An Exaltation of Larks

WOWWWW.... !!!! What do I say about a book that swept me off my feet and also threw me down mercilessly multiple times. The author weaves a beautiful narrative around these people and her magical words are just so unforgettable.

Alex comes to America as a refugee after Pinochet's coup in Chile but leaves behind his parents. He lives with his Uncle but also becomes a defacto member of the Lark family. Val Lark's connection to him is instantaneous and though they grow up together after his Uncle's death, and go separate ways for college, their thoughts are never far from each other. An innocent drunken mistake leads to Jav being kicked out and abandoned by his family, except when they want to beat him up or collect money. But he picks himself up and does whatever he can to survive, ultimately becoming one of the highest paid male escorts of New York city.

This is the story of their lives through more than three decades. Fate keeps throwing in each other's paths in very unexpected ways and it was fascinating to travel with them on their journeys. Every character in this story has experienced profound loss but they survive, they find love and friends and family, they never let go of hope. I fell in love with everyone - with all their flaws and anxieties and strengths - they all just felt so real to me. But Jav was my instant favorite and I can't articulate properly why. He loses everything but still survives - over and over again. Anyone else would have broken irrevocably but his strength is remarkable. I cried so many times for him and I just wanted him to find someone he could be himself with.

The writing in this book is nothing less than enchanting. The author brings these characters, their happiness and pain to life using her words. The beauty of love, the power of found family, the horrifying effects that events like the coup in Chile and 9/11 have on the survivors for decades to come - the author captures all these emotions so effectively that we can't help but feel all of it.

I can try but I will never be able to do justice to the awesomeness of this book through my review. Don't read the reviews, don't read the blurb, just go for this one. It's a beautiful exploration of life and you will not regret reading it.

I'm DNFing this for now. I wouldn't call this a romance despite being marketed as such. I'm not sure which couple I'm supposed to be rooting for. Alex/Val, Val/Javi, or Javi/Alex? I don't even know because they all seem to have attractions to each other. There's not a whole lot of romance happening, just depressing things with some sex scenes thrown in. The writing is decent so I can see why this book has such good reviews but it's just not for me.

Housekeeping first. My copy, a trade paperback, only has 491 pages. Dunno where this 550 count comes from. The author's bio says that [a:Suanne Laqueur 8317803 Suanne Laqueur https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1403016536p2/8317803.jpg] writes or aims to write “emotionally-intelligent” romance. What does that mean? I don't know. I wouldn't call this a romance at all. And that's not a criticism. Just a fact. It's not M/M, MMF, M/F/M, M/F or any permutation thereof. Mainly it's the story of three (3) people, from childhood & adolescence to their mid-forties, and all of the living that comes in between. Okay. Enough procrastination. BROAD STROKES PLOT AVOIDING SPOILERS AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE: I think it comes as no surprise that the characters in this story are visited by some serious loss. The first comes for Alejandro/Alex, who at age 11, effectively loses both of his parents to the military coup by Augusto Pinochet in Chile. Luckily his father manages to spirit him off to New York where his uncle Eduardo, a bachelor, takes him into his home in the fictional town of Guelisten, N.Y. (think Croton-On-Hudson, Dobbs Ferry, or Tarrytown). There he meets the Larks, who are descendants of the founders of the town, and also one of those families we all aspire to be or know: loving & dependable parents, sweet grandmother, and three fantastic kids. The Larks embrace him as one of their own in more ways than one. Alex ends up marrying Val, the middle daughter and beating heart of the Lark clan. This is not a spoiler. It's part of the blurb.Parallel to Alex and the Lark siblings growing up we look south to NYC, specifically Queens, and meet Javier/Jav, the son of working class Dominican immigrants, whose adolescence ends on a sour note which pushes him into a life he never imagined and the truncation of his teenage hopes and dreams. Alex, Val, and Jav cross paths and have individual and fleeting relationships with each other during the 80's which ultimately come to naught. A few more pages off the calendar and 9/11 arrives leaving its heavy thumb prints on our three principals, as it did for so many of us. Then we jump to the 2006 when, through fate & circumstance, Alex, Val, and Jav meet again and their lives become inexorably entwined.I've been vacillating on what to say about this. On the one hand many GR friends have loved it and I can absolutely see why. In general I would agree. I was engrossed by the story. I liked the writing. I was invested in the characters and generally loved them. How could I not? They're recognizable and likable. Good people, who may have some faults but are overall decent human beings. I loved Val. I'd love to be her BFF. She gives womanhood a good name. I really liked Trelawney and would love a book just about her. Alex is a story whose surface we've only scratched and Jav could easily spawn a trilogy. And that's one of my niggles. I don't feel like we get beyond the surface of the characters or beyond what the author needs to tell her chosen story. In fact, though they live and exist in a world we know and recognize their lives are almost bubble-like. Insular. They don't seem to have any friends. Their jobs & work schedules are enviably flexible. Characters whose usefulness ceases to advance the narrative are disposed of in an almost Deus ex machina fashion. People come, play their part, and are written out of the story or never heard from again until needed. Maybe I'm cold hearted (I am) but only the two 9/11 losses really made me tear up. There was an emotional resonance to them that felt true. Particularly Jav's 9/11 experience hit me right in the gut. I could see it coming and it still cut me at knees. I liked that the characters are mostly open to different sexual expressions and permutations. Jav struggles a bit, given his history, but his doubts are always about himself and not towards anyone else's path. Val is the life partner everyone deserves. I love that she's no shrinking violet waiting for someone else to take charge. And Alex ... the guy who can be paralyzed by doorbells at 3 a.m. but also takes your problems and makes them into WE, who says stuff like this:“I want to be your home.” His lips ran soft across her brow. “I want to wake up every morning and listen to your heart. I want to be the last man you slept with. When you say it's been a long time since you made love, I want that time to be a matter of hours. Because I loved you last night. And I'm going to love you again tonight.” I want to know that guy.I lamented that this wasn't an M/M/F or poly but I guess that's another book. Another story. While I wasn't expecting a HEA I still wasn't completely satisfied with the resolution of the main conflict. It seemed to somehow cheapen the veracity of the emotions or make them false. I won't get into it so as to avoid spoilers but everything seemed to blow over pretty quickly. And easily.In spite of my endless griping I'll probably read [b:A Charm of Finches 33299920 A Charm of Finches (Venery, #2) Suanne Laqueur https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1506265362s/33299920.jpg 54032397]. Fine. I already ordered it. Sue me. I need to know what comes next. Don't be like me. Enjoy this story for the world it wants to engender, for it's generosity of spirit, and for some beautiful writing. Or as Trelawney says: “Keep the memory, let go of the thing.” (I'm telling you that girl needs her own book.) I'll probably have a re-evaluation when I read the second book. I think it will make the story complete. We'll see.