Fiction

A very noirish novel, set in a university town, which is probably New Haven where I live. There is irony, despair and black humor in the author's strongest suit, character development. Strangely, I found a kind of kinship of his writing with John Cheever, who also sought an almost redemptive (religiously) tone, throughout the book.
I am not finished with it yet but so far it holds me with fascination with the characters and its "what's next?" touch.

Author Stone himself has a history of alcoholism and drugs, plus emphesyma from nicotine (he is 75) and had a horrible childhood. He is writing out about his tortures, I think, in much of this novel. The despair is pretty soaked in with this book and it makes me fear for the mental state of the author. But in the meantime he has delivered a real accomplishment in novel making.