Review of Deceptive Calm
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Elizabeth D378
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- Latest Review: Deceptive Calm by Patricia Skipper
Review of Deceptive Calm
[Following is a volunteer review of "Deceptive Calm" by Patricia Skipper.]
Deceptive Calm by Patricia Skipper is an intriguing historical romance that opens in Charleston, South Carolina in 1968, at a time when the South is still racially segregated. The book begins when the main protagonists, Vanessa, Tricia, and Barry are on a school bus which gets attacked by the Ku Klux Klan. They are students at a racially integrated Catholic high school. The book follows their lives over the next 20 years.
The author uses the varied social and racial backgrounds of the characters to paint a picture of life during the late 1960s and early 1970s South. Vanessa is a light-skinned Black who had been abandoned as an infant at a Catholic orphanage for Black children. She is being raised by Sister Rosalie, a nun whom she considers to be her mother. Tricia is from a working-class White background. Barry’s parents are financially prosperous Black professionals; Barry’s father is a doctor. I like how the book compares the home environment of each of the main characters.
Sister Rosalie has a sincere love of South Carolina history. She is notorious for always giving historical lectures to the children at the orphanage and everyone else within earshot. The character of Sister Rosalie as an eccentric nun adds to the historical ambience of the story.
Deceptive Calm mostly follows Vanessa and Tricia. First, through their adventures during their last two years of high school, then as they go to the University of South Carolina and major in broadcast journalism, and later as they build their careers.
A man who practices juju gives Vanessa a prediction of 20 years of bad luck. This sets the stage for a series of tragic events. Vanessa runs away from her emotional distress by changing her name and transferring to the University of California at Berkeley. She disappears and only her best friend Tricia stays in touch with her and knows her location. Vanessa manages to pass for White and starts an award-winning career in television journalism. At the same time, Tricia builds a career selling advertising for various television stations.
Vanessa attracts the attention of Tod Von Westerkamp, the only son of a prominent family. She ends up getting married and having a child with him. Unfortunate events occur. The last part of Deceptive Calm covers how Vanessa and her son get out of that situation. Vanessa’s relationship with Tod was the weakest part of the book. Vanessa and Tod had a toxic relationship from the beginning. I disliked that part of the book. I could not understand why she got involved with him.
I am giving Deceptive Calm 5 out of 5 stars. The book is exceptionally well-edited. It reads smoothly. I like how the author uses current events to provide background for the situations the characters find themselves in. The author’s descriptions of Charleston, South Carolina and San Francisco, California, add to the overall atmosphere. However, I would not recommend Deceptive Calm to sensitive readers because of moderate sexual content. Also, parts of the dialogue include profanity and racial slurs which reflect how people spoke at the time but may offend some readers. I recommend Deceptive Calm for readers who like historical fiction with a dash of romance.
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Deceptive Calm
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Deceptive Calm by Patricia Skipper is an intriguing historical romance that opens in Charleston, South Carolina in 1968, at a time when the South is still racially segregated. The book begins when the main protagonists, Vanessa, Tricia, and Barry are on a school bus which gets attacked by the Ku Klux Klan. They are students at a racially integrated Catholic high school. The book follows their lives over the next 20 years.
The author uses the varied social and racial backgrounds of the characters to paint a picture of life during the late 1960s and early 1970s South. Vanessa is a light-skinned Black who had been abandoned as an infant at a Catholic orphanage for Black children. She is being raised by Sister Rosalie, a nun whom she considers to be her mother. Tricia is from a working-class White background. Barry’s parents are financially prosperous Black professionals; Barry’s father is a doctor. I like how the book compares the home environment of each of the main characters.
Sister Rosalie has a sincere love of South Carolina history. She is notorious for always giving historical lectures to the children at the orphanage and everyone else within earshot. The character of Sister Rosalie as an eccentric nun adds to the historical ambience of the story.
Deceptive Calm mostly follows Vanessa and Tricia. First, through their adventures during their last two years of high school, then as they go to the University of South Carolina and major in broadcast journalism, and later as they build their careers.
A man who practices juju gives Vanessa a prediction of 20 years of bad luck. This sets the stage for a series of tragic events. Vanessa runs away from her emotional distress by changing her name and transferring to the University of California at Berkeley. She disappears and only her best friend Tricia stays in touch with her and knows her location. Vanessa manages to pass for White and starts an award-winning career in television journalism. At the same time, Tricia builds a career selling advertising for various television stations.
Vanessa attracts the attention of Tod Von Westerkamp, the only son of a prominent family. She ends up getting married and having a child with him. Unfortunate events occur. The last part of Deceptive Calm covers how Vanessa and her son get out of that situation. Vanessa’s relationship with Tod was the weakest part of the book. Vanessa and Tod had a toxic relationship from the beginning. I disliked that part of the book. I could not understand why she got involved with him.
I am giving Deceptive Calm 5 out of 5 stars. The book is exceptionally well-edited. It reads smoothly. I like how the author uses current events to provide background for the situations the characters find themselves in. The author’s descriptions of Charleston, South Carolina and San Francisco, California, add to the overall atmosphere. However, I would not recommend Deceptive Calm to sensitive readers because of moderate sexual content. Also, parts of the dialogue include profanity and racial slurs which reflect how people spoke at the time but may offend some readers. I recommend Deceptive Calm for readers who like historical fiction with a dash of romance.
******
Deceptive Calm
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
Latest Review: Deceptive Calm by Patricia Skipper
