Customer Reviews

Abby's Passion

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I usually enjoy a story by Jackie Calhoun, but this one was more than a little disappointing. If I like a book, I will finish it in one or two evenings. I started this one on Monday and couldn't bring myself to pick it up again until Thursday. It didn't get any better, and I couldn't get motivated to finish it until the next Sunday night.

Abby lives with her manic depressive sister, Mona. Abby has not had a steady girlfriend in years. Everyone she brings home eventually gets turned off because of Mona. After Mona "creatively" paints portions of several rooms (including woodwork) in their home, Abby hires Shirley to clean up the mess. Shirley is on the cusp of having a sex change operation (she was born as Shawn), but falls in love with Mona. Mona is straight, but marries Shirley knowing the operation will still happen. In the meantime, Abby develops a close relationship with Sally -- an old friend of Mona's and Mona's current boss. Sally understands the issues surrounding Mona and helps Abby move past many of them.

Not only is the story not very believable, it's riddled with cliche. With the exception of Sally, all the characters are amazingly naive and have no dimensionality.

Like I said, I really love Calhoun's usual work and hate to be the bearer of bad tidings, but this one deserves a pass. Better luck next time.

You don't know what you're missing if you've never read any of Jackie Calhoun's novels. Her universal characterization almost closes the gap between gays and their heterosexual counterparts, i.e., her novels naturally expose how everyone faces trials and tribulations when reaching for a fulfilling life. It just doesn't matter if the protagonist is lesbian or heterosexual. In Ms. Calhoun's novels, the reader can identify with any one of the characters. In "Abby's Passion," Abby's devotion to her bipolar sister hits home for anyone who has been a caregiver and/or has an understanding at all for caregiving. Also, Ms. Calhoun's connection with her climatic surroundings puts the reader right in the moment. The dialogue moves the story along as well. No confusion as to who is speaking and when or why. All in all, Ms. Calhoun's storytelling skills can make up for all those novels that might have wasted your time.