A review by jbmorgan86
The Lola Quartet by Emily St. John Mandel
3.0
I’m making my way through Emily St. John Mandel’s short bibliography. I started with The Glass Hotel. It got rave reviews, but I wasn’t particularly moved by it. I then read the post-apocalyptic/pandemic novel Station Eleven and loved it. I followed that with her newest novel(la?) Sea of Tranquility. I think it may have been my favorite one yet.
While at the beach, I read through The Lola Quartet. This book was written in Mandel’s career and it shows. There are glimmers of the greatness of the later books here, but she was still developing as an author.
The plot: Theres a jazz quartet at a magnet school in Florida. The girlfriend of one of the band members, Anna, disappears under mysterious circumstances. Rumors swirl that she was pregnant and fled to her aunt in Georgia. Her boyfriend, Gavin, is heartbroken but goes on with his life in college in New York.
Now, a decade later, Gavin’s life is in a downward spiral. By coincidence he sees a photograph of child that looks like it could be his child. This sends him on a mission to find Anna and her baby. However, a drug dealer whom Anna has stolen from is also searching for her. There are several plot twists and reveals. Great characters.
While at the beach, I read through The Lola Quartet. This book was written in Mandel’s career and it shows. There are glimmers of the greatness of the later books here, but she was still developing as an author.
The plot: Theres a jazz quartet at a magnet school in Florida. The girlfriend of one of the band members, Anna, disappears under mysterious circumstances. Rumors swirl that she was pregnant and fled to her aunt in Georgia. Her boyfriend, Gavin, is heartbroken but goes on with his life in college in New York.
Now, a decade later, Gavin’s life is in a downward spiral. By coincidence he sees a photograph of child that looks like it could be his child. This sends him on a mission to find Anna and her baby. However, a drug dealer whom Anna has stolen from is also searching for her. There are several plot twists and reveals. Great characters.