THE
ANGRY WOMAN SUITE
By
Lee Fullbright
BLURB:
Raised in a crumbling New England mansion by four women with
personalities as split as a cracked mirror, young Francis Grayson has an
obsessive need to fix them all. There’s his mother, distant and beautiful
Magdalene; his disfigured, suffocating Aunt Stella; his odious grandmother; and
the bane of his existence, his abusive and delusional Aunt Lothian.
For years, Francis plays a tricky game of duck and cover
with the women, turning to music to stay sane. He finds a friend and mentor in
Aidan Madsen, schoolmaster, local Revolutionary War historian, musician and
keeper of the Grayson women’s darkest secrets. In a skillful move by
Fullbright, those secrets are revealed through the viewpoints of three different
people–Aidan, Francis and Francis’stepdaughter, Elyse–adding layers of eloquent
complexity to a story as powerful as it is troubling.
While Francis realizes his dream of forming his own big band
in the 1940s, his success is tempered by the inner monster of his childhood,
one that roars to life when he marries Elyse’s mother. Elyse becomes her
stepfather’s favorite target, and her bitterness becomes entwined with a desire
to know the real Francis Grayson.
For Aidan’s part, his involvement with the Grayson family
only deepens, and secrets carried for a lifetime begin to coalesce as he seeks
to enlighten Francis–and subsequently Elyse–of why the events of so many years
ago matter now. The ugliness of deceit, betrayal and resentment permeates
the narrative, yet there are shining moments of hope, especially in the
relationship between Elyse and her grandfather.
Ultimately, as more of the past filters into the present,
the question becomes: What is the truth, and whose version of the truth is
correct? Fullbright never untangles this conundrum, and it only adds to the
richness of this exemplary novel.—Kirkus
Reviews
“I’ll
tell you what I’m ready for, Aidan. I’m ready for the top floor.” His eyebrows
shot up.
“I
beg your pardon?”
“The
third floor of Grayson House. I’m ready for it. I’m really ready.”
“I
don’t think I understand—”
“Please,
Aidan.” I emphasized each word: “I’m ready to meet Jamie.”
I
turned and walked out of that parlor then, and into the foyer and up the ten
steps to the landing where the grand staircase turned direction. I ran up the
first flight, then paused at the second landing, waiting for Aidan. When I
glimpsed him behind me, I turned and ran up the next flight, to the third
floor, straight for the door at the end of the hallway, next to the door that
opened onto the outside stairs.
I’d
been able to pinpoint this door as the one by the soft thumps I’d heard when
I’d sneaked into Papa’s room on the second floor—things nobody thought I’d
hear—and by watching from my spot across the road: the quick deliveries and
arrivals, the things and people nobody thought I’d see.
I
hesitated, not feeling anything, I was now so empty. No more anger. Instead I was in tune with senses:
the steady tick-tock of the clock at the end of the otherwise soundless
hallway, the wallpaper’s perfectly vertical stripe, even an aromatic odor
reminiscent of the appendectomy I’d had when I was six—was it ether? And then,
finally, Aidan’s ragged breathing when he caught up with me. We were ready, in position—and it was understood I’d assumed
leadership: I’d go first.
I
turned the doorknob. My opponent had just run through his resources.
REVIEW SOUND BYTES
From Kirkus Reviews
"Secrets and lies suffuse generations of one Pennsylvania
family . . . in a skillful move by Fullbright, those secrets are
revealed through the viewpoints of three very different people . .
. a superb debut that exposes the consequences of the choices we make and
legacy's sometimes excruciating embrace."
2012 DISCOVERY AWARD
GLOBAL E-BOOK AWARD NOMINEE
From Midwest Book Review
"A very human story . . . a fine read
focusing on the long lasting dysfunction of family."
"There is something fascinating in
labyrinthine plot twists, which is what we have here, and I must applaud
Fullbright for her keen and magical ability to pull it off with such
aplomb."-Norm Goldman, Montreal Books Examiner and Bookpleasures.com
5 Stars ***** Reviewed by Joana James for
Readers Favorite: "The
Angry Woman Suite is quite a ride . . . very cleverly written . . . an
outstanding novel."
Rating: 5.0 stars Reviewed by Anne B. for
Readers Favorite:" Lee Fullbright is master of
characterization."
Rating: 5.0 stars Reviewed by Alice D. for Readers Favorite:"The Angry Woman Suite is a brilliant, complex,
complicated story about talented, complicated people . . . this is a story
to remember!"
AUTHOR INFORMATION:
Lee Fullbright, a medical practice consultant in her
non-writing life, lives on San Diego’s beautiful peninsula with her writing
partner, Baby Rae, a 12-year-old rescued Australian cattle dog with
attitude.
The Angry Woman Suite,
a Kirkus Critics’ pick, 5-starred Readers Favorite, and a Discovery Aware
winner, is her first published novel.
LINKS:
Anita
www.anitaphilmar.com
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