Thursday, March 31, 2016

Margot Livesey - Criminals: A Novel

19. Criminals: A Novel by Margot Livesey (1995)
Length: 271 pages
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Started: 26 March 2016
Finished: 31 March 2016
Where did it come from? From Paperback Swap
How long has it been on my TBR pile? Since 29 January 2015
Why do I have it? I like contemporary fiction and have read and enjoyed several books by this author in the past.

Ewan Munro - a decent, yet harried young banker - receives a peculiar and disturbing letter from his sister Mollie. Already poised on the brink of his own personal crisis and desperately worried about Mollie's troubled state of mind, Ewan travels north to Scotland to be with his sister in her time of need. Along the way, Ewan discovers a baby abandoned in a bus station rest-room and, unsure about what to do next, he takes the child with him to see his sister.

What follows next are the intertwining stories and motivations of five different people - and the poignant story of the many more lives caught up in binding nets of affection and responsibility, of sibling loyalty, romantic longing and maternal love. Ultimately, the question becomes, where does the line between doing the morally acceptable thing cross with the line that follows criminal behavior? And what is the true cost of having the best of intentions and acting on them?

First of all, let me say that this was an extraordinarily well-written story and I enjoyed it immensely. In my opinion, Ms. Livesey really captures the authenticity of her characters, and manages to make the reader care about them as people who are experiencing tremendous difficulties. That being said, I will say that this particular story seemed just the slightest bit far-fetched; although I would still give this book a definite A+!

A+! - (96-100%)

Till we Meet Again, Glow Brightly as Moonlight

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