Review by cherryalakei -- Flaherty's Crossing

[cherryalakei]

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

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3 out of 4 stars

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Flaherty’s Crossing
By Kaylin McFarren

I have to be honest- I really wanted to read this book, for the sole fact that the author’s name is Kaylin. My name is Kailyn, and I am always thrilled the world over when I find someone with the same name, as it is not a common one. Even when I come across another namesake, it’s never spelled the same. I’ve seen more versions of the name as I have gotten older, from Cailyn to Kaelynn to Kaylynn. I saw Kaylin’s books on bookshelves on Online Book Club, and the name, the covers and the synopsis intrigued me.

There were some issues for me regarding obtaining this book for starters. It was listed as Book Of The Day, and free to review as part of BOTD, but you had to follow Online Book Club on Twitter. I was unable to verify my Twitter, not having used it in forever, and to make a long story short, I wasn’t able to download the copy of the book successfully. I contacted Scott, who did send me the book after I explained my Twitter issues that was hanging me up, (Twitter claimed I was suspicious because I used a different email than what was listed on the account, and took 2 days to respond back to me). Of course, because nothing is ever easy peasy with me, there were a few more issues, but in the end I had obtained a working copy of the book, and I was so excited that I would be able to review it.

I actually finished the book a week ago, but due to a nasty cold that has zapped all my energy (literally sleeping as much as I can to try to rid myself of it because I don’t take sick days) and my thoughts on what I wanted to say about the book, it’s taken me longer than I would like to get this review done. I liked the book from the start, which I was happy about. It would have really sucked if after all the trouble of actually getting it and being able to review it, if I ended up disliking it… and I didn’t dislike it one bit. McFarren scored immediate brownie points with me when she made the leading lady an artist- a painter to be exact. I am an artist myself, who also trudged through art school to obtain my bachelor’s degree in Photography and Digital Art. I love when characters are artists or have artistic backgrounds. One of the reasons I was such a huge fan of the television show White Collar was because it centered around art and mystery what with Neil being an art thief there were tons of references and plot points that I felt connected to because I studied those things. I felt the same way about all the artistic references in the book, but that’s not what the book is about per se.

The story is about Kate Flaherty, a temperamental Irish blooded artist who has a knack for pushing people away, and keeping everything to herself. Her father who she has a strained relationship with is dying of cancer, and Kate needs to come to terms with his death and make peace. At the same time, her marriage is in trouble and her husband who has had enough of her closed off self tells her he’s leaving to “scare” her into waking up. When an emergency trip to her father’s pulls her out of the house before she can get his message (And she doesn’t call her husband in the chaos), her husband takes it as a sign of acknowledgement that she doesn’t care, and just LEAVES HER.

What a tangled web we weave- Drew (the husband) crashes at his bachelor buddy Brian’s. Brian’s sister Lindsay who is also Drew’s ex-girlfriend and a sour note for Drew and Kate, is also chilling in a bathrobe at Brian’s who isn’t home at the moment. I can smell this set up a mile away, and it makes me dislike the husband right off the bat. Back with Kate, she leaves sour from her father’s and late at night comes across a detour which she is run off the road by a lone deer and crashes her car. She stumbles towards a diner, where she meets Mick, trying to call for help as her phone died in the crash. This is where the story really starts.

Without giving too much of the plot away, the story really is about Kate and her own insecurities and inner demons. Kate’s journey is about forgiveness, and vulnerability, as well as accepting yourself for your faults and letting people in. I really liked the main character Kate, and I really disliked the character of Drew. Brian and Lindsay are side characters who in my opinion are only there to provide backstory for our main characters.

I really liked McFarren’s writing style. She did an awesome job pulling me in to a vividly descriptive world. It felt like the perfect book to read on a dark, stormy night alone on your couch with a blanket and some tea. I loved all the themes, and metaphors in the book, and the character development of Kate was something that I just felt connected to. This is in part because she was so well written, but also because I could identify with Kate’s self-preservation. It felt real. Her paranoia, her road to forgiveness, her mindset and thoughts being challenged.

What I didn’t like was that even though it was written well, and believable; it was predictable. I remember calling the ending not even halfway in the book. The character’s motives and reactions seemed typical. Trouble in marriage, a husband who blames his wife and flubs up. The wrapped up happy ending. I didn’t have any trouble reading it, in fact I was pretty into it and read it in a few days.

I give it 3 out of 4 stars. I couldn’t give it 2, because I really did enjoy reading it, and it kept me intrigued. I loved Kate’s character, the descriptive writing, and how much fun it was to read. I couldn’t give it 4 stars though, because it was predictable, and I couldn’t stand reading the husband’s point of view, it actually irritated me. I would recommend this book to anyone who is in to the mystery genre. I think it is safe to say I would read another book from this author.

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Flaherty's Crossing
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