First Impression: Lot’s of politics, not so much death, and hardly deceit when it’s all out in the open. A book of several stories that need better connection.
Carl Parsons gives little away in the blurb related to Trios: Death, Deceit, and Politics, so it really is a case of suspense when the reader first weighs up whether to bite the bullet and read on. With little to go on other than an Iraqi War soldier, an estranged journalistic wife, and a series of infidelities, I was eager to read more.
I would like to take a quick moment to thank Carl Parsons for gifting me a copy of his book in exchange for an honest review. So, here is what I have to say about what turned out to be an extremely slow burn.
The book opens abruptly with Brian retelling his account of an explosion from his hospital bed. What should have been a routine journey back to base following a celebration for liberating a city quickly turned sour when a fabricated accident caused Brian and his fellow troops to a halt. It took merely a few minutes before planted bombs took out the vehicles and troops he was traveling with, taking his legs, his lover, and a few good men. Great start. I was on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to befall this fallen soldier who had lost someone particularly close to him.
The closeness and specifics of the bond between a casualty and Brian is made clear from the offset. Though it is not mentioned in blatant terms until almost 40% into the book, we all know. This makes what should be a thriller and suspense novel rather dissatisfying. Yet, I persevere because I figure death has been witnessed. Deceit from so many different angles has been revealed and I want to know the politics behind these decisions. Unfortunately, it does not pick up in pace until we are significantly into the second half of the book. At this point, the story is moving too fast.
After a while, the book seems to leave the war and deceit behind, turning to politics with a capital P. In her capacity as a journalist, Rita undertakes an interview to discuss the freedom of speech and communism that is developing at the local university. As a reader, it feels like the author might have an agenda, although what that might be is unclear. There just seems to be little relevance to the beginning of the book. Overall, it feels like these middle chapters are filler action to bring about a change in relationship dynamics. Unfortunately, the scenes last way too long for the little impact they have in the long run.
One of the better features of the book are the strong female leads. These characters are developed well enough, and the reader is able to get a good sense of their personalities, and defiance. Then men in the book are less defined. For the time they spent controlling the narrative in their world, some of the things they did at the end of the book were questionable.
Overall, it felt like there were several stories that were operating that did not quite mesh together. I wanted to hear more about the war, about the soldier’s history, how he became ill… I wanted to see the glory and splendor of a soldier’s funeral… I wanted to know why there were communist students, and what they were trying to achieve? I want to know why the end of the book was the end.
As this book threw up more questions than answers, it certainly wasn’t the right writing technique for me personally. With some reworking and lengthening, there is some potential to create a better narrative. This is a story for people that like to read between the lines and produce their own theories and backstories. Of the three main themes, politics was threaded throughout the book, so this will also have some bearing on the niche audience required for this text. For the right person, it is worth the read over a few hours.
Have your say: What are your first impressions of this book? Does it sound like something that you might be swayed to read? Tell the Papergirl Community why, or why not, in the comments below. Would be great to have a debate. I’ll be sure to see you there.
Quick Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ / R Rated
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