3 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
A prostitute and drug addict, a thief and stripper, a murderer, an adulterer, and human traffickers are just a few of the characters whose stories you encounter in Entanglement-Quantum and Otherwise written by John K Danenbarger. The story is complicated and the reader needs to pay attention to which character is narrating each chapter. At first, it is difficult to follow how the characters relate to one another or to find the main storyline. The threads of the various storylines weave together and you begin to understand how each character played a role in another's story. The message of this novel is that we are all interconnected and our actions create ripples that affect others in an ever-widening sphere of influence.
The surface story spans several generations and follows the lives of the Nuss family and their friends. They build lives for themselves, find themselves in challenging situations, and frequently make poor decisions. They love, cheat, lie, steal and kill, this is not your average family saga. There is another storyline below the surface that relates to physics and the deeper questions of life and the universe.
None of the characters are particularly appealing people, all are deeply flawed and often behave poorly. There is no central character to bond to or root for. Rather than create the main protagonist with a redemption arc, the author has given us a complex cast to keep track of. Joe Tink was probably my favorite complicated soul, he makes some big mistakes during the story and loses his way but, I felt his intentions were good. This is an unhappy story designed to make the reader feel discomfort while reading it. The author uses some very strange syntax and has an unusual way of describing situations. There is a weird thread to the story, in which the universe tries to right a misalignment. I experienced an awkward push-pull feeling towards this novel. On the one hand, I didn’t enjoy the writing style or like the characters. On the other hand, I was curious to know where the story was going and what would happen to the characters.
The fact that I was curious and engaged with a book I wasn’t sure I liked, points to the author’s skill. Difficult stories about complicated humans are more challenging to write and to read. The book has no typos or grammar mistakes and has been carefully edited. I would rate this book 3 out of 4 stars.
I do not feel this book would have a wide general appeal. It is not an easy, relaxing read. There is strong language and very little sense of fun. This is a dark, challenging story.
******
Entanglement - Quantum and Otherwise
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon
