February 2023: A Quiet Life by Ethan Joella – PENNSYLVANIA

4th February 2023

A Quiet Life by Ethan Joel, novel set in LeHigh Valley, Pennsylvania.

TripFiction’s February 2023 Book of the Month.

The author overheard an older man talking about a planned trip to Florida, without his wife, who had recently died. And thus the character of Chuck was born. He opens the novel as Sal, Chuck’s near neighbour (and his dog) pops in to look in on Chuck. Chuck himself is slightly dubious about the solicitous behaviour because they have never been close, but once a spouse has died, all manner of people behave differently, he discovers.

Kirsten works in an Animal Rescue Centre and is struggling to come to terms with the death of her father, who was killed in a petrol station shooting. She is a kind soul and vacillates between her affections for her boss, David and her co-worker Grayson.

Ella is mourning the loss of her daughter Riley, who, it seems was abducted from school by her estranged husband. The police aren’t particularly interested because they see this as a domestic dispute. Every day she has to contend with memories and regrets and each day is a struggle.

All three characters live in the close knit community of LeHigh Valley. Their stories start out as individual dramas which charmingly start to cross over and intersect as the narrative progresses.

Goodness, what a wonderful book. It’s poignant and psychologically intelligent. The characters are well defined as the author gets them navigating their new realities. Of course, there is sadness but it is balanced by a bit of humour and joy and a really redemptive message that there are good people in the world (sometimes one needs a reminder!). I just loved reading this novel.

Highly recommended.

Tina for the TripFiction Team

Catch the author on Twitter @JoellaWriting

Join Team TripFiction on Social Media:

Twitter (@TripFiction), Facebook (@TripFiction.Literarywanderlust), YouTube (TripFiction #Literarywanderlust), Instagram (@TripFiction) and Pinterest (@TripFiction)

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *