Acts of Atonement

 By S.W. Leicher

Twisted Road     2021

299 pages     Literary

A lesbian couple, who live in Prospect Park South in Brooklyn, have defied many odds to establish a life together. Paloma is a tremendously respected oncological nurse. Born the only daughter of Colombian immigrants, she is connected with her brother and his children, but primarily isolated from the rest of her family. Likewise, Serach, an accountant,  has been abandoned by her Orthodox Jewish family, and when her mother dies, she faces indescribable pain and suffering because of her life choices.

Even though they love each other deeply, Paloma and Serach struggle in the face of being outcasts in their families. Have they made the right choice to renounce their past and cling to each other rather than family? Each character has a narrative, and Leicher explores complex psychological, sexual and philosophical mazes as the story line deals with the dilemmas caused by the life the two women have chosen.

I especially was taken with the narrative that unfolded when Serach’s mother dies. She desperately wants to be part of the ceremony and burial, which is so much a part of Orthodox tradition. Even her brother, whom she adored growing up, has abandoned her, and the poignancy is intense as she stands at the edge of the cemetery attempting to discretely observe the burial.

I got thrown off as I began Acts of Atonement because of the long list of character names and how they were connected with Paloma and Serach before the book began.  I got worried that I might have to keep referring to the list as I delved into the book, but Leicher did a good job of introducing each character, and I hardly ever had to refer back. Additionally, at the end of the novel is a glossary of Spanish and Hebrew words, but again, I had little trouble navigating the terminology.

Additionally, this is the sequel to an earlier novel, Acts of Assumption. Apparently in the first novel, the couple meets and begins their life together. Leicher says that Acts of Atonement is “the ongoing story of the battle between roots and desires.” One reviewer interviewed Leicher, and you can find her story of the novel’s development here.

The novel is based in New York City, and it is obvious that the author is also a New Yorker. Additionally Leicher has a deep knowledge and understanding  of Orthodox Judaism, which I very much appreciated.

S.W. Leicher’s website. Many thanks to the publicist who sent me the book to read. Acts of Atonement will be published tomorrow, June 20, 2022.

The Last Chance Library

By Freya Sampson

Berkley     2021

329 pages     Fiction

The Last Chance Library is almost a polemic disguised as fiction. It tells the story of June, a young assistant librarian, who is faced with the closing of the community library where she has worked for the last ten years, taking her mother’s job following her mother’s death. Books and the library patrons have become her entire life, filling the void her mother’s death created. She knows books so well that she is able to help the patrons find exactly the right books at the right time.

And oh the patrons! So many of them spend their days with June and have come to be her best—albeit—only friends. There is Stanley, an elderly man who spends every day in the library; Jackson, a home-schooled 8-year-old that June helps learn to read; Mrs. B., who keeps reading books June recommends and decrying them as “trash”; and Chantel, a teenager who is needing a quiet place to do her schoolwork. June helps people log onto computers, and of course, helps patrons find books to read.

The Council, however, has decided that the small community of Chalcot doesn’t need a library, and the loyal patrons stage a coup in an attempt to try to save the library. Because of her job in the library and because of her reticent nature, June feels that she shouldn’t be part of the protests, but in the end, her desire to keep this community intact causes her to enter the protests and encourages nation-wide media coverage.

Although this is the basic plot, we are witnesses to June’s coming alive in the emergence of this cause, facing her own need to expand her life’s horizons. Of course, there is a bit of romance, some tragedy, some good fortune, and a whole lot of growth—for June and for the community.

What I mean by The Last Chance Library being a polemic is that the obvious goal of the author is to insist on the importance of public libraries for the good of the community. Those of us who grew  up in public libraries know this already, but it was very much fun to read about a community coming alive to save the library, which offers so much more than books.

Over the years, I have written frequently about the importance of the library, both for me personally and for the sake of the community. Here are a couple of entries from my blog—one about Andrew Carnegie and the libraries he created, and then another by Susan Orlean about the value of libraries with her narrative nonfiction, The Library Book.

Last summer I took two grandchildren weekly to a branch of the Kalamazoo Public Library, and what we witnessed was very much like June’s library—lots of books, lots of people, and tons of good feeling. The Kirkus review says that The Last Chance Library is “a delightful exploration of personal growth, inner strength and the importance of family, friends, and love.”

The Last Chance Library is Freya Sampson’s debut novel, although it appears she has a new book out, The Lost Ticket. Here is her website. 

May God Forgive

 By Alan Parks

Europa Editions     2022

371 pages     Noir

If you ever wanted to know what classic Noir is, this series of books by Alan Parks is the place to begin. May God Forgive is the fifth book in the series, which begins with Bloody January, published in 2017. Although this was the first of the series that I read, I didn’t have much trouble getting acquainted with Detective Harry McCoy. McCoy has returned to the Glasgow police force following a month off to recover from a bad ulcer attack. However, just as he returns, the city is racked by several unforgiveable crimes. Here is a brief synopsis of the book:

“Glasgow is a city in mourning. An arson attack on a hairdresser’s has left five dead. Tempers are frayed and sentiments running high. When three youths are charged, the city goes wild. A crowd gathers outside the courthouse, but as the police drive the young men to prison, the van is rammed by a truck, and the boys are grabbed and bundled into a car. The next day, the body of one of them is dumped in the city centre. A note has been sent to the newspaper: one down; two to go. Detective Harry McCoy has twenty-four hours to find the kidnapped boys before they all turn up dead, it is going to mean taking down some of Glasgow’s most powerful people to do it.”

May God Forgive takes place in Glasgow in the spring of 1974. The city is really gritty and crime filled, and McCoy knows the city and all its criminals really well, hence his need for Pepto Bismol night and day. We, the readers, try to keep up with his logic as he sets out to solve both the fire at the hairdresser’s and the young men’s murders. He has the additional crime of a young woman’s murder, and the knowledge that she appeared in a photograph with one of the young men. Oh, and I almost forgot, he has to solve the murder of a homeless man that he knows from his detective work. And this is to say nothing about the brief appearance of his estranged father, who haunts his memory night and day. There are many characters in the novel, some making very small appearances, and several others who seem to have long-term relationships with McCoy, who grew up in the city. A couple of times, I found myself at a bit of a loss to remember which character was which.

The city of Glasgow is very much a character in the novel, and I enjoyed reading about the city and its inhabitants, including the crooked Archbishop as well as all the shop and bar owners. Luckily, I had a British son-in-law visiting as I read the book, so if I ran across a word or a concept I didn’t understand, I could ask Stuart for an American definition. For instance, I was confused by the word “jumper” and Stuart said a jumper was a sweater. Aah!

Did I mention that it is raining nearly every day as McCoy checks in with all his sources, meeting many of them in neighborhood bars, drinking and smoking his way to a solution to the crime. It reminded me that if I ever get to Glasgow, I shouldn’t visit in May.

As my readers know, I am fascinated with noir and neo-noir. Here is an entry I made several years ago as I tried to describe what makes noir identifiable as a genre. May God Forgive is the epitome of the genre. The reviewer in the Times of London said, “McCoy is so noir he makes most other Scottish cops seem light gray.”

Alan Parks has had a career as a music producer, and readers can get a sense of his love of music with the background music that shows the atmosphere of 1970s music. Park’s Harry McCoy mysteries have been nominated twice for well-deserved Edgar Awards. Classic Noir indeed!