The Angry Woman Suite

The Angry Woman Suite - Lee Fullbright This is a family saga that is told from the Point of View of three very different characters. A tale that goes back into as early as the early 1900s and deals with different aspects of a dysfunctional family.

First is Elyse who is uprooted from her familiar surrounding when her mother marries a yesteryear rock star. When she hears her step father use a certain word, she takes it upon herself to find out who he was referring to. She is shown to be a 9 years old when the first chapter of the book and we later find out about the shocking childhood she has had. Second is that of Elyse’s step father – Francis as he narrates his story - his life hasn’t been all stars and shine either. He blames his mother and her sisters for everything that had gone wrong in his life and especially for the childhood he has had. As his days of glory are over, he is left to his addiction and slowly develops a problem. The third is that of Aiden, an outsider to the family, yet somehow he is equally important to the story. He is a family friend and mentor to Francis. His narration actually gives us an opinion on what an outsider would see if they cared to look into this family. Then there is Magdalene – though she is not a narrator of the story, I feel a certain amount of compulsion to mention her. She seems to be at the center of the story touching the lives of every other character and influencing almost all the events. She is the ‘angry woman’.

The plot of this story incorporates the many facets of dysfunctional family, family feud, murder, secrets and betrayal. So you see, no matter what the name suggests it is not just about a bunch of angry ladies. It is so much more. But it is really difficult to say much about the plot without giving up some spoilers. Let’s just say that the mystery lovers will get ample opportunity to play the ‘whodunit’ game. The contemporary lovers will find their fill as will the romance lovers. There’s a mix of various genres, bringing together a novel that will appeal to a wide number of readers.

It is really difficult for me to believe that this is a debut novel as Lee Fullbright has come across as a master storyteller. She has managed to bring different aspects of life together with a huge number of distinctive characters to tell the most fascinating story that I have read in recent times. Her research work and attention to detail has contributed hugely to bring vivid colours into the story.

I recommend this book to everyone with a word of caution – this is by no means a light read.