The Believers

Attorney Joel Litvinoff, described by the NEW YORK POST as "a rent-a-radical with a long history of un-Americanism," has a stroke and is left in a coma. Wife Audrey, a sharp-tongued harridan, makes some shocking discoveries that cause her to reconsider their marriage. Joel's stroke causes further upheaval in their family. Everyone is caught in a tangle of deceit, trapped in meaningless, unfulfilled lives. Narrator Andrea Martin misses Heller's intent, with a reading that calls attention to itself through over-the-top characterizations that lack dimension. Rather than nuance, there's nastiness. Instead of subtlety, there's shouting. Zo‘ Heller (WHAT WAS SHE THINKING?: NOTES ON A SCANDAL) has a knack for revealing the darker angels lurking within her characters. Sadly, this excellent novel doesn't receive the narration it deserves. S.J.H. (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine

Starred review from October 20, 2008
Heller (What Was She Thinking?
; Notes on a Scandal
) puts to pointed use her acute observations of human nature in her third novel, a satire of 1960s idealism soured in the early 21st century. Audrey and Joel Litvinoff have attempted to pass on to their children their lefty passions—despite Audrey's decidedly bourgeois attitude and attorney Joel's self-satisfied heroism, including the defense of a suspected terrorist in 2002 New York City. When Joel has a stroke and falls into a coma, Audrey grows increasingly nasty as his secrets surface. The children, meanwhile, wander off on their own adventures: Rosa's inherited principles are beleaguered by the unpleasant realities of her work with troubled adolescents; Karla, her self-image crushed by Audrey, has settled into an uncomfortable marriage and the accompanying pressure to have children; and adopted Lenny, the best metaphor for the family's troubles, dawdles along as a drug addict and master manipulator. Though some may be initially put off by the characters' coldness—the Litvinoffs are a severely screwed-up crew—readers with a certain mindset will have a blast watching things get worse.