THE
ANGRY WOMAN SUITE
By
Lee Fullbright
BLURB:
Raised in a crumbling New England mansion by four women with
personalities as split as a cracked mirror, young Francis Grayson has an
obsessive need to fix them all. There’s his mother, distant and beautiful
Magdalene; his disfigured, suffocating Aunt Stella; his odious grandmother; and
the bane of his existence, his abusive and delusional Aunt Lothian.
For years, Francis plays a tricky game of duck and cover
with the women, turning to music to stay sane. He finds a friend and mentor in
Aidan Madsen, schoolmaster, local Revolutionary War historian, musician and
keeper of the Grayson women’s darkest secrets. In a skillful move by
Fullbright, those secrets are revealed through the viewpoints of three different
people–Aidan, Francis and Francis’stepdaughter, Elyse–adding layers of eloquent
complexity to a story as powerful as it is troubling.
While Francis realizes his dream of forming his own big band
in the 1940s, his success is tempered by the inner monster of his childhood,
one that roars to life when he marries Elyse’s mother. Elyse becomes her
stepfather’s favorite target, and her bitterness becomes entwined with a desire
to know the real Francis Grayson.
For Aidan’s part, his involvement with the Grayson family
only deepens, and secrets carried for a lifetime begin to coalesce as he seeks
to enlighten Francis–and subsequently Elyse–of why the events of so many years
ago matter now. The ugliness of deceit, betrayal and resentment permeates
the narrative, yet there are shining moments of hope, especially in the
relationship between Elyse and her grandfather.
Ultimately, as more of the past filters into the present,
the question becomes: What is the truth, and whose version of the truth is
correct? Fullbright never untangles this conundrum, and it only adds to the
richness of this exemplary novel.—Kirkus
Reviews
EXCERPT
ONE
ELYSE
1955
It is said that love
is comfort, and that comfort comes from recognition of the beloved. Papa was
the first to tell me this, and if it’s even a little bit true, then I took my
comfort for granted, not realizing that one can’t truly appreciate the beloved
until one yearns for the comfort to be returned. Even now, when I can’t sleep
at night, when I can’t slow the speeding of my heart, when I can’t stop the
replaying of what-if’s in my head, I take myself back to that place where
cabbage roses dance on walls and my beloved reigns supreme; where I am queen of
his heart and he is my comfort, and then and only then do I feel safe.
You’d think it would
be enough, being able to conjure up at least a measure of my old, first love.
Yet for a long while it wasn’t. Because I was incapable of stanching the
nagging questions about my second, almost greater love. Questioning why Francis
hadn’t seen the truth of it like Papa had; that the streak I’d struggled with
hadn’t been born of badness; that badness wasn’t an intrinsic part of me like
my eyes being blue.
But Francis, unfortunately,
hadn’t been able to see through things the way Papa had, and that was because
Francis had rarely felt safe. You could see it in the way Francis’s eyes got
doubtful taking in a room, and the way he was always biting down on his lower
lip. The way it looked as if he was always trying to keep himself from crying.
REVIEW SOUND BYTES
From Kirkus Reviews
"Secrets and lies suffuse generations of one Pennsylvania
family . . . in a skillful move by Fullbright, those secrets are
revealed through the viewpoints of three very different people . .
. a superb debut that exposes the consequences of the choices we make and
legacy's sometimes excruciating embrace."
2012 DISCOVERY AWARD
GLOBAL E-BOOK AWARD NOMINEE
From Midwest Book Review
"A very human story . . . a fine read focusing on the long lasting dysfunction of family."
"There is something fascinating in labyrinthine plot twists, which is what we have here, and I must applaud Fullbright for her keen and magical ability to pull it off with such aplomb."-Norm Goldman, Montreal Books Examiner and Bookpleasures.com
5 Stars ***** Reviewed by Joana James for Readers Favorite: "The Angry Woman Suite is quite a ride . . . very cleverly written . . . an outstanding novel."
Rating: 5.0 stars Reviewed by Anne B. for Readers Favorite:" Lee Fullbright is master of characterization."
Rating: 5.0 stars Reviewed by Alice D. for Readers Favorite:"The Angry Woman Suite is a brilliant, complex, complicated story about talented, complicated people . . . this is a story to remember!"
AUTHOR INFORMATION:
Lee Fullbright, a medical practice consultant in her
non-writing life, lives on San Diego ’s
beautiful peninsula with her writing partner, Baby Rae, a 12-year-old rescued
Australian cattle dog with attitude.
The Angry Woman Suite,
a Kirkus Critics’ pick, 5-starred Readers Favorite, and a Discovery Aware
winner, is her first published novel.
LINKS:
Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/#!/fullbrightlee
Blog/website: http://www.leefullbright.com
Leave a comment with your email address to win a $50 Amazon gift card. Tour wide giveaway.
12 comments:
Thank you for hosting
Thank you for hosting me and The Angry Woman Suite (and I love the look of your blog-- very nice).
Sounds like an interesting book, especially that the narrative comes from the perspective of three different characters.
great comments about this book. It really sounds awesome.
Thank you for the great excerpt, I was really drawn in by it
fencingromein at hotmail dot com
What a lovely excerpt :) It seems emotional in a kind of...somber romantic way...does that even make sense???
andralynn7 AT gmail DOT com
I can't see where/how I can respond to each of you individually (?), so this is a blanket thank you for your comments--and, yes, Andra Lyn, your comment does make sense ... it's not only spot-on, but lovely as well.
Great excerpt, thank you.
Kit3247(at)aol(dot)com
Sounds very intense and cool!
vitajex(at)aol(dot)com
A most interesting excerpt thank you.
marypres(AT)gmail(DOT)com
I cannot believe how amazingly good this book sounds! Thank you for hosting, and sharing this book :)
oddball2003 at hotmail dot com
Nice blurb
bn100candg at hotmail dot com
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