Review of Fall of Angels by Barbara Cleverly

Author: Barbara Cleverly

Release date: May 15, 2018

Publisher: Soho Press

Pages: 368

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Great Britain, 1923: Detective Inspector John Redfrye is a blessing to the Cambridge CID. A handsome young veteran bred among the city’s educated elite, he is no stranger to the set running its esteemed colleges and universities—a society that previously seemed impenetrable to even those at the top of local law enforcement, especially with the force plagued by its own history of corruption.

When Redfrye in invited to attend the annual St. Barnabas College Christmas concert in his Aunt Henrietta’s stead, he is expecting a quiet evening, though a minor scandal: Juno Proudfoot, the trumpeter of the headlining musical duo, is a woman, and a young one at that—practically unheard of in conservative academic circles. When she suffers a near-fatal fall after the close of the show, Redfrye must consider whether someone was trying to kill her. Has her musical talent, her beauty, or perhaps most importantly, her gender, provoked a dangerous criminal to act? Redfrye must seek advice from and keep an eye on an old friend to catch his man before more innocents fall victim.

Fall of Angels is the series debut from bestselling author Barbara Cleverly, who is a graduate of Durham University and a former teacher who has spent her working life in Cambridgeshire, England. She is the author of 13 books in the successful Joe Sandilands and Laetitia Talbot mystery series.

In this inaugural installment, Cleverly introduces an interesting new investigator to the mystery-thriller genre. A classic detective novel set in 1920s England, the story centers on the fight for women’s rights—a battle that proves to be deadly for some of those involved. Fall of Angels has all the customary elements that devotees of Barbara Cleverly’s other writings have come to expect: excellent historical detail, humorous dialogue, intriguing characters, and a whodunit that will keep readers on the end of their seat until the very end. Her writing style is reminiscent of a bygone era that pays homage to the Golden Age of mystery writing.

“Redfrye would never rightly know what instinct, what subliminal sound had triggered his reaction . . . The two players would at any moment now be attempting to come down those high, narrow stairs in pitch blackness . . . The thud and the screams from the stairs rang out as he threw the door open and stood in alarm, trying to penetrate the darkness and make sense of the series of bumps and jagged cries cascading towards him. He rushed at the staircase, blindly reaching out his hands to break the momentum of whatever alarming avalanche was about to engulf him.”

In Fall of Angels, Cleverly capably provides the essential historical background and prerequisite elements necessary for any successful mystery story. She always excels at weaving these fundamentals into her narratives, and this new novel is no exception to the established pattern. Although the mystery itself is sensibly conceived its plotline is not particularly unique, although this doesn’t take anything away from its general readability. Overall, it is a fine series debut that is well worth checking out.

Michael Thomas Barry is staff reviewer for the New York Journal of Books and is the author of eight nonfiction books.

review first appeared at the New York Journal of Books on May 16, 2018 - https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book-review/fall-angels-inspector-redfyre-mystery

Review of Tyrant: Shakespeare on Politics by Stephen Greenblatt

Author: Stephen Greenblatt
Release date: May 8, 2018
Publisher: WW Norton
Pages: 208
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As Queen Elizabeth I’s 50-year reign over England entered its latter years, a controversial and gifted playwright entered the theater scene and dove head first into the social causes, psychological roots, and cruel consequences of tyranny. In plays like Richard III, Macbeth, and King Lear, William Shakespeare probed the psyche of his characters rampant lust for absolute power and the long-term effects on its calamitous execution.

He asked himself, “How is it possible for a whole country to fall into the hands of a tyrant?” Under what circumstances . . . do such cherished institutions, seemly deep-rooted and impregnable, suddenly prove fragile?

Esteemed traditions were crumbling, political loyalties were blurred, severe economic woes fueled anti-elitist resentment, average citizens willingly allowed wanton lies and partisan vindictiveness to permeate everyday life. Shakespeare was captivated by all aspects of these societal crises and calamities. With intelligent, clever and poignant awareness, Shakespeare zeroed in on the childish mindsets and ravenously egotistical desires of these firebrands—and the cynicism and unscrupulousness of the numerous enablers and associates who surrounded them. Any of this sound familiar?

In Tyrant: Shakespeare on Politics, Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award winning author Stephen Greenblatt explores the legendary playwright’s unique perceptions and insights of wicked and immoral rulers. A world renowned Shakespearian expert, Greenblatt is a professor of Humanities at Harvard University and has written numerous books that include The Swerve, Will in the World, and The Rise and Fall of Adam and Eve.

Greenblatt’s perceptive analysis and expert examination of the various tyrannical figures in Shakespeare’s works has an eerie parallel and peculiar familiarity to current political trends. Using the central characters of Shakespeare’s plays the author compellingly and captivatingly scrutinizes the conditions that permit the rise of despotic, dictatorial, and high-handed leaders.
Through skillful and knowledgeable use of quotes and excerpted passages, he provides a brilliant illustration of how intimidation and strong-arm tactics can suppress any political resistance and why anyone would “be drawn to a leader manifestly unsuited to govern, someone dangerously impulsive or viciously conniving or indifferent to the truth.”

Although Greenblatt does not specifically name or discuss any current political personalities, it can be naturally implied that contemporary figures are the main target of comparisons. But make no mistake, this book is essentially about President Donald J. Trump and his brand of populism, or at least what the author believes Shakespeare would have thought about him personally and his political movement.
Tyrant is a clever and well written interpretation of how our current political environment compares to Shakespeare’s most controversial and legendary works. Truth be told, Trump is no tyrant like Macbeth or Richard III, but Greenblatt’s compelling conversations on those who assist and are complicit to dictators is particularly illuminating.

Overall, this book is full of surprising and shocking insights that examine character politics and the exploitation of authoritarianism as it pertains to literary criticism. A must read for any student of classic literature, history, and politics.

Michael Thomas Barry is a staff writer for the New York Journal of Books.

The review first appeared at the New York Journal of Books on May 8, 2018 - https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book-review/tyrant

Review of The Pisces by Melissa Broder

Author: Melissa Broder

Release Date: May 1, 2018

Publisher: Hogarth

Pages: 224

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For nine years Lucy has been working as a part-time librarian at a small Arizona university and struggling to complete a Ph.D. program in classic literature. She’s fraught with complexities and doubts and persistently contemplates the meaning of life, which she calls “the greater nothingness—the void.”

After a dramatic break-up with her handsome geologist boyfriend, Lucy is depressed and facing a mini-existential crisis. Her sister, Annika, invites her spend the summer in Los Angeles, dog watching and house sitting at their posh Venice beach house. But Lucy finds little relief from her depression and anxiety—not in the love addiction therapy group, not in her frequent Tinder excursions, not even in the unconditional love of her sister’s dog.

“Gods, please help me to be happy. Let me do the will of the universe and be willing to do the will of the universe, whatever that even is . . . I never asked to exist. But I am here now so could you maybe at least try and help me enjoy my life?”

Everything changes one evening, while strolling alone along the beach she encounters a mysterious swimmer. Lucy is immediately infatuated and mesmerized by Theo’s charming demeanor and rugged good looks. But when she learns the truth about the stranger’s identity, their relationship—and Lucy’s distorted understanding of what sex and love should look like—takes an unexpected turn.

The Pisces is the debut novel by award winning poet, essayist, and columnist Melissa Broder. In this bizarre novel, Broder fuses existential malaise and destructive love with a heavy dose of sexual fantasy. The characters are remarkably complex, but be warned the storyline is extremely graphic in its sexual portrayals and accounts. The explicit descriptions of these carnal encounters are somewhat disturbing and gratuitous in their titillation. 

The fact that one of the characters is a merman comes across as less pointless than first imagined, and more like an acknowledgment of the absurdity of his existence. Broder’s mixture of straightforward bluntness is unsettling at times but curiously compelling. Her use of darkly humorous realism gives true voice to the depiction of those who are battling depression and suicide.

Putting the silliness of the merman storyline aside, Broder’s writing style cleverly explores the realities of both disappointing casual trysts and meaningful sexual encounters. Comically explicit, contemplative, and sometimes depressingly blunt, the author does an excellent job of exploring everyday human experience. This novel is filled with sincere reflections that ponder the existential question of whether we are destined to always desire what we can’t have?

Often unsettling, peculiar, sexually graphic, unapologetically explicit, but fascinatingly gripping, The Pisces does an adequate job of exploring the fundamental human need for both physical satisfaction and emotional desire, while connecting the frustrating ways that they are almost always mutually exclusive.

Michael Thomas Barry is a staff reviewer for the New York Journal of book. The review first appeared at the New York Journal of Book on April 30, 2018 - https://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/book-review/pisces