Most Helpful Customer Reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"He'd always cared too much about what people thought.", November 14, 2009
This review is from: The Ghost Trap (LeapLit) (Paperback)
Burdened by the hard knocks of life in a Maine town populated by families who have been in the lobstering trade for several generations, Jamie Eugley is a man with a good heart and an explosive temper. He so wants to do the right thing, but as often as not, he can shatter his best intentions with an outburst that results almost immediately in regrets and repercussions. He lives with the worries of his hand-to-mouth business and the oppressive responsibilities of caring for Anja, a former girlfriend who has been seriously incapacitated by a head trauma (the cause of which is unveiled some way into the book) and whom he has sworn never to abandon. His lifelong friends bring him amusement and loyalty tinged with occasional embarrassment. He has almost surrendered to the tyrannical drudgery of his so-called life when he meets a bohemian, tomboyish hippie chick named (of all things) Happy. At times, Jamie reminds me of a character from a Halldor Laxness novel--a faintly loutish but likable hero intrigued by the cosmopolitan world outside his small-town surroundings yet aware that he could never be a part of it. When he goes to the rich-kids rave at which he meets Happy, he is surprised that they are "sociable and accepting, even of him in his blue work shirt," yet he realizes that it "wouldn't be the other way around." A few years earlier, he had even attempted an escape that brought him to the Portland on America's other coast, but it didn't take him long to realize he will always be a modern-day yeoman and, discouraged and broke, he returned home. Yet that longing for something different sets him apart from his friends--his dalliance with Happy only rekindles the hunger--and it's this conflict between the world of realities and the world of possibilities that will result in tragedy and, ultimately, his redemption. Jamie isn't just a lobsterman, he's Everyman who has ever wanted to be more than he is. "The Ghost Trap" is not just a good read, it is an excellent novel--and I'm almost ready to proclaim it as the best work of contemporary fiction that I've read this year. (It's certainly the best debut.) Stephens's knack for plotting is enhanced by her ear for impeccable dialogue (both local and urban) and by authentic interior monologue: her portrayal of Happy is so dead-on that I felt like I knew her, and some passages simply awed me with their lyrical precision. There are as many hilarious moments as poignant ones--yet the novel never once stoops to sentimentality. And there's enough of a plot--involving a mystery set off by decades-long territorial feuds between lobstermen--to satisfy the reader expecting more than a character study. Stephens has given her deeply flawed saint a life worth examining.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ah, the romanticism of life as a lobsterman in Maine... NOT!, October 2, 2009
This review is from: The Ghost Trap (LeapLit) (Paperback)
The fresh air, honest work, and good food... how many of us wish we had that simple life as a lobsterman in Maine, the home of the highest quality lobsters in the world? Except... sometimes the lobsters aren't there but the mortgage payment and bills are. Sometimes the need to fish is there but the weather doesn't cooperate. Then there is the competition for prime lobster trapping areas, the cost of traps and bait, and the knuckle-busting, back-breaking work. And the stress, with its escapist drinking, and the drinking leading to the coming-of-age DUIs, and the DUIs resulting in grievous injuries... In The Ghost Trap, author K. Stephens introduces us to Jamie Eugley, a lobsterman like his father, and his father's father. On top of everything else, he is committed to caring for his girlfriend, Anja, who suffered a brain injury in a near drowning accident. Jamie's life gets even more complicated, as he meets an exciting and vivacious sailor named Happy, and gets involved in the escalating lobster trap wars between competing families and towns. This novel was just enthralling, and you'll have no idea how things are going to turn out until the end. Author Stephens brings her knowledge of the sea and lobstering to good use, as she mixes in unique characters and a constant tension that continues to simmer for over 300 pages. This is a sad, sad story, but a very good novel. Recommended.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderful story of lobsters and loss, September 17, 2009
This review is from: The Ghost Trap (LeapLit) (Paperback)
Stephens is a terrific writer. In this novel, she brings to life a group of Maine lobstermen, including Jamie Hugley, who, at 27, is the guardian of his former fiancee - a young woman named Anja who sustained a brain-injury after falling off of his boat. He is torn between his strong sense of responsibility and the possibility of starting over again with another woman, in another place. The characters are vibrant and complicated. Stephens managed to make me feel compassion for a bunch of beer-swilling rednecks, and by the end of the book, she had broken my heart
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
