Fiction

Darker and more impactful than The Brooklyn Follies and with broader appeal than Travels in the Scriptorium, Auster's latest introduces August Brill, an elderly insomniac with a busted leg who's living with his daughter, recently left by her husband, and his twenty something granddaughter, whose boyfriend has just died. To pass the night and ward off memories of his deceased wife and the war stories he's been collecting for 72 years, Brill creates Owen Brick. Brick awakens in a military uniform in a hole, having gone to bed as a young, married magician in Brooklyn. He finds himself in an alternate present: the United States is at civil war, the more liberal states having defected. He's been selected to kill the man who started the war, August Brill, and is threatened with death if he refuses. Brill ends his story of Owen abruptly, spending his night recalling the gruesome reality of the murder of his granddaughter's young boyfriend. Auster's trademark shattering ending that's not a twist but a revelation hauntingly revitalizes the book's theme of the horrors of war. This best-selling author with a cult following of literati finally offers one to please both fan bases. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 5/1/08.]—Anna Katterjohn, Library Journal

Threats of natural disaster bracket this novel of New Orleans, which opens just prior to Hurricane Ivan in September 2004 and ends with the ominous approach of Katrina the following summer. In the intervening year, certain residents of the Uptown district weather personal tragedies rivaling the impact of killer storms. Orchid Street, diverse by any standard, includes two African American families, upstanding senior citizens Roy and Cerise Brown and the more struggling Harrises, as well as a young family of well-meaning but clueless whites recently arrived from Minnesota, a half-mad gentlewoman of the old school, and the exotic, intellectual Gupta clan. Neighborhood bar Tokyo Rose serves all as both haven from and catalyst of neighborhood disturbances. As lives and cultures overlap, the author of Pretty Little Dirty melds an enticing sense of place and a kaleidoscope of distinctive voices into a cautionary tale of ambition, desire, and conflict. Perhaps there are too many voices: character development is notably uneven, and the level of mayhem, drunkenness, murder, corruption, and adultery occurring within 12 months on one street is not wholly convincing. However, Boyden writes with a style and flair that bear watching. Recommended for comprehensive fiction collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 4/15/08.]—Starr E. Smith, Fairfax Cty. P.L., VA

Cecilia, a lonely Cuban American journalist, encounters the elderly Amalia in a bar in Miami's Little Havana. They meet over and over, as Amalia recounts family histories, a melding of the lives of women in three Cuban families, one from Spain, one from Africa, and one from China. Meanwhile, Cecilia investigates a mysterious house that seems to appear and disappear around Havana; she becomes progressively more interested in magic and the gothic as she searches out supposed witnesses of the phantom house. The novel's two threads are peopled with actual Cuban musicians, living and dead. While this is not a fantasy as such, various magical events work to bring the threads together in a rich, satisfying whole. Cuban American writer Chaviano has lived in the United States for nearly 20 years. Her books have been translated into many languages, but this is the first to be translated into English. It's high time, too: this work is an absolute delight, and Chaviano's English-speaking readers will look forward to more translations. A gold medal winner at the 2007 Florida Book Awards; highly recommended for public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 2/1/08.]—Mary Margaret Benson, Linfield Coll. Lib., McMinnville, OR

Set in a small western Massachusetts town, this tale explores the relationships, intrigue, and everyday interactions of a single extended family over a two-month period. Cousins, uncles, aunts, and friends converge for the summer around terminally ill Aunt Ginger at the homestead of never-married Aunt Lily and her farm-stand produce business. Sally, Ginger's young granddaughter from California, develops a friendship with a spirited local child. Successful software entrepreneur brothers return home with supermodel girlfriends in tow, in a Winnebago that they park for the summer in their father's driveway, which elicits the ire of the local busybody. Julie plans an end-of-summer wedding to an Englishman whom no one has met, and many family members wonder if he even exists. Will her estranged mother return home from overseas for the wedding and cause great discomfort for her father and all the other family members? Will there be a wedding? This enjoyable book features a broad cast of characters, is well written, and is able to evoke the languid days of a summer vacation. Highly recommended for general fiction collections.—Sarah Conrad Weisman, Corning Community Coll., NY

Cole is the top best-selling adult fiction author in the United Kingdom, and this is her first novel to be published in the United States. Some in the media have touted her as another Jackie Collins, with Close being the English version of The Sopranos. This reviewer, however, as a fan of both Collins and the HBO hit show, just does not see the comparisons. Readers never really get a sense of who Patrick Brodie or Lil Diamond are because Cole merely stereotypes them as a hardened criminal and his "diamond in the rough" wife of 16 years, respectively, and only a few of their many children are actually given full-blown roles. Instead of letting readers figure things out, Cole hits them over the head with story. And the violence and graphic language she includes—perhaps because she feels it's expected in a mobster story—are detrimental to the plot. Overall, Cole attempts to cover too many years (40), even in 500-plus pages. Her book flops as a family saga, a thriller, and a crime story. Not recommended. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 3/15/08.]—Marianne Fitzgerald, Annapolis, MD

Craze's sequel to her debut novel, By the Shore, outlines with mixed results the further adventures of flighty Lucy and her befuddled children, May and Eden. After yet another marital tiff, Lucy flees to a religious commune in California, dragging the children with her. Life with the charismatic guru Pavarti is peaceful at first, but as problems gradually arise, May becomes less and less sure that her family is headed in the right direction. Readers who enjoy problem novels will appreciate the pathos and poignancy with which Craze depicts the angst-ridden May, who serves as the poster child for what can go wrong for a teen without responsible parents. However, the lack of character development may frustrate some readers, as the family drifts from crisis to crisis, seemingly learning nothing. If, however, Craze is trying to make a statement about some people's inability to learn from their mistakes, she executes it beautifully, with heartfelt language and strong imagery. An interesting effort but recommended only for the largest fiction collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 3/15/08.]—Leigh Anne Vrabel, Carnegie Lib. of Pittsburgh

High on drugs and alcohol, the narrator of this first novel by a Canadian teacher/writer crashes his car, which results in burns over most of his body. During his extended hospitalization, he meets a schizophrenic sculptress named Marianne Engel who confesses to being his lover for 700 years. The narrator, a handsome, self-absorbed porn star and producer, is indifferent to his doctor, psychiatrist, physical therapist, and nurses, but he is intrigued by Marianne's daily visits. Her persuasive stories about their past lives together and tales about the power of love in the lives of others throughout history draw him in. Then Marianne takes custody of the narrator, who enjoys her success from her high-priced sculptures of gargoyles and grotesques, which are created during increasing manic episodes that eventually lead to her hospitalization. Their roles reverse, and the narrator ultimately discovers that "only after my skin was burned away did I finally become able to feel." The narrator's personal development is associated in a mysterious way with the series of fascinating fairy tales and prophecies that is only revealed in the end. Davidson's debut is storytelling at its finest, featuring a lively assortment of characters and events that combine in a gripping drama that will keep readers' attention through the very last page. An essential summer book; highly recommended for all libraries.—David A. Beronä, Plymouth State Univ., NH

Bob T. Hash; his lovely wife, Matilda; and their children live inside the pages of the grammar book Forward with English! alongside their African gray parrot, Comenius. All is Dick and Jane perfection until the day that Bob, cagily disguised as Señor Gonzalez from the Spanish-language edition of the book, hastily departs "on business" with his secretary, Miss Scarlet, abandoning his family and the yet-to-be published eighth edition of the book. In his place, Comenius finds himself magically transformed into Bob, quite pleased to be leaving behind his caged existence and days spent climbing his little yellow ladder or preening in front of his mirror for the more human pleasures of driving a car, going to work, and mating with Bob's wife. Will the real Bob ever return to reclaim his old life? Will Comenius lose Matilda and go back to being a parrot? For readers who enjoy their grammar lessons fictionalized and whimsical, this clever first novel will surely appeal. Recommended for most libraries.—Barbara Love, Kingston Frontenac P.L., Ont.

Drawing loosely on the life of his grandfather, Fuller—a Pulitzer Prize-winning editorial writer who has authored several novels—traces the story of Karl Schumpeter from the late 19th through the mid-20th century. From humble German farmer stock, Karl is taken under the wing of his uncle, first working for his logging operation, then for the Chicago Board of Trade. He has a brief romance with the streetwise Luella before returning to his hometown of Abbeville to marry his childhood sweetheart, Cristina. During the course of the novel, Karl makes and loses a fortune and discovers life's true value. There is a framing story involving Karl's grandson that isn't particularly well integrated into the rest of the plot, and many of the characters, particularly Karl and Cristina, don't really come to life until the book's concluding chapters. But the book has some true things to say about very American ideas of manhood and success and the relationships among fathers, sons, brothers, grandfathers, and grandsons. Recommended for public libraries.—Christine DeZelar-Tiedman, Univ. of Minnesota Libs., Minneapolis

In this follow-up to her debut, Tunnels, Gagnon delivers another psychological crime thriller again featuring FBI special agent Kelly Jones, who closely resembles Clarice Starling, Thomas Harris's heroine in Silence of the Lambs. This time, Kelly investigates a string of grisly crime scenes left in the wake of a sadistic serial murderer's frenzied path along the northern stretch of the Appalachian Trail in Vermont and Massachusetts. Gagnon's plot is fast-paced, appropriately detailed in its forensic depictions, and reveals an attention to authentic FBI detection procedures that lets the reader know that the author has done her homework. While this novel doesn't offer anything particularly original to the genre, it is an engaging and quick read. Recommended for popular fiction collections for readers who like Jeffery Deaver, J.D. Robb, and Kay Hooper.—Carolann Curry, Mercer Univ. Medical Lib., Macon, GA

Marina Marks is a psychic who doesn't believe in what she does. She doesn't mind taking people's money to tell them what they want to hear, but she understands that powers of close observation are her stock-in-trade, not some unique gift from beyond. The child of an alcoholic mother who believed her daughter had a gift, Marina has moved to California to get away from old memories and frantic clients as well as to ply her trade on a new group of souls who need help. Marina is hired to work a party for a wealthy couple, where she begins to meet new clients. There is Cooper, a homosexual who is desperately in love with a closeted man; Madeleine, Marina's employer, who is trying to give her rich husband an heir; and Cassie, the young, innocent hairdresser who is having an affair with Eddie, a married man and a complete cad when it comes to women. Marina's observations and insights draw these clients into her life. It isn't until she meets Gideon and their blossoming love affair comes to a tragic end that her talent really comes to life. Marina is visited by powerful visions of the future that will affect this disparate cast of characters and help her unravel many puzzling mysteries. Ginsberg (Blind Submission) has created an interesting cast of characters to explore a world that is embraced by some and viewed by many with deep skepticism. The story flows along, and readers looking for a different twist on the psychological novel will enjoy the trip. Recommended for most public libraries.—Robin Nesbitt, Columbus Metropolitan Lib., OH

Sydney and Laurus Moss, whose lives were the subject of Gutcheon's Leeway Cottage, have passed away. When their three adult children gather at their summer home in Dundee, ME, to divide up their parents' possessions, they feel determined not to fight over tea cozies. That they are not actually able to avoid old resentments is no surprise. Fortunately, laughter and new realizations are also afoot. Readers get many viewpoints on the family and its history because more than 50 characters (given their own index in an afterword) offer their first-person input. Spouses, children, stepchildren, and friends of the family are given the chance to speak. This unique, collagelike technique takes some getting used to, but the result is an undeniably rich, no-holds-barred portrait of an American family. Strongly recommended for fiction collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 4/15/08.]—Keddy Ann Outlaw, Harris Cty. P.L., Houston, TX

In his fourth novel, PEN/Faulkner Award winner Guterson (Snow Falling on Cedars) constructs a sensationalistic story that in other hands might have emerged as a page-turning potboiler. Here, events unfold in exquisitely refined prose, which creates a plot as believable as any quotidian workday while evoking an unforgettable sense of place in its depiction of Washington State's wilderness. Middle-aged narrator Neil Countryman, lately the recipient of an enormous and unexpected inheritance, traces the roots of this windfall back to an equally unexpected encounter at age 16 with a fellow runner on a Seattle high school track field. Bonded by a mutual love of the outdoors, working-class Neil and wealthy John William Barry become lifelong friends despite cultural disparities. The bond holds as their adult paths diverge, Neil choosing to teach while John William retreats to a hermit's life in remote woodlands. When Neil agrees to help his friend disappear, haunting questions of values, responsibility, and choice leave Neil—and the readers of this provocative fiction—to ponder the proper definition of a good life. Recommended for most fiction collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 2/1/08.]—Starr E. Smith, Fairfax Cty. P.L., VA

French sleep researcher Jouvet (Univ. of Lyon, France) is evidently quite interested in his field. In his first novel to be translated into English, he continues to mine the relationship between the sleeping and waking lives that he previously documented in his nonfictional The Paradox of Sleep: The Story of Dreaming (also available from MIT Press). The Castle of Dreams begins promisingly: the narrator, about whom not much is known, comes across an antique chest, which, after some difficulty, he eventually opens. Inside he discovers the journals of 18th-century amateur scientist Hugues la Scève. This initial, intriguing narrative is then abandoned—to be continued only much later—in favor of the journal entries themselves, in which la Scève discusses his impetus for documenting his dreams over a period of seven years, his analysis thereof, and his attempt to create a highly developed, color-coded dream-scale. The most interesting passages in the journal, however, are not the revelation of dreams and the interpretation of their meanings but those in which the particularities of la Scève's historical situation are rendered: being at odds with and spied upon by the church and fellow scientists; his at-times uncertainty regarding the validity of his quite ambitious project. Recommended for large academic libraries.—Brendan Curley, Pratt Inst., Brooklyn

Following the events in Low's The Whale Road, young Orm Ruriksson and the remaining survivors of a pack of Viking raiders known as the Oathsworn find themselves stranded in Byzantium, barely surviving on the last few pieces of silver stolen from Attila the Hun's hoard. When the only other thing of value they own, a magnificent sword, is stolen by fellow Norseman and rival Starkard, the band once more sets out on a dangerous quest to recover the sword and find their enslaved comrades. Their journey from Byzantium to Jerusalem is fraught with peril, and at each step of the way they lose comrades to warfare, foreign diseases, cannibalism, and treachery. Very little is written about the tenth-century Norsemen who went on raids after Christianity and gained ascendancy over the worship of the elder gods. Low here offers a fascinating look at those few who struggled to hold onto a vanishing way of life in a land more foreign than they could ever have imagined. Though not quite as enthralling as the first book in the trilogy, this is a solid, well-written novel and a recommended addition for historical fiction collections.—Jane Henriksen Baird, Anchorage Municipal Libs., AK

Lustbader's second novel (after Hidden) is a story of troubled lives and misunderstandings in which everyone is looking for love. Danny Malloy, father to five-year-old Caleb, misses his dead wife. Paul and Lily Spencer are a wealthy couple whose marriage suddenly hits a snag when they find they're unable to have children. Lily escapes to the couple's country home for the summer, needing someone to love—and finds herself on a collision course with Danny and Caleb. Lustbader, whose husband is thriller writer Eric Van Lustbader, shows promise with this effort, and her characters are certainly interesting. However, Lustbader tries too hard to present everyone's point of view; the narrative's third-person present tense only distances readers from the story. Additionally, there is not enough action to move the narrative along, and the combination of tension and introspection makes the writing feel cold at times. An optional purchase for large public libraries only. [Eric Van Lustbader's new thriller, First Daughter, publishes in August.—Ed.]—Lesa Holstine, Glendale P.L., AZ

O'Flynn's debut begins with self-made detective and ten-year-old orphan Kate Meaney as she buses her way to the Green Oaks Shopping Mall, where she'll surveil the various customers who may want to commit crimes: "Crime was out there. Undetected, unseen." With notebook and stuffed monkey in tow, Kate spends her days when not in school either outside the mall looking to catch a thief or at a neighborhood store sharing her observations with the shop owner's son, 22-year-old Adrian Palmer. When Kate disappears one day, never to be seen again, suspicion falls on Adrian, and the two-decade-spanning, unsolved case wreaks destruction on the lives of those who had touched Kate's life in one way or another. This seamlessly written, character-driven novel offers up well-appreciated humor along with its darker material, and readers who enjoy sideswiping surprises will not be disappointed. Recommended for public libraries.—Jyna Scheeren, Schaghticoke, NY

The wonder of it all is that Ellie Sanders was able to maintain her charming, tenderhearted outlook for the first 11 years of her life. She and Rupert, her strong, protective father, have their hands full managing her mother Julia's wild bipolar mood swings. Then Rupert brings home Tess, the beautiful, epileptic 18 year old who provides tomato plants to Rupert's store. Pregnant Julia has fallen down the basement stairs, and Tess is there to care for the family. Then every kid's worst fear becomes Ellie's reality. She struggles mightily to manage the kind of cruel confusion caused by parents who force their children to cover for their mistakes. Rupert loses the battle of decency, succumbing to the unique idiocy of blinding infatuation, leaving Ellie alone with her mother while he flees the law with Tess. Only the loving kindness of an elderly black couple saves Ellie from the ensuing cascade of tragedies, a salvation complicated by the racial divide in Ellie's Southern community. Pupek's debut is a wrenching, stunning, and pitch-perfect novel that captures the best of Southern literature's finest storytelling colors. Highly recommended.—Beth E. Andersen, Ann Arbor Dist. Lib., MI

True love is hard to find, but it's priceless—a lesson it takes feisty and vivacious Mona Manoliu decades to learn. A 17-year-old student in late 1970s Romania, Mona has fallen hard for the charismatic Mihai, whom she meets when summering with her family in the foothills of the Carpathians. Back home in Bucharest, her father pursues clandestine activities, and the family barely eats, but Mona is starry-eyed about Mihai—until she sees him in a black leather jacket, the favored outfit of the secret police, and encounters a crazed woman who asks her whether she really knows who he is. Then her family persuades her to flee to the West, and she's off to America via Italy via Bucharest. Years later, Mona returns to Romania and discovers the truth about Mihai—a revelation that, against all expectations, is both startling and satisfying. Though the passages detailing Mona's life in America can feel both too detailed and too rushed, the narrative as a whole is engaging, evocative, intensely sensual, and sharply perceptive, conveying both the horrors of the Ceausescu regime and the ironies of Mona's experiences in America. A strong first novel from the founding director of the National Symposium of Theater in Academe; for most collections. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 4/1/08.]—Barbara Hoffert, Library Journal

This is a violent story about ambition, privilege, and ruthlessness played out in an Appalachian timber camp in North Carolina during the Depression. The novel opens with the camp's wealthy owner, George Pemberton, returning from Boston with his new bride, Serena. He is met on a train platform by his business partners—and by camp kitchen worker Rachel, who is carrying his child (and meeting the train with her angry father). When George leaves the platform, Rachel's father is dead, and Rachel herself has been spurned and humiliated. The novel is richly detailed, and many of the characters are skillfully drawn by Rash (The World Made Straight). Unfortunately, though, the Pembertons—who are rapacious and monstrously self-absorbed—often seem one-dimensional and implausible. Serena is particularly hard to believe at times. Still, parts of the novel are superb, particularly the final section when Serena turns violently against Rachel and her son. The Pembertons create a wasteland in these beautiful mountains, and Rash also renders that loss powerfully. Though flawed, this manages to be an engaging read. Recommended for libraries with large fiction collections.—Patrick Sullivan, Manchester Community Coll., CT

This final entry could have been an exciting and timely conclusion to Robinson's (Hunter Killer) series involving retired U.S. Adm. Arnold Morgan and his duel with British traitor and terrorist leader Ravi Rashood. But it is marred by the characters' inconsistent and irrational behavior and implausibilities in the plot; it is also quite predictable. Morgan is an irascible and stubborn presidential adviser on terrorism and national security who usually runs roughshod over others in his attempts to protect the United States. However, this time, Morgan is the target. After thwarting Rashood's plans to bomb airports and crash an airplane in Washington, DC, Morgan plots to have Rashood killed. After the attempt goes awry, the remainder of the story revolves around his own efforts to kill Morgan. Morgan is far from politically correct as he and his cohorts take on and take out the bad guys, regardless of the means. The duel between Morgan and Rashood, though it stuck around at least one book too many, is now at an end. For larger collections.—Robert Conroy, Warren, MI

Julie Mueller, an over-40 TV reporter, is finally up for a promotion to the national news, but because youth is favored in her profession over experience, the job might go to her younger coworker. Julie's personal life is as filled with drama as her professional life. Her elderly mother, Elizabeth, tries to undo a past mistake by reuniting Julie with Michael, the man from whom she steered her daughter away 20 years earlier. Elizabeth has arranged for Julie and Michael to attend a series of cooking classes together, and though the two have been feuding for years because of an exposé Julie did on Michael's former boss, when they meet in class, it's clear they still have feelings for each other. Not everything ends happily for Julie as she deals with her mother's failing health, the demands of her teenage daughter, and finding a lump in her breast, but the story ends well enough. This fast-paced novel, Strohmeyer's fourth outside of the Bubbles mystery series, features an accessible protagonist faced at turns with some of the saddest and most lighthearted situations life has to offer. Recommended for all public libraries. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 2/1/08.]—Karen Core, Detroit P.L.

The jacket copy for Wittenborn's latest novel proclaims the contents within to be "an epic novel about family secrets and the consequences of ambition." Unfortunately, what lies between the covers is epic only in its absolute failure as a novel of both substance and entertainment. The basic plot conceit is interesting: a professor of psychology at Yale has to cope with a murderous research subject. The writing, however, is clumsy and derivative, riddled with cliches and plot holes so large one doesn't care whether the family's secrets are revealed at all. And when they are, it is a huge disappointment. The author is an Emmy Award-nominated producer, and perhaps he would have better luck turning his premise into a screenplay. Recommended for larger public and academic libraries only. [See Prepub Alert, LJ 4/15/08.]—Christopher Bussmann, Pratt Inst. Lib., Brooklyn

Originally published in China and later translated into English, Xiaolu Guo, whose A Concise Chinese-English Dictionary for Lovers was an Orange Prize finalist, has taken her decade-old first publication and reworked the vernacular to produce a new edition of her novel in her own words. The result of this effort is a breezy series of 20 vignettes that loosely tie together the story of 21-year-old Fenfang Wang, who leaves her small rural village at 17 to travel to Beijing in hopes of becoming more than just a factory worker or a peasant harvesting sweet potatoes. Fenfang gets her first break through a chance meeting with an assistant film director while helping him to retrieve his umbrella at the rundown movie theater where she works. What follows are opportunities to work as a film extra at the Beijing Film Studios and her later aspirations to write and sell a script. Xiaolu Guo's own experience as a film writer is clearly noticeable in the detailed yet compact, stylized writing found in this piece. Like the work of Annie Wang (The People's Republic of Desire) and Wang Ping (The Last Communist Virgin), Xiaolu Guo's coming-of-age story provides a modern perspective to the characterization of women in both Chinese society and the literature of today. Larger public and academic libraries may want to consider adding this title.—Shirley N. Quan, Orange Cty. P.L.s, Santa Ana, CA