(This is the first in a series of reviews of authors who will be appearing at the Miami Book Fair at Miami Dade College's Wolfson Campus, Nov. 17 through 24. Street fair: Nov. 22-24 ).
"Chances Are… A Novel," by Richard Russo, Knopf, 2019, $26.95
(Richard Russo is at the Miami Book Fair on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 8 p.m. at the Chapman Conference Center, Building 3, 2nd Floor, Room 3210, 300 NE Second Ave., Miami, Fla. 33132)
"Chances Are... A Novel," by Richard Russo, Knopf, 2019. $26.95
Classic Richard Russo, this novel centers on the kind of protagonists he's famous for, which, in this case, are three old (all 66 years old) former college friends Lincoln, Teddy, and Mickey. They have come together for a weekend at a cottage on Martha's Vineyard that will lay bare their lives, their hopes, and their secrets. Lincoln also has a major decision to make. Will he sell the cottage, the last link to his much-loved late mother?
All of them had family issues, different from each other's but still problematic. Russo is aware that no one's life is that easy, whether well-off, getting by, or working poor. In a way, for these three, these issues were bonding.
Their last meaningful interaction was Memorial Day weekend in 1971, at this same cottage, but their numbers were increased by one: a beautifully wild girl named Jacy Calloway, who also went to their college, and with whom all the friends were in love. She disappeared that weekend after leaving a goodbye note on the kitchen table; she has never been heard from since.
The young men all met when they took campus jobs in the kitchen of Jacy's sorority. Because of the expensive tuition at the school, even Lincoln needed to work.
In the present day, Lincoln is perhaps the most "successful" of the trio. He is a commercial real estate broker with a loving wife (a college classmate as well, from the fictitious elite northeastern Minerva College); Teddy, who has toyed time to time with becoming a priest, works as a book publisher for a small Roman Catholic university in Syracuse, N.Y.; and Mickey, a musician who got into Minerva because of his extraordinary test grades. They are all bright but did their youthful promise play out the way they'd hoped?
And then there are the secrets - not the least of which is what happened to Jacy - and how they've come to terms - or have they? - with what they have become. Events were set in motion during a pivotal evening watching television at Minerva when the young men find out their Vietnam draft lottery numbers. Mickey, with a very low number, seems a sure bet to go to Vietnam. Or will he flee to Canada upon his friends' urging.
Red herrings as to what happened to Jacy abound, and suspicions slowly mount as to who might have done what and what exactly did people see, and when. A retired police chief ominously named Coffin raises the most chilling suspicion and the problematic next-door neighbor - the next cottage over - seems to be entangled in the mystery. Is he the villain of the piece or is it, just possibly, one of the friends who might be?
But, again, classic Russo. Nothing is really what it seems in the lives of these men. What they should have confided in each other long, long ago - as close as they were - comes to a head as all the red herrings collide and explode during this climactic weekend. Sometimes secrets are kept for far too long and result in damage and sadness.
There is a much sadness in "Chances Are...;" but, then, Russo novels seem to have a monopoly on sadness, or, at the very least, sad characters. (If you've read any of his previous work, such as "Empire Falls" or "Nobody's Fool," you'll thoroughly understand.)
Saying anything more about the plot would reveal spoilers. As infuriating as some of these characters can be, they are memorable, and all-too human and sympathetic. And, what really happened to Jacy? Who was she? You will find out, and the reveal will truly surprise you. This is a riveting and bittersweet read that is difficult to put down once you begin. Russo has done it again.
Richard Russo is at the Miami Book Fair on Thursday, Nov. 21 at 8 p.m. at the Chapman Conference Center, Building 3, 2nd Floor, Room 3210, 300 NE Second Ave., Miami, FL 33132
For details about Richard Russo's appearance at the Miami Book Fair, click here.
