Melinda Clayton

This is a fairly dark story of a broken family, and damaged people doing their best.

Thirty years ago, Tabby Clark, a young woman who grew up in the foster care system, and became addicted to drugs and alcohol, gave birth to identical twin boys. The relationship with the father didn't last, no surprise, and Tabby had, while pregnant, formed a friendship with a fellow addict in recovery, Von, and Von's husband, Ben.

Tabby kept backsliding on her recovery, even while working in Von and Ben's nursery business, until Vernon, the boys' father, stole one of the boys, Bobby. Twenty-five years later, Bobby suddenly reappears. On tv. Having been arrested for the murder of his father, Vernon.

Tabby had really stopped drinking and using after Vernon took Bobby, in order to hang on to her other son, Ricky. Now everything she's accomplished is threatened by her desire to have her other son back.

They're all complicated, flawed people.Tabby has been clean for over two decades now, but it's still a work in progress. She loves her son, Ricky, but she obsesses over her missing son, Bobby, and her feelings of guilt about him being kidnapped by his father. This means that in many ways, Ricky has taken second place to a ghost. Ricky loves his mother and knows she loves him, but he's aware of Bobby between them. He also wonders why his father took Bobby, but apparently couldn't be bothered to take him too.

Von is perhaps the strongest among them, but her status as clean and sober is as much a work in progress as Tabby's. She's also caring for her husband, Ben, who is slowly being swallowed up by Alzheimer's. He still has lucid periods, even days--and Ben, lucid, is a valuable person to have around, for everyone.

And of course, no one knows what really happened with Bobby and Vernon, except that Vernon is dead and Bobby killed him. The situation becomes even more fraught when Bobby, being transferred from one facility to another, escapes--seriously injuring two guards.

Tabby, Von, Ricky, Ben, and Von and Ben's daughter, Martha, are all interesting complicated, likable characters. They are all flawed, and they don't always make the right decisions or choices--some more than others. It's a darker story than I usually like, but it's very good, and the narration is excellent.

Recommended.

I received a free copy of this audiobook from the narrator, and am reviewing it voluntarily.… (mais)

Rebecca Reynolds returns to her parents' home for her weekly visit only to literally stumble over her wheelchair-bound sister's dead body.

Her parents are also dead, all three hacked to death with an ax.

She calls 911. She wonders where her other sister, Lena, disowned by the family years ago, is. And she wonders how long it will be before Lena is arrested.

It's a very effective, chilling set-up for chilling psychological suspense. We see the story through three sets of eyes--Rebecca's, Lena's, and those of the lawyer Rebecca hires for her sister (who is indeed arrested as the most likely suspect), Brian Stone.

Lena truly is the most likely suspect, and the evidence mounts against her, even as Stone becomes convinced of her innocence.

We see all three viewpoint characters develop as complex and sometimes ambiguous figures. Other characters, seen only through the eyes of these three, also become nuanced and layered.

Michelle Babb does an excellent job of narration as always, and Melinda Clayton kept me guessing till the end.

Highly recommended.

I received a free copy of this audiobook, and am reviewing it voluntarily.… (mais)

The story follows Phil and Anna and their friend, Brian from college through their professional lives and the tragedies that await them. The book is dark, but not graphic, beautifully written, and instantly engaging. The book opens with a suspenseful hook: Phil is in prison awaiting sentencing for the murder of his wife.

Phil and Anna's lives, and the depths of Brian's involvement in them, are all gradually revealed in the ensuing chapters, with the uncovering of dark secrets each of these deep and multi-layered characters has kept hidden. The chapters alternate between past and present and are easy to follow.

Blessed Are The Wholly Broken is an excellent book.… (mais)