Julie Mars

"Rust" is the story of artist Margaret Shaw, New York City born and bred, who picks up her life and moves to New Mexico for the flimsiest of reasons: she saw a line in a travel article that piqued her curiosity.

Riddled with issues, Margaret has channeled her doubt, feelings of abandonment and frustration into art. Now she has decided it is time to move her creative vision from the two dimensions of canvas to the depth and realism of sculpture. She wants to learn to weld.

Upon arrival in New show more Mexico, Margaret befriends Rico Garcia, "El Rey," known for his own welding artistry with low-rider vehicles, and she hires him as her teacher. But Garcia, a neighborhood garage owner, has the same issues of frustration and doubt, and he, too, wrestles with abandonment.

Their chemistry collides, and the two walk a tightrope of sexual tension as they confront their individual demons.

Throughout the book, their journey is mirrored by that of another, whose story is separated by thousands of miles and spans several decades, even as both Margaret and Rico have navigated rough seas of their own. The destinies of all three characters perform an interesting dance toward a climax that is wholly satisfying without being saccharin.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book, though I felt the sexual tension between Margaret and Rico was forced. To me, his other relationships were almost palpable, and I found Rico a far more interesting, complex character than Margaret.

In addition, the book's third protagonist, whose identity is gradually revealed, was a character with wonderful depth and dimension. I find it interesting that I cared more about the two of them than Margaret, who served more as a catalyst for others than as a main character in and of herself.

I received this book as part of the Early Reviewers program. show less

Rust is a quietly powerful novel about reinvention, solitude, and the beauty of starting over. Artist Margaret Shaw grows tired of tending bar in New York and, after reading an article about coyotes running along the Rio Grande in downtown Albuquerque, decides to pack up her life and head west. What follows is a slow-burning, reflective journey that mirrors her inner transformation as she confronts grief, finds purpose, and grapples with the realities of isolation and independence.

The show more writing is sparse and meditative, with lovely descriptions of both emotional and physical landscapes. While Rust leans more toward character study than fast-paced plot, the backstory of how Margaret lost her parents as a child—woven in through brief, alternating chapters—adds tension and depth that kept me turning the pages.

I’d recommend this book to readers drawn to stories about the strength it takes to start over alone, and to anyone who appreciates narratives about women embracing the second phase of life with courage and creativity. show less

Margaret Shaw packs up her life and moves from New York City to Albuquerque, NM, to learn how to weld, inspired to build sculptures of red, grainy iron. The permanence of such an art form stands in stark contrast to her itinerate, off-the-grid existence up to that point in her life. When she approaches Rico, the owner of a local auto body shop, to give her lessons, she awakens something in both of them. But the destiny they find in their new found friendship is not what either of them show more expects.

I have to admit to a certain trepidation as I read the first chapters of [Rust], feeling as though I’d signed up to get a romance novel from the Early Reviewer program. No, there are no bodices ripped but a couple of early scenes in the story seem a little overly tuned into that frequency. Once past those few passages, Mars finds her rhythm, focusing on two lonely people obsessed with the losses they’ve suffered to the point that they are blind to the richness of their lives. Mars capably describes the subtle quickening of their souls in a way that adds to the melancholy of their slow discovery of the beauty around them.

Bottom Line: The story only misses a couple of beats and Mars has a gift for melancholy that provides for a sweet and easy read.

4 bones!!!! show less

In a marvelous, winning metaphor, Margaret Shaw, the protagonist of Julie Mars’s “Rust,” wants to learn to weld. Ms. Shaw, a New York artist with more talent than accomplishment, has tired of tending bar, and removed herself to New Mexico. She finds herself at Rico Garcia’s auto shop, and asks if he would teach her. What follows this seemingly random meeting is anything but random, as Ms. Mars takes us through its wake, full of searching, full of hope and fear, and eventually show more redemption.

Margaret was effectively orphaned as a little girl when her parents traveled to India and wound up in prison. Ever since, she has kept herself wrapped tightly against the world, fearing further loss. She seeks Rico’s instruction, and finds a bit more. Not too much more, but the two become friends amid some fairly strong attraction. Rico’s own history has its rocky patches, not quite on the scale of Margaret’s, but they push him toward the gringa with a fair amount of force.

It isn’t very often that I’m moved to tears at the end of a book, but this one definitely did it for me. Ms. Mars has crafted a fine and satisfying conclusion – actually I wish it had a little more, but understand its construction and intent, and accept it. Well, “accept” is far too passive a term for my feeling about this book and its conclusion. It’s a compulsive page-turner with sympathetic characters and a tense, carefully-balanced plot; I embrace it and its plainspoken truths about how rust accumulates on its characters’ hearts and emotions. A superior piece of storytelling, this novel will pull you along with its tone, its perfect pace, and its emotional truth. As satisfying as its payoff is, you will assuredly enjoy the journey just as much. Look for it in February 2012, and pounce!

http://bassoprofundo1.blogspot.com/2011/11/rust-by-julie-mars.html show less