Stephen Marley | OHIO

Plot (via Goodreads):

One sweltering night in 2013, four former high school classmates converge on their hometown in northeastern Ohio.

There’s Bill Ashcraft, a passionate, drug-abusing young activist whose flailing ambitions have taken him from Cambodia to Zuccotti Park to post-BP New Orleans, and now back home with a mysterious package strapped to the undercarriage of his truck; Stacey Moore, a doctoral candidate reluctantly confronting her family and the mother of her best friend and first love, whose disappearance spurs the mystery at the heart of the novel; Dan Eaton, a shy veteran of three tours in Iraq, home for a dinner date with the high school sweetheart he’s tried desperately to forget; and the beautiful, fragile Tina Ross, whose rendezvous with the washed-up captain of the football team triggers the novel’s shocking climax.

Set over the course of a single evening, Ohio toggles between the perspectives of these unforgettable characters as they unearth dark secrets, revisit old regrets and uncover—and compound—bitter betrayals. Before the evening is through, these narratives converge masterfully to reveal a mystery so dark and shocking it will take your breath away.

Review:

GOD. Where do I even begin with this one? I'll try not to be as long-winded as I want to, otherwise this would take me four days to write. First, this is an amazing, amazing, amazing novel and such a brilliant story. Stephen Markley takes everything that I love about a novel and genuinely make the most beautiful literary mystery on Earth. The setting is both realistic - dazzling and equally gritty at the same time, full of memory, and just atmospherically perfect for this kind of story. The characters are brutally stunning - some evil and some innocent, but all just interestingly different from one another. The pacing is electrifying and intense.

I loved how this was literally a story about this town in Ohio that had so many different characters and how this area shaped them into the people they are - like, the town was what kept their hearts beating and lungs full of air. It was sensational and harrowing. Told in five almost "novellas", I found that this one was almost a combination of different genres as well. The first three were rather literary and really gave you the backdrop as to what these characters were like in high school and gave a rather honest portrayal of who they became as adults due to either their actions or the actions of the people surrounding them. What I want to make note of was how genius Markley is with kind of ending one or two on mini-cliffhangers that made me think "okayyyyy and where is this going?!" but I was just so captivated with these stories and how different characters viewed their peers and I literally couldn't stop. I found the final two stories terrifying and they left me GUTTED. That's all I can say. The final stories were more psychological thriller/suspense related than the others, so I obviously really got into it then. One was harrowing and so full of vivid detail that I was in tears reading certain parts and the outcome of that story was just downright chilling. The final story was the peak of the novel for me - it was so damn sad, cinematic, and that's what brought on the real tears. If you're looking for something that will keep you invested, something you can take breaks with, and something that will just change your life within its prose, it's time to go to Ohio.

Special thanks to Simon & Schuster for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Rating: Infinite. This story is perfect.