Summer Reading

I really debated whether I should write about this book. It falls somewhere between the literary fiction I usually write about and pop fiction. And it's not as if I'm alerting you to a book you might otherwise miss, since Gillian Flynn's Gone Girl sits atop many bestseller lists and on the laps of many summer vacationers. It reminds me of the summer when every time I turned around I saw someone reading Scott Turow's “Presumed Innocent”.

And it bears some resemblance to that novel, since both have at their center a married couple in which both spouses are keeping secrets. Flynn's characters, Nick and Amy Dunne, are unreliable narrators, and they both kept me whipsawed as I tried to stay ahead of their maneuverings. Flynn cleverly sprinkles clues that sometimes clarify and sometimes obfuscate, and though occasionally the plot turns strained credulity, I never stopped enjoying the twists.

Her book certainly qualifies as a suspense novel, but it is also the dissection of a marriage where outside pressures and personality conflicts contribute to a meltdown with massive repercussions.

An Odd Italian Tale

Valerie Martin has been under my radar since the compelling "Property" (2003). I remembered the sense of mounting tension she created so well in that tale of an unhappy white slave owner and her slave. One critic suggests that her near-obscurity may be because it's hard to categorize her. She excels at creating this kind of tension and suspense, combined with sexual anticipation and discovery in "Italian Fever" (2000). Lucy Stark a sensible, quiet woman, works for a successful but very untalented writer. When he dies suddenly she heads to Italy to settle his affairs. Mystery at an Italian farmhouse, great and mediocre art, a missing manuscript, darkly arrogant neighbors, a night time phantom, and Massimo, a handsome but married Italian (of course) enter into the mix. Lucy's observations of other characters, their hidden layers, including her reactions to great art, surprising and complicated neighbors, and her own burgeoning sexuality are all described with psychological depth (with the exception of Massimo). That mounting suspension is effectively created. This is a fun, quick, absorbing read, whether you are headed to Rome or are just seeking a mystery-like escape. Valerie Martin's books are now stacked by my bedside. Stay tuned.