Before the Storm
by Diane Chamberlain
Published by MIRA Books
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Reviewed by Michelle Kerns
Before the Storm is a riveting book. The narratives of four people—Laurel Lockwood, Laurel’s two children, 17-year-old Maggie and 15-year-old Andy, and Laurel’s brother-in-law, Marcus—are deftly woven together to form a story that spans marriages, births, deaths, heartache, and betrayal; ultimately, that story demonstrates the strength and redemptive power of familial love.
Andy Lockwood is different from other children his age as he is a victim of his mother’s depression-induced alcoholism when she was pregnant with him, Andy has Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. Although he is happy, bright, and energetic, he can also be unpredictable and difficult to manage. When Laurel hears that the church where Andy and other youth group children are attending an evening lock-in has caught fire, causing the death of several people, she is frantic. She is even more stunned when she later learns that Andy is not only safe, he is the hero of the evening—with the children and their chaperones trapped in the building, Andy leads them out through a window in the men’s bathroom to safety. Andy is an instant nationwide hero. However, when several witnesses testify that they saw Andy outside of the church just prior to the fire and Andy is arrested, public opinion turns and Laurel’s faith in him begins to crumble. Could Andy really be responsible for the tragedy? Does she really know her own son?
Laurel is soon overwhelmed not just by fears for Andy, but by memories from the past: memories of her husband, Jaime, her own descent into black depression, the disintegration of the happiness she and Jaime once shared together, and his sudden tragic death. Laurel soon finds that much of what she thought about the past was incorrect, just as many things she believes about those around her in the present are also only illusions.
Before the Storm is complex, thought-provoking, and compulsively readable. Chamberlain makes all four of the narrating characters incredibly likeable and believable. In addition, by placing the story in the small coastal community of Topsail Island, small town life and its inherent complications permeate the book and add a fascinating dimension to an already multi-layered story.
This is the sort of book you’ll want to lie in bed on a rainy day reading from cover to cover.
Armchair Interviews says: Before the Storm is an enthralling tale from a talented author.
Author’s Web site and blog: http://www.DianeChamberlain.com