This book started out with great promise, and then started to stumble about half-way through. It remained good, however, until it suddenly ended with no rhyme or reason. It looked like someone decided to cut 100 pages off the end by simply removing them and trying to wind the story down in five pages.

Further, the two interweaving story lines, while interesting in and of themselves, left the task of deciding how they interact, if at all, to the reader. There is no real explanation, and instead of making this interesting or edgy, it just seemed a little lazy.

Unfortunately, I thought this was a big disappointment after a strong start. I hope for more out of this author in the future, however. ( )

Eugene is a mover in New York City whose favorite author is Constance Eakins. While doing a job one day, he runs into a biographer of Eakins who also happens to have a beautiful daughter, Sonia. Everyone else in the world believes Eakins is dead — that he just disappeared in Italy quite a few years back and never showed up again. He’s legally declared dead by the Italian authorities. Sonia’s father, the biographer, demands that it isn’t so — that his daughter speaks to Eakins regularly. But, no one has heard from her after her latest trip to Italy. Eugene decides to look for Sonia.

Meanwhile in a parallel story, an elderly Mr. Schmitz, also a New Yorker, is grieving the loss of his friend Rutherford who has just moved to Italy. He receives lucid letters from Rutherford at first, but then they become more and more incomprehensible. Schmitz also decides to take off for Italy to look for his friend.

This was a bizarre story that was unique enough to keep me reading and wanting to find out more. The book has quite a few fantasy elements too, and that was unexpected, but it certainly added to the story. It’s definitely a different book.

This is Nathaniel Rich’s first novel. It was released on April 17.

2008, 310 pp.
Rating: 3.5

http://1morechapter.com/2008/04/26/re... ( )

I just finished reading an ARC of this debut novel by Rich, with whom I was unfamiliar. The story, or perhaps I should say stories as there are two separate, but thematically related plots, certainly held my interest. Although part of that interest was to see how the two plots would combine - if the characters would meet or some obvious thread would appear and I have to say that didn't happen.

The stories take place in the same locations, and while there appears a neglected relationship in each story, they are different - one a father/son; the other a husband/wife. In each, one person is trying to 'keep in touch' and make the relationship work and the other is oblivious or distracted.

Still, it is successfully pulled off by Rich who alternates chapters concerning the two parallel plots. Perhaps there is a stronger relationship between the two stories when considering the title of the book, but (without giving too much away) I did not feel that was totally obvious or well-explained.

The ending did leave some things unanswered and I was disappointed that the one protagonist (Eugene) seemed destined to fall into what seemed to me an undesirable future. However, the concept of writers remaining immortal through their characters is, although slightly twisted here, an age-old and familiar theme.

All in all, a good read and I look forward to see what Rich might come up with next. ( )