Review by DEBBIE SMITH -- Flaherty's Crossing

[debbie smith]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Flaherty's Crossing" by Kaylin McFarren.]

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2 out of 4 stars

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Flaherty’s Crossing, by Kaylin McFarrin, is an interesting storyline. This story I give 2 out of 4 stars. Kate Flaherty is losing a father she never had, facing a past she invented, throwing away a love she really wanted, and learning to turn her life around. Kate’s father is dying but, then again, he never was around anyway. This past is not allowing her to love Drew, her husband and the best man in her life. And who is this stranger that keeps showing up unexpectedly? Her life is falling apart until she shifts her perspectives. The more she learns of her father’s life the more things fall into place. He was a man she never really knew.

I like the way McFarrin stayed in Kate’s head through the good-by and discovery process. The introduction to Pastor Ron, whom she had met only as a very young child, was handled very well. His role in the story was a surprise to me. At the same time Kate’s struggle with her feelings toward her husband, Drew, was a good undertow and parallel to her struggle with her feelings toward her dad. McFarrin’s use of Doris, the hospice worker, was inspirational, especially with the minimal exposure the reader had of Doris. I felt she was a friend and a bridge by the end of the story but not very major during it. I found it interesting, yet frustrating, to finally figure out who Mick was. I must admit, he was a surprise for me along with the entire scene. When McFarrin finally did her reveal I had to go back and re-read that scene to make sure I didn’t miss anything. Other characters, Paul, Drew, Sophie, and even Iris, played pivotal parts in the plot even though, as a reader, they did not seem that important at the time. Staying in Kate’s head was key to my perception of the other characters.

There was not much I did not like about this story. However, the main problem I had almost made me put the story down in the middle of the book and not finish it. Because McFarrin kept us inside Kate’s thoughts throughout the book she came across as very whiny, spoiled, and self-absorbed through most of the plot. This attitude was necessary for the plot to some extent but, for me, Kate kept it way to long. I do not handle whiny well in real life or in stories unless the character is a very young child, which Kate was not, and even then only for a short time. I almost lost my connection and empathy with her through this. When Kate makes the first shift McFarrin handles it well and I began to breathe again. By Kate’s second shift in perspective, I was in her corner all the way.

There were a few surprises for me in the story. I like that very much. The stability of Drew, Doris and Pastor Ron was a good background to the surprises Paul, Sophie, and Iris presented for me. The mysterious diner scene made more sense toward the end. Those surprises helped everything about the plot fall into place and tied the story up nicely. McFarrin did well.

In the attempt not to include spoilers, my review may sound like a big mystery which the story was for me. I did not read it as a horror story, though I see how some might. It was not a true Christian or Spiritual story either, though it did contain some element of that genre. The Christian genre label was the reason I picked this story to read yet I am not disappointed in it in spite of this. I liked Flaherty’s Crossing by the time I finished it, but even more after sitting and thinking on it for a few days. Yes, I think I will read it again.

I gave the book 2 out of 4 stars because, even though I liked it in the end, I almost did not finish it. Also, it did not fit some of the genre classifications it was given in the offering summary. I was promised one thing and got something else.

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Flaherty's Crossing
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