- The Half Brother, by Christine Keighery. Ultimo Press, $34.99
The blurb of The Half Brother - Christine Keighery's first novel for adults - immediately intrigued me: "Growing up in a loving family, sisters Hannah and Stef are stunned to discover their mother adopted out a child before their parents met." It continues just as compellingly: "...it soon becomes apparent their half brother's agenda is more complicated and sinister than the Fidler sisters could have imagined."
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Those two sentences perfectly describe the way the plot unfolds. I'm not saying the book is predictable - it's anything but! - but if you're not up for a book in which a half-brother exercises enough Machiavellianism to put even the original prince to shame, you can't say you weren't warned.
Half-brother Alex doesn't just manipulate Hannah and Stef. The tentacles of his creeping control reach to their parents as well, and he particularly targets their (and his) biological mother.
He forces Hannah to view her relationship with her (older) partner in a new light, gradually causing her to doubt herself and rethink her unconventional lifestyle.
Stef, meanwhile, is lead to reevaluate the balance she has found between part-time work in a furniture store and co-parenting her two children with her charming but flawed husband. Maybe these changes are for their own good. And maybe they're not.
Despite the premise being clear from the start, I felt less prepared for three things:
First, Alex's motives were revealed relatively early. Being shown his perspective directly created a different kind of suspense than if we had been left to discover his true nature only through Hannah and Stef's eyes.
The choice to include his point of view surprised me, but it was also helpful: through his own eyes, his actions are explained (even if they're hard to justify). But, if you want an unsettling experience of the opposite, try A Very Nice Girl by Imogen Crimp.
Second, The Half Brother touches on many complex themes - adoption; the choice to have or not have children; family loyalty; separation, divorce, and custody. There are probably more.
As a plot-driven thriller, The Half Brother naturally couldn't go deep on all those themes. However, they are important - both to this book and in general - and after reading, I found myself craving non-fiction on the same topics - kind of like you might crave a bitter espresso after an elaborate, rich and exotic dessert.
Finally, the last thing I was absolutely not prepared for was the ending. I can't say anything without spoiling it, but holy mackerel.
This is a positive kind of astonishment, mirroring the devilish enjoyment I got from the movie The Menu. Watch the movie, read The Half Brother, and let's talk.
