Neil Kazenzakis’s life is back in
equilibrium. It has taken a few years for him and his son Chris to recover from
the shock of losing their respective wife and mother. Wendy is not dead, nor
missing, but is in a vegetative state following an accident, lying unresponsive
in a long term care facility.
Neil teaches high school where Chris is in his
final year and considering college options. Neil runs; Chris is keen on
basketball; both like to sail on Lake Michigan adjacent to their house. They
get on well but Neil has found a new love – Lauren – about whom he feels some
guilt and so he is keeping it a secret, especially from Chris. He knows he should
tell him soon – but why rock the boat just yet?
To extend the metaphor, the boat gets rocked
for him: relations with Lauren take an unexpected turn; and his intervention to
break up a fight on campus gets misrepresented with potentially serious
repercussions. If he loses his job he loses his health insurance that is
funding Wendy’s care. Under these pressures even the father son bond begins to crack.
In classic style the present day events are interspersed
with Neil’s memories – courtship, marriage, family life, the accident and the
aftermath. And while the first half of the book is fairly bland fair-weather
stuff, the second half is stormy weather with drama and tension.
Apart from the engaging storyline the book
has plenty to say about secrets and lies, trust and betrayal, mistakes and
forgiveness, and fathers and sons, providing a decent read for 99p on kindle.
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