A high-octane story for readers who like a pinch of history with their crime fiction.
Con artists and charlatans take advantage of the building boom in 1920s Florida in Mellon’s historical novel.
In Target City, Florida, Harry Easton has it made: Sheltering under the friendship of the mayor and sheriff and married to the beautiful Gabe, he runs a successful business conning people out of money for stocks, shares, and property. When Regina Siddons, who is the daughter of the founder of Target City and incredibly rich, invites Harry and Gabe to her home, Harry crosses paths with Irishman Sylvanus O’Moira. O’Moira, a charlatan and mystic, suggests that he and Harry could go into business together to swindle the old woman, leading Harry down a dangerous path far beyond any risks he has taken before. The narrative plumbs the rich world of Prohibition-era Florida, conveying the heady atmosphere of a populace scrounging to make a dollar in this expanding Southern haven, “an idyllic, tropic utopia where money lay in the streets, only waiting to be picked up.” The depth of Mellon’s historical research is clear, from the specific guns referenced to champagne imports from Cuba, providing a fascinating window into the period. The plot is occasionally hard to follow; the author’s predilection for dialogue-rich scenes puts the reader at the heart of the action; however, with myriad names flying about from the very beginning, the story gets a little confusing in the first few chapters. The main characters who emerge, however, dominate the pages with their vibrant personalities—particularly the repulsive, grasping O’Moira and the likable rogue Harry, whose repartee will keep readers hooked throughout the short novel. The text’s brevity supports the punchiness of the narrative, though the ending feels a little abrupt. One hopes this indicates a potential sequel.
A high-octane story for readers who like a pinch of history with their crime fiction.Pub Date: May 20, 2024
ISBN: 9798324148768
Page Count: 146
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: Aug. 27, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.
A lifetime’s worth of letters combine to portray a singular character.
Sybil Van Antwerp, a cantankerous but exceedingly well-mannered septuagenarian, is the titular correspondent in Evans’ debut novel. Sybil has retired from a beloved job as chief clerk to a judge with whom she had previously been in private legal practice. She is the divorced mother of two living adult children and one who died when he was 8. She is a reader of novels, a gardener, and a keen observer of human nature. But the most distinguishing thing about Sybil is her lifelong practice of letter writing. As advancing vision problems threaten Sybil’s carefully constructed way of life—in which letters take the place of personal contact and engagement—she must reckon with unaddressed issues from her past that threaten the house of cards (letters, really) she has built around herself. Sybil’s relationships are gradually revealed in the series of letters sent to and received from, among others, her brother, sister-in-law, children, former work associates, and, intriguingly, literary icons including Joan Didion and Larry McMurtry. Perhaps most affecting is the series of missives Sybil writes but never mails to a shadowy figure from her past. Thoughtful musings on the value and immortal quality of letters and the written word populate one of Sybil’s notes to a young correspondent while other messages are laugh-out-loud funny, tinged with her characteristic blunt tartness. Evans has created a brusque and quirky yet endearing main character with no shortage of opinions and advice for others but who fails to excavate the knotty difficulties of her own life. As Sybil grows into a delayed self-awareness, her letters serve as a chronicle of fitful growth.
An affecting portrait of a prickly woman.Pub Date: May 6, 2025
ISBN: 9780593798430
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: Feb. 15, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2025
The best-selling author of tearjerkers like Angel Falls (2000) serves up yet another mountain of mush, topped off with...
Talk-show queen takes tumble as millions jeer.
Nora Bridges is a wildly popular radio spokesperson for family-first virtues, but her loyal listeners don't know that she walked out on her husband and teenaged daughters years ago and didn't look back. Now that a former lover has sold racy pix of naked Nora and horny himself to a national tabloid, her estranged daughter Ruby, an unsuccessful stand-up comic in Los Angeles, has been approached to pen a tell-all. Greedy for the fat fee she's been promised, Ruby agrees and heads for the San Juan Islands, eager to get reacquainted with the mom she plans to betray. Once in the family homestead, nasty Ruby alternately sulks and glares at her mother, who is temporarily wheelchair-bound as a result of a post-scandal car crash. Uncaring, Ruby begins writing her side of the story when she's not strolling on the beach with former sweetheart Dean Sloan, the son of wealthy socialites who basically ignored him and his gay brother Eric. Eric, now dying of cancer and also in a wheelchair, has returned to the island. This dismal threesome catch up on old times, recalling their childhood idylls on the island. After Ruby's perfect big sister Caroline shows up, there's another round of heartfelt talk. Nora gradually reveals the truth about her unloving husband and her late father's alcoholism, which led her to seek the approval of others at the cost of her own peace of mind. And so on. Ruby is aghast to discover that she doesn't know everything after all, but Dean offers her subdued comfort. Happy endings await almost everyone—except for readers of this nobly preachy snifflefest.
The best-selling author of tearjerkers like Angel Falls (2000) serves up yet another mountain of mush, topped off with syrupy platitudes about life and love.Pub Date: March 1, 2001
ISBN: 0-609-60737-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Crown
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2001
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