been a high tide, an overwhelming force that drowned them. A year ago, she could have kicked to the surface but not now.” Sadder but wiser, Angie goes to work in the struggling family restaurant, bickering with Mama over updating the menu and replacing the ancient waitress. Soon, Angie befriends another young girl, Lauren Ribido, who’s eager to learn and desperately needs a job. Lauren’s family lives on the wrong side of the tracks, and her mother is a promiscuous alcoholic, but Angie knows nothing of this sad story and welcomes Lauren into the DeSaria family circle. The girl listens in, wide-eyed, as the sisters argue and make wisecracks and—gee-whiz—are actually nice to each other. Nothing at all like her relationship with her sluttish mother, who throws Lauren out when boyfriend David, en route to Stanford, gets her pregnant. Will Lauren, who’s just been accepted to USC, let Angie adopt her baby? Well, a bit of a twist at the end keeps things from becoming too predictable.
Heartfelt, yes, but pretty routine.Pub Date: July 1, 2004
ISBN: 0-345-46750-7
Page Count: 400
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2004
Less bleak than the subject matter might warrant—Hannah’s default outlook is sunny—but still, a wrenching depiction of war’s...
The traumatic homecoming of a wounded warrior.
The daughter of alcoholics who left her orphaned at 17, Jolene “Jo” Zarkades found her first stable family in the military: She’s served over two decades, first in the army, later with the National Guard. A helicopter pilot stationed near Seattle, Jo copes as competently at home, raising two daughters, Betsy and Lulu, while trying to dismiss her husband Michael’s increasing emotional distance. Jo’s mettle is sorely tested when Michael informs her flatly that he no longer loves her. Four-year-old Lulu clamors for attention while preteen Betsy, mean-girl-in-training, dismisses as dweeby her former best friend, Seth, son of Jo’s confidante and fellow pilot, Tami. Amid these challenges comes the ultimate one: Jo and Tami are deployed to Iraq. Michael, with the help of his mother, has to take over the household duties, and he rapidly learns that parenting is much harder than his wife made it look. As Michael prepares to defend a PTSD-afflicted veteran charged with Murder I for killing his wife during a dissociative blackout, he begins to understand what Jolene is facing and to revisit his true feelings for her. When her helicopter is shot down under insurgent fire, Jo rescues Tami from the wreck, but a young crewman is killed. Tami remains in a coma and Jo, whose leg has been amputated, returns home to a difficult rehabilitation on several fronts. Her nightmares in which she relives the crash and other horrors she witnessed, and her pain, have turned Jo into a person her daughters now fear (which in the case of bratty Betsy may not be such a bad thing). Jo can't forgive Michael for his rash words. Worse, she is beginning to remind Michael more and more of his homicide client. Characterization can be cursory: Michael’s earlier callousness, left largely unexplained, undercuts the pathos of his later change of heart.
Less bleak than the subject matter might warrant—Hannah’s default outlook is sunny—but still, a wrenching depiction of war’s aftermath.Pub Date: Jan. 31, 2012
ISBN: 978-0-312-57720-9
Page Count: 400
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: Dec. 18, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 1, 2012
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