The Singer's Gun (edition 2010)

I became a fan of Ms. Mandel when I stumbled on her debut novel '"Last Night in Montreal"'. Her second novel is totally different and proved to be just as enjoyable. This time, I was treated to a sophisticated cocktail filled with flashbacks and flash forwards mixed into a fiery mystery of suspense, international intrigue, a tale of family loyalties and the price one pays to obtain independence.

The story concerns the conflicting and intersecting interests of Anton Waker, his ex-secretary/lover Elena, his cousin Aria and the detective bent on bringing down the family business, Alexandra Brodon.

Anton wants a normal life, have a family and a desk job. He is tired of doing things that are immoral and being involved in the illegal business of his parents, but his ties are strong and hard to break. Anton reinvents himself as a successful middle manager in another field but his carefully constructed life soon begins to disintegrate around him. His past comes back to haunt him when his cousin Aria threatens to reveal his roots in crime if he doesn't do one last job. Now he is forced to choose between family and his desire to live a life on the good side of the law..... ''How can he keep his past buried for ever?

The story is well-crafted without the slam-bang action found in most thrillers. It explores the dangerous territory between ones duties to family versus ones desire. The writer's prose remain sturdy and lean throughout, slowly drawing you in, gradually building tension until you are hooked and holding your breath in anticipation and savouring every word while turning the pages. Anton Waker, is Mandel's mysterious, complex and conflicted protagonist and the rest of the cast is carefully nuanced to create a unique atmosphere. It is easy to relate with Waker, he really doesn't seem like a criminal at all, a good person at heart unfortunately brought up on the wrong side of the fence.

I enjoyed this novel very much; Emily St. John appears on the right track to be a diversified and gifted writer. ( )

I have a new author to add to my Favourite Authors list!

The Singer's Gun is the story of Anton Waker, born into a life of crime that he wants to escape for an ordinary life -- a job in an office, married with children -- that's his dream.

Emily St. John Mandal explores how our childhood shapes us as she did in her first novel, Last Night in Montreal. In that book, the main character is unable to break the pattern of her childhood. In The Singer's Gun, Anton also struggles to break free of his past life of crime and fraud.

What I like about Ms. Mandal's books is that the characters are well developed through thier actions. She has found that important (for me, anyway) balance between character development and story. Her characters "walk the talk" of who they are. Sometimes I don't understand their motivations, but that's reality. So, if you are looking for a good story populated by real people, this is an excellent choice. ( )

I didn't think it was possible for Mandel to best her dizzyingly great debut novel, but this account of a family caught up in a dirty business is superb. Again, she excels at structure and pacing, moving forward and back in time seamlessly. Highly recommended for fans of the second season of The Wire. ( )

The Singer's Gun was a 4.5 star book for me. The story was a look at a young man's life, complicated because of the lies he and his family lived by. Secrets were uncovered, and new webs were woven by the people nearby to take their place.There are aspects of a thriller, of good guys and bad guys and guns and pursuit. But even more than a thriller, this was a personal tale-- How does one person escape the web he was born into, particularly if he uses the tools of his upbringing to stage his escape.The characters were (mostly) complex, likeable and interesting. Anton in particular, of course, but I also really liked Elena. Her one major deception (doing business with Anton) draws her into his web, and she has to deal with the consequences, and then the ramifications of those events.I was intrigued by Anton's family. The only character I'm not sure about in Anton's cousin Aria-- I can't decide if she was too simple, or too complex! ( )

The Singer's Gun is not, in my ever-so-humble opinion, a good book. It's not really a bad book, either - I never felt the urge to quit reading, especially since it went so quickly - but there are only so many hours in the day. I respectfully submit that you should spend your time with some worthier work.

The actual writing is solid, and the pacing is very good; other than that, though, I can find little to praise. The characters, in particular, are disappointing. Anton is boring (all he wants from life is the chance to work in an office) and spineless (he is reactive, never active - and even his reactions are meek and ineffectual). I see how these traits could be endearing, but that would take some kind of offsetting or redeeming qualities, and I couldn't find any in his case. Elena is also bad; she's almost as dull as Anton, and while she *is* capable of decisive action, those actions make little sense - at least to me. Her motivations seem to change both sharply and repeatedly over the course of the novel, and we never really find out why that is. (The minor characters are even worse; almost all of them behave in highly, highly implausible ways.)

Unless I've missed something, there's at least one *very* major plot point that goes totally unexplained. Another presumably important development happens and then un-happens so quickly that it's hard to understand why it was included at all. And there's really not much of a climax. I know I praised the pacing earlier, and the book has definitely got a destination in mind - but it's a little underwhelming when you get there. Finally, the title is baffling - I get what it refers to, but I don't understand why it's *worth* referring to.

The Singer's Gun might make a decent beach book, but there are definitely better options out there. ( )