A review by raven88
The Year of the Storm by John Mantooth
5.0
As well as loving crime fiction, I am also a fan of contemporary American fiction, so very much in the vein of Michael Koryta, Wiley Cash and Tom Franklin, The Year of the Storm, not only conforms to the tenets of contemporary American fiction, but also manifests itself as a seamless fusion of crime inflected with a tinge of the supernatural.
This is a beautifully controlled piece of prose which struck me as a very powerful examination of the validity of memory, as adult Danny looks back on the distressing and ultimately life forming events of his early teens through therapy. There is almost a gauze-like effect to the prose, as the text is imbibed with references to how reliable memory is, not only on the part of Danny, but also of grizzled Vietnam vet Walter, whose interaction and relationship with Danny form the heart of the book. Walter acts as a kind of shadow puppet to Danny, as both have experienced traumatic events in their formative years, and the sanity of both seems to rely on the symbiotic nature of their relationship as their insecurities and fears come to light. The role of memory and reality looms large throughout, cleverly playing tricks on the characters and our perception as readers, as to the inherent truth of these men's lives, and the events that have shaped them.
As is my usual habit, I will not refer too much to the plot as the multi-layered feel to this book and some pretty startling reveals are yours to discover with as much pleasure as I did. What I will say though, is that as the events of both protagonists past and present come to light, Mantooth addresses some incredibly powerful issues throughout the book that are brought to light by the characters' closest personal relationships- grief, family, isolation, addiction, abuse, homophobia, Asperger's and the ties that bind humans together under pressure and in unlikely circumstances. However, due to the skilful control of Mantooth's prose, these seem somehow understated making them resonate more powerfully in the lyrical intensity of the prose- you are not assailed by them and the gradual introduction of them in certain contexts make them all the more affecting. The story is compelling and thought-provoking in the truest form of the Southern Gothic genre, with a feel of impending violence threatening to consume those in its shadow at any moment, and the tension is palpable throughout but with the overarching confusion of what is real and what is imagined. This is not only beautifully written and engaging, but having finished reading it a few days ago, I find I keep thinking about certain scenes from time to time, which in my book is evidence of a thoroughly good read to remain in my consciousness. The Year of the Storm is a rare find indeed.
This is a beautifully controlled piece of prose which struck me as a very powerful examination of the validity of memory, as adult Danny looks back on the distressing and ultimately life forming events of his early teens through therapy. There is almost a gauze-like effect to the prose, as the text is imbibed with references to how reliable memory is, not only on the part of Danny, but also of grizzled Vietnam vet Walter, whose interaction and relationship with Danny form the heart of the book. Walter acts as a kind of shadow puppet to Danny, as both have experienced traumatic events in their formative years, and the sanity of both seems to rely on the symbiotic nature of their relationship as their insecurities and fears come to light. The role of memory and reality looms large throughout, cleverly playing tricks on the characters and our perception as readers, as to the inherent truth of these men's lives, and the events that have shaped them.
As is my usual habit, I will not refer too much to the plot as the multi-layered feel to this book and some pretty startling reveals are yours to discover with as much pleasure as I did. What I will say though, is that as the events of both protagonists past and present come to light, Mantooth addresses some incredibly powerful issues throughout the book that are brought to light by the characters' closest personal relationships- grief, family, isolation, addiction, abuse, homophobia, Asperger's and the ties that bind humans together under pressure and in unlikely circumstances. However, due to the skilful control of Mantooth's prose, these seem somehow understated making them resonate more powerfully in the lyrical intensity of the prose- you are not assailed by them and the gradual introduction of them in certain contexts make them all the more affecting. The story is compelling and thought-provoking in the truest form of the Southern Gothic genre, with a feel of impending violence threatening to consume those in its shadow at any moment, and the tension is palpable throughout but with the overarching confusion of what is real and what is imagined. This is not only beautifully written and engaging, but having finished reading it a few days ago, I find I keep thinking about certain scenes from time to time, which in my book is evidence of a thoroughly good read to remain in my consciousness. The Year of the Storm is a rare find indeed.