{"id":2254,"date":"2010-03-15T08:00:08","date_gmt":"2010-03-15T12:00:08","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.amberstults.com\/?p=2254"},"modified":"2010-03-15T01:05:04","modified_gmt":"2010-03-15T05:05:04","slug":"one-good-turn-kate-atkinson","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.amberstults.com\/?p=2254","title":{"rendered":"One Good Turn – Kate Atkinson"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"One<\/a><\/p>\n

What does a writer, two teenagers, the wife of a shoddy home builder, and a retired cop turned ex-detective now millionaire have in common?\u00c2\u00a0 They’re all witnesses to a fender bender at the Edinburgh festival.\u00c2\u00a0 It’s a seemingly ordinary accident that quickly escalates into an assault before being diffused by the writer.<\/p>\n

And this writer doesn’t use words to get the situation under control.\u00c2\u00a0 In fact, he’s a writer who is a little bit tired of words.\u00c2\u00a0 Or more accurately, the words and exploits of the main character in his series of best selling novels.\u00c2\u00a0 His actions have unintended consequences.<\/p>\n

The teenagers are cutting class and looking for a thrill.\u00c2\u00a0 One is headed towards a life of crime – too intelligent and bored for his own good.\u00c2\u00a0 The other is an awkward teen who happens to be\u00c2\u00a0the son of a police detective, Louise Monroe.\u00c2\u00a0 Louise ends up investigating events that may or may not be related to the car accident.<\/p>\n

Louise and her son, Archie, live in one of the poorly constructed homes built by Gloria’s husband.\u00c2\u00a0 When the home construction business was small Gloria kept the books.\u00c2\u00a0 Now she’s cut out of the day to day stuff but she knows the homes aren’t built well or with good materials.\u00c2\u00a0 Investigators are closing in on her husband’s business.<\/p>\n

Jackson Brodie from Case Histories<\/em> returns to One Good Turn<\/em> as a man trying to find himself.\u00c2\u00a0 The curse of being a millionaire is the lack of purpose in one’s life.\u00c2\u00a0 He’s helped finance a play at the Edinburgh festival with his girlfriend as one of its cast members.\u00c2\u00a0 Uncomfortable in London or his house in Paris this is a holiday from his ordinary life.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

This novel was a delight from beginning to end.\u00c2\u00a0 Tense moments, such as a Jackson Brodie alley fight scene, can turn comical with just a few unexpected words.<\/p>\n

One thing I noticed is the reader gets to hear the important characters’ thoughts.\u00c2\u00a0 While more than one of these characters can be in a scene together, the reader only gets to know what one character is thinking.\u00c2\u00a0 Any more and it would get to be a confusing jumble.\u00c2\u00a0<\/p>\n

Atkinson’s next novel, When Will There Be Good News?<\/em>, has Jackson Brodie and Louise Monroe in it.\u00c2\u00a0 I swore I wouldn’t let myself read it until I was done with this review.\u00c2\u00a0 I cheated and began reading it a few days ago; that’s how badly I wanted to know what happens to them.<\/p>\n

You can find out more about Kate Atkinson and her books on the Kate Atkinson Ning Group<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Title:<\/strong> One Good Turn<\/em>
\nAuthor:<\/strong> Kate Atkinson
\nPublisher:<\/strong> Little, Brown and Company
\nSource:<\/strong> My Personal Library<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What does a writer, two teenagers, the wife of a shoddy home builder, and a retired cop turned ex-detective now millionaire have in common?\u00c2\u00a0 They’re all witnesses to a fender bender at the Edinburgh festival.\u00c2\u00a0 It’s a seemingly ordinary accident that quickly escalates into an assault before being diffused by the writer. And this writer… Continue reading One Good Turn – Kate Atkinson<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[257,227,271,228,238],"class_list":["post-2254","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-review","tag-jackson-brodie","tag-kate-atkinson","tag-louise-monroe","tag-one-good-turn","tag-when-will-there-be-good-news","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t