You probably shouldn't have clicked view spoilers.You have been warned....Okay. So this started out pretty promising.Woman seeks independence! She has a tragic past! She's stolen all/most of her husbands money! And now Vegas! A sudden friendship! Beatles impersonators!Then we start delving in her past:Penis. Tiny penis. Nubby penis. Penis. Penis. Penis.I just... what? I... what?Okay, so all this info was revealed very slowly and in a different order, but I'm just diving right in. Basically the main character never feels anything during sex which makes her husband feel inadequate and even though, yes he has a nub (her word!) it's not his fault. The main character is numb inside because her mother told her a traumatic rape-story repeatedly as a child. (It almost took the entire book, but this lovely little nugget was finally revealed.) Anyway, her husband is obsessed with his not-so-manly piece of manhood so he gets surgery or something. (I just don't even want to go there.) But his wife still doesn't feel anything, blah blah blah. Their relationship falls apart. She moves out and eventually runs away with most of this money. She ends up in Vegas where she makes a friend (to whom she recounts this story) and also has sex with a transgendered Prince impersonator who makes her feeeeel. Or something.I am laughing as I write this. I probably shouldn't be, but nothing about the first 60 or so pages of this story was any indication of how it would end up going. I cannot say that I loved this book, in so much that I loved the author. I loved the way Attenberg drove me through the chapters of a story about a bored and lonely soul who's only good luck in life, is the fact that she married a pathetic man with enough money to help her have an adventure of a lifetime when she finally get's abandoned by his sad ass. I was empathetic and at the same time curious, kind of the same feelings I had when I saw the movie Selma and Louise. If you're a meyers briggs type INFP and can clearly imagine characters and yourself in a story, you will love this. It is an adventure for the hippy dippy's in our souls! If you're still over impressed with your college degree and your house payment and new cars in the garage, skip it, don't bother. It is anything but safe, or predicatable, so you'll be bored in your discomfort. Ha! This isnt a bread maker, it's a fictional story written by a truely creative soul. The story is a bit cluncky, but it is reminiscent of the main character after all, a disgruntled Catherine! I loved the characters and exploration of everything from unrequitted love, what it's like being a victim of stupid parent's, to new found sexual freedom. The friendship develops on what I'm not sure, but if it makes you turn the page, then who cares. Fun fun fun! No logic, just feeling and fun. Try to enjoy it as that, and don't over analyze this book. Thank you Jami, I loved this story and will search out more of your books and stories. Don't quit weaving your imagination through words and sticky, icky, and sometimes sad life pictures, the nay sayers will go away, and you'll be left with those of us who are true fiction readers, real life romantics and yes sometimes a little unpredictable because of our lack of inner self control; at that, I get it and I get you!
What do You think about The Melting Season (2010)?
I enjoyed the writing style, but ultimately didn't quite believe the secret revealed at the end.
—chicco
