I was very excited to be invited to be a part of the blog tour for this book and I couldn’t wait to read it. I was not disappointed.
Right away, the reader gets the feeling of the socio-economic divide that is part of the tapestry of the area commonly known as the Hamptons. While there are people who live there year-around, it really “comes alive” in the summer when ultra-rich Manhattanites make their pilgrimage to the shores of Long Island for a few months of sun and fun.
It is ironic, then, that the characters in this novel actually feel quite dead; whether it is due to dead end jobs, or having to put up a front in one’s personal life, the main characters consistently find themselves at loose ends and without many prospects.
It was evident that the author was writing from experience (or at least personal knowledge) because his detail painted extremely vivid pictures. What was extremely illustrative, however, was how he was able to draw parallels between the characters. When faced with tragedy, they each come to some stark realizations.
The exploration of themes such as “money can’t buy love,” and “there’s no way out of a bad situation if you’re poor” are juxtaposed perfectly. Each character ultimately realizes that they DO have control over their situations, and it is very interesting to see the choices that each of them make.
I enjoyed this book immensely. It was deep and had an interesting plot. The characters were well-developed and their actions were realistic. I highly recommend this study of human nature. My Goodreads review is below.
The East End by
Jason Allen
My rating:
5 of 5 stars
This page-turner set in the Hamptons perfectly illustrates that adage that money can’t buy happiness and of how quickly lives can become intertwined due to a single incident. I thought that the perspectives of the characters and how each of them reacted to their situations was extremely well-done. The character studies were a fascinating juxtaposition of roles: in some cases, the people who usually felt powerless held the most power, while the people who usually controlled everything completely lost control. I really enjoyed this book and highly recommend it. Visit my blog at Fireflies and Free Kicks Fiction Reviews for some deeper thoughts on the book. This review was written based on a pre-release digital ARC provided by NetGalley.
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