Flight into Fantasy

The Burke series by Andrew Vachss is one of my favorites. It’s drastically different from most of what I read, but I have loved each of the books I’ve read so far. The third book in the series, Blue Belle is no exception. The gritty world of Burke and his hodgepodge group of family is all too real, but I still wouldn’t want to live there, even if it is fun to visit.

This time out, Burke is hired to find out who’s running something called a ghost van, which picks up prostitutes and kills them. It’s not the sort of case that would interest most private eyes, but Burke’s an anti-hero. He lives on the gray side of the law, and so, with some reluctance, he takes on the case. He also meets Belle, a stripper with issues of her own, and begins a whirlwind romance with her.

As with the other Vachss books I’ve read, this one starts off strong and never lets go. Vachss’s prose is spare and terse, and the book is divided into over a hundred short chapters. Both of these techniques ratchet up the suspense to good effect.

It’s the characters, though, that keep me coming back. I love Burke with the kind of fangirlish devotion that the character himself would probably find repellent. He’s a complete bad-ass, and the perfect alpha male. He’s got his vulnerable spots, and watching him work through fear for those he loves is heart-wrenching, especially when he admits that he shouldn’t let himself be vulnerable to other people. Other characters have said that in books, but I really did feel for Burke. And, yet again, we get Burke’s family, from Mama to Max the Silent to, most prominently, the Prof. All of these characters add so much to the story, and I love how Vachss brings us their back stories slowly throughout the course of the series.

That being said, the only sour note I felt involved Belle. I thought she was annoyingly clingy, and I just didn’t buy her characterization. She falls for Burke so fast and so hard and with such complete devotion, and yet it’s not exactly the kind of thing that will end happily. She’s as screwed up as every other Vachss character, and I sympathized with her for that, but, man, she was soooo clingy! I also had a problem with Burke referring to her as “little girl”. Burke needs a woman with more emotional maturity, and Belle? Is not that woman.

The plot was excellent as well. There’s a lot of sex, a lot of grit, and a lot of violence, but none of it is gratuitous. I couldn’t seem to stop reading once I’d begun the book, because I had to make sure the characters I loved would turn out to be OK.

The Burke series is dark and edgy and sometimes hard to deal with, but I would recommend it highly. Each of the books can be read as a standalone, though I recommend starting with Flood and Strega in that order because you’ll get a better sense of the characters. This one rates a strong B+ for me.

Title: Thirteen Reasons why
Author: Jay Asher
Genre: Young Adult
Reason for Reading: Several bloggers I read loved this book, so I put it on my list.

Synopsis:

Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers several cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker–his classmate and crush–who committed suicide two weeks earlier. On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out how he made the list.
Through Hannah and Clay’s dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.

Other Takes:

• Tiny Little Reading Room: mixed

• Becky’s Book Reviews: very positive
• Teen Book Review: 5 stars
• Beth Fish Reads: mixed, but she also listened to and commented on the audio.
• Trish: mostly positive
• My Friend Amy: positive, but very thoughtful.
• A Reader’s Respite: very positive
• Last but not least, Kailana’s review: positive.

My Thoughts: This is why I read YA. This book epitomizes the very best that the genre has to offer, and is easily one of the best books I’ve read this year. It’s raw, it’s real, it resonates on an emotional level. It is also not to be missed on audio, as the style lends itself to audio narration. The two narrators of the audible version do a great job portraying Hannah and Clay, and they lend an immediacy to the story that I’m not sure would have been there in print. What’s more, this book gets a place of honor as one of my rare keepers because it evoked a visceral reaction. I happened to read it alone in the house, and I literally had to seek out company once I was done reading, because the emotions it evoked were so huge and primal that I just wanted someone to give me a hug.

After I finished the book, Kailana told me she’d read and hadn’t reviewed it, so we decided to do a joint review. I asked her some questions about the book, and she asked me some as well. Here are my answers to her questions. You can click on her review above to read what she had to say.

< 1. Did you find the book believable once you read the entire thing? Did it seem like something that could really happen, or did you think it was blown out of proportion?

I did find it believable. I mean, all those things that happened to Hannah were cumulatively pretty small, but still, I was convinced they could add up. I tend to be a pretty tough reader, and I never once had one of those “Wait a minute! This would never happen in real life!” moments. In fact, the things I realized that people had a problem with just never crossed my mind until I started collecting other reviews for this post.

2. Who do you think the marketing age for this book is? Is it just for high schoolers, or do you think it is a more far-reaching topic? Do you think it should be a book taught in schools?

That’s a good question. I think it’s definitely a far-reaching topic, and I could absolutely see teaching it in schools. I know we had teen suicide when I was in high school–I remember one guy fairly clearly because a mutual friend had confided that she should have seen it coming and didn’t think she could do anything about it. So I think it’s a relevant topic, and I think the book works as well because it doesn’t talk down to kids, either.

3. How did you feel when you finished this book? What are the first thoughts that came to mind, or, what are thoughts that are coming to mind now?

I was glad it was over, but I wasn’t sorry I read it at all. This was one of the few books I’ve ever read that has managed to make me cry. As I said, I was at home by myself while I was reading, and I remember burying my face in my hands and sobbing. I couldn’t summon up actual tears, but there were so many emotions that the book envoked in me that I needed some kind of catharsis. Not a whole lot gets me to that point.

That said, I liked the hopeful way the book ended. We know, because the tapes did make it to Clay, that Hannah’s dead, but at least Clay is left hoping that maybe he can be there for someone else.

I do have to say that I kept wondering why it had to be Clay who got to narrate this book. One of my questions to Kailana was whether the book would have been as effective if we’d had one of the earlier narrators instead of Clay. I guess that’s the fandom participant in me speaking. At any rate, I did like Clay as a narrator, so the point is moot.

Final Thoughts: Go out. Read this book. Preferably on audio.

My Grade: A