Savannah, it turns out, is catatonic, and before the suicide attempt had completely assumed the identity of a dead friend-the implication being that she couldn't stand being a Wingo anymore. When he hears that his fierce, beautiful twin sister Savannah, a well-known New York poet, has once again attempted suicide, he escapes his present emasculation by flying north to meet Savannah's comely psychiatrist, Susan Lowenstein. Tom Wingo is an unemployed South Carolinian football coach whose internist wife is having an affair with a pompous cardiac man. There are plenty of tender father-daughter moments along the way, which serve as an interesting contrast to Curtis' inner turmoil as he struggles with his sense of duty to Daniel.Ī thoughtful and often surprising examination of family life after a tragedy.Ī flabby, fervid melodrama of a high-strung Southern family from Conroy ( The Great Santini, The Lords of Discipline), whose penchant for overwriting once again obscures a genuine talent. While Curtis plans his encounter with his son’s killer, Olivia uses the time in the car as an opportunity to confront her crippling phobias. Taking a leave of absence with the promise that Olivia will keep up with her schoolwork, Curtis hatches a shaky plan to enact revenge, setting off on a road trip with Olivia in tow. When a school activity results in a frightening episode with Curtis refusing to leave the roof, all while Olivia deals with the consequences of her deteriorating academic record, it's time for a change of scenery. Five years after the accident, Curtis receives a letter that the man responsible for Daniel’s death has been released from prison early. The marriage splits, and Kathleen moves back to her childhood home in Omaha, while Curtis and Olivia tailspin in Sacramento. While wife and mother Kathleen focuses on moving on after the event she sees as “a freak thing,” Curtis is swallowed by his anger and grief. The story is told from the perspective of teenage daughter Olivia, who's developed a myriad of anxieties, and father Curtis, a high school teacher who's unable to accept that this horrifying accident might truly have been just an accident. When a late-night phone call informs the Kaufmans of the tragedy in Oberlin, Ohio, the remaining family members follow differing paths of grief. A seemingly perfect family is shattered when the eldest child, Daniel, is killed in a bizarre road accident in DeBoard’s ( The Mourning Hours, 2013) second novel.
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