Customer Reviews

The Last Page

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The Last Page is a solid debut; an emotional drama that takes a look at the need for love in the lives of its two protagonists, Karen Sanders and Travis Miller.

In this novel, we see how the two of them keep the world around them at a distance, and learn why it is they are so content to continue to live their lives in this fashion. Karen doesn't take men seriously because she believes they cannot be trusted, and so her relationships with them fail; she doesn't make any real efforts to make the relationships work, so when the man slips up, she sends him packing. Travis is about as quiet as one can get, contenting himself with spending countless hours typing on his computer everyday; all he does is write while slucking down copious amounts of coffee at The Coffee Cove--the place where Karen works.

Palmer's first two chapters are highly intriguing as we learn about the mysterious Travis and his absolute silence as he writes. We quickly see that the interest in this enigmatic man extends beyond merely the reader as Karen has taken to trying to study him while at work so that she can try and see who he really is. When they finally meet, the story really takes off.

Palmer writes very deliberately, taking the time to craft a story that is as much about the book's surroundings as it is about the characters themselves. If you enjoy details, you should enjoy this one because it is a rich read in that respect. At times, he does write a little more than perhaps is necessary, but not so much that the reader should become bored.

I enjoyed the characters in this story: they are compelling and the conflicts they face are quite real. The more I read, the more I grew to actually care about these main characters and found myself wanting to know how certain plot points would be resolved. Neither of the main characters are without their demons, so drama effectively builds with each subsequent scene, especially once they start to become friends.

The Last Page is a solid debut that leaves the reader with hope that there is more to come in the future. I would definitely recommend that others read this richly-layered, multi-dimensional story.

The last page, for me, was a nice change. The story gets stronger as the book progresses and I found it difficult to put the book down. Brian has an eye for detail and it shows! I highly recommend reading The last page!

In "The Last Page," Palmer combats the toughest of circumstances, with even tougher characters. His characters must deal with love, death and the life that remains. Palmer's most significant strength in his debut novel, to me, is his strong grasp of place and attention to detail. He specifically does a good job of setting his scenes in Tacoma favorites.

Economy: Palmer's novel, however, is quite wordy and underpunctuated, which makes for fairly slow reading, including a need for quite a bit of re-reading.

Also I thought there was a number of points in the novel when action was summarized rather than actually developed, which cheats the characters and the story.

"The Last Page," however, is peppered with gems, as Palmer's characters not only grapple with the meaning of love, but with themselves.

With some pieces of literature, it can be difficult to determine the author's intent in regards to a theme. Often I finish a book and wonder what drove the author to create it. What, if anything, am I supposed to take away from this book?

In the case of "The Last Page," quite the opposite is true. The themes in the book are evident, driven home through characters that even the happiest and most secure of people will find themselves connecting with.

The story centers around Travis Miller and Karen Sanders. Karen, a waitress at a coffee shop, is a happy go lucky, completely together woman by day, and a broken, scarred, borderline alcoholic by night. She drinks to dull the pain from a past that haunts her. Travis is a patron at that same coffee house. Each day he comes in, sits at the same table and types feverishly on his laptop without speaking to anyone. From the first, Karen is intrigued by Travis, and his rejection of her efforts to get to know him only fuel her intrigue that much more.

Travis is plauged by demons of his own; from a family that never loved him, from the death of his best friend, from being a social outcast all of his life, and from never, no matter how hard he tried, being good enough. With time and diligence, Karen begins to draw Travis out of his shell and a beautiful friendship blooms. They teach each other about life, happiness, and above all, trust.

Is there anyone out there who has ever felt that inability to trust people? Trust can be broken, and once you learn that lesson, I think that each and every one of us has gone through the emotional mess of wondering whether its worth it to put yourself out there again. This is how Karen and Travis feel; and being such a realistic notion, you can't help but be drawn into their story.

Not only are the characters and the plot line engaging, but so is the writing style. The language that Palmer uses is rich in description. Everything is detailed, but no overly done. The story is simple and straightforward, and appears to be straight from the heart. When I finished reading, I actually found myself wondering if the whole story was something the author had experienced first hand. It appears that genuine. The result of Palmer's efforts is a heartfelt novel about two people trying to survive in life. It's well done.