THE UNWILLING by John Hart
John Hart, of REDEMPTION ROAD fame, is a storyteller of the highest caliber. He consistently provides an interesting storyline peopled with unforgettable characters. This has never been more true than in his latest novel THE UNWILLING. It tells the story of a dysfunctional family struggling with each other during the early ’70’s. It will grab your mind immediately and then lay claim to your heart.
In this moving and emotional novel, Bill and Gabrielle French are parents of three sons. The older two are twins, Robert and Jason. Their youngest is a high school senior called Gibby. Both Robert and Jason served in Vietnam. Robert died there while Jason came home a hero of sorts but also deeply troubled and hooked on drugs. Gibby will have to face the possibility of service when he graduates from high school.
The year is 1972 and the place is Charlotte, North Carolina. Jason has come home from the war and then ended up in prison. Now he is back in town and wants to connect with his younger brother Gibby. His father who is a police detective does not want this to happen. He worries about the influence Jason may have on the young man. Gabrielle just doesn’t want to see or hear anything from Jason period.
Soon after Jason arrives back in Charlotte there is a horrendous murder and Jason emerges as a suspect. Later there is a disappearance of a friend of the murder victim and Gibby comes under suspicion, This causes even more turmoil within his family and demands that allegiances be made.
This demand of loyalty is the crux of the novel. Gibby wants to be a good son, a good brother, a good friend. Being all this to all people at the same time is what is pulling him apart . Plus he is beginning his first romantic relationship with a girl named Becky. This slices out another piece of his heart.
The author writes a story that has overtones of Faulkner. It is the steamy South and the dark elements are overpowering in their depths of evil. These descriptions of the malevolent characters and their hideous acts are primarily captured off screen so to speak so that the reader gets the impact indirectly and not straight on. Still the acts of horror are felt vividly throughout the book.
Hart is at his best when creating characters. He gives the right amount of information to bring them to life and develops people you know rather than just people about whom you are reading. It is an added gift that gives him the ability to involve the reader in a story worthy of the individuals who now exist in your mind.
You can judge a book by the way it calls to you once you have put it aside. If you long to return it its world you know you have picked a winner. THE UNWILLING is a winner.
THE UNWILLING is published by St Martin’s Press. It contains 384 pages and sells for $27.99.
Jackie K Cooper
www.jackiekcooper.com
