It’s an intriguing idea: a subdivision built on the water, apartments literally floating on concrete-covered foam blocks anchored to the sea shore. Vance Nolan, the architect and designer, originally conceived Eagle’s Talon as a way of providing low-cost housing to the needy, but he couldn’t raise the cash. Instead, investors like Tony Dean are decorating and furnishing the apartments to the highest specifications and pricing them to get rich—and using Danielle Clement, a pretty single mom, to make his sales.But one fine day the unthinkable happens. One of the pylons gives way and several apartments fall into the Rondeau River. Things get worse when a storm comes, cutting off their only exit to the mainland… and then cutting off their communications and electricity. Simeon, Danielle’s son, is sure they will all be safe because the pretty lights under the water told him so, but the adults are fighting over whether it is safer to leave in a jury-rigged boat or stay in a damaged building.
Afloat was well-plotted with a good amount of suspense, well-developed characters, an interesting subplot with possible supernatural elements and some very well-done flashbacks, but I did find there were some unanswered questions. Even at the end I didn’t really get what the people saw under the water, and there was a scene at the end that just came out of nowhere, in a ‘I’m not sure I believe that’ way, not a ‘wow, what a cool idea’ way. Or maybe that’s just me.
I don’t mind being left to ponder an idea at the end of a novel (in fact, the best novels are the ones you are still thinking about days later), but I like to have all the plot questions answered, and Afloat left one too many unanswered questions for my liking.
Thanks to Thomas Nelson and NetGalley for providing a free ebook for review. You can find out more about Erin Healy at her website.
No comments:
Post a Comment