Things You Won't Say

March 15, 2015
A timely topic-the police shooting of a Hispanic youth-from a bestselling writer better known for domestic dramas. As the novel opens, Washington, D.C., police officer Mike Anderson has already experienced a tragic jolt-a crazed gunman shot his partner, Ritchie, as the two men were leaving the station. Ritchie survived, but with brain trauma that will likely prevent him from ever re-entering the force. Mike is wracked with guilt and is probably suffering from PTSD. His wife, Jamie, is concerned, but with three young children and Mike's teen son, Henry, to care for, a rift grows between them borne out of long silences. And then there's another shooting: Mike is called to a gang-ridden neighborhood, a scuffle ensues, Mike sees a gun and shoots a teenage boy. But when no gun is found on the teen, cries of racism and police brutality are the bywords that lead to charges against Mike. Mike and Jamie's relationship deteriorates further as Jamie assumes the shooting was an accident borne of Mike's PTSD, while Mike insists he saw the gun. Mike finds an unlikely ally in Christie, Henry's mother, with whom he had only a casual relationship; the two are amicable co-parents. She believes Mike without hesitation and even enlists her boss, Elroy, a private detective, to help. Mike moves out when he can no longer bear Jamie's version of events-she goes to the dead boy's mother to beg forgiveness-and Jamie is afraid she has pushed Mike into Christie's waiting arms. Though rife with possibilities, the novel has problems: a disconnected subplot involving Jamie's sister, Lou, a zookeeper intensely attached to a pregnant elephant; an unsophisticated perspective on race and policing in America; and an ending that works out so remarkably well for the principal players that the death of a young boy simply becomes grist for a marital drama. Pekkanen reliably builds strong, interesting characters, but here, a plot too important for melodrama fails them.

April 15, 2015

Pekkanen, with previous works such as The Opposite of Me and These Girls, is often compared to Jennifer Weiner and Emily Giffin. With her sixth novel, we can also add Jodi Picoult to that read-alike list. This title tells the story, from the perspectives of his wife and ex-girlfriend, of a DC-area cop (a white man) who shoots a Hispanic teenage boy. Mike Anderson is a seasoned beat officer who recently witnessed his partner get shot and seriously injured. When he fires at young Jose in the course of breaking up a gang fight, his wife, Jamie, assumes that PTSD played a big part. However, ex-girlfriend (and mother to his oldest child) Christie never questions Mike's assertion that he saw Jose pull a gun and threaten Mike's new partner. Pekkanen's choice to never tell the story from Mike's point of view makes this a compelling narrative, while her focus on Mike's family(ies) is a fresh approach. Perhaps the only wrong note is a distracting subplot involving Jamie's sister and a pregnant elephant. VERDICT Recommended for fans of Pekkanen's previous works and "ripped from the headlines" stories.--Amy Watts, Univ. of Georgia Lib., Athens

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 2015
Best-selling Pekkanen (Catching Air, 2014) tackles a timely topic. Mike Anderson, a Washington, D.C. cop, is shaken up after a shooting at his police station leaves his partner badly injured. Mike's wife, Jamie, struggles to find a way to help him, until she gets a frightening call informing her that Mike has shot and killed an apparently unarmed Latino teenager. Though Mike maintains the teen had a gun, the young cop he was with contradicts him, and the mother of the teen turns to the press, claiming that the shooting was race related. When no gun is found at the scene, even Jamie doubts Mike's story, believing that he is suffering from PTSD caused by the attack at the station. As Jamie and Mike drift further apart, Christie, the mother of Mike's oldest son, steps in to provide assistance and to try to win Mike back. Pekkanen doesn't dig deeply into the urgent issues she raises, but the relevance of the subject matter, the novel's accessibility, and her popularity ensure that there will be significant interest, especially in book clubs.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)