Books: Fractured Facade

Fractured Facade
By Elena DeRosa
Copyright 2011
E-book

The author of this book is a personal friend. We met through our blogs and we are a member of the same organization, the Roanoke Valley chapter of the National League of American Pen Women. Full disclosure and all of that. However, she did not ask me to read or review her book and she does not know I am putting this review on my blog.

Her blog is Ms. Elenaeous Rants & Raves. Her author page is located here.

I bought the book when Elena put it up as an e-book back in October or November, but because I was in school and working on my thesis, I was not able to read it then. I did want to support her, though, with the purchase. It is, to date, the only author-published (I believe Elena uses the term "indie" published) book I have purchased on my Nook. Actually, it's the only book I have purchased on my Nook. I'm afraid I have not yet taken to the e-readers.

Fractured Facade is billed as a novel told as memoir. I think Elena has struggled to find the proper genre for the story, and after reading it, I wonder if she has considered the True Crime genre. I don't read those, but it seems like it might work there.

The story, told in the first person, gives us a heroine, Marie, whose father has passed away. The book then details Marie's journey to New York to find out what happened to her dad. Her father, who was widowed, was seeing a very strange woman, and Marie unfortunately inherits the girlfriend.

Alas, the world is full of gold diggers who will take advantage of people. The strange girlfriend is one of them, and dealing with her takes all of the fortitude that Marie can muster.

The book goes into detail about problems with the girlfriend, the police department, the medical examiner's office, and the court system. The story is an important one, for it points out the problems older folks run into, particularly when family members are not close by or checking up on them every single day. It begs the question - at what point do the children become the caretakers? Of course, that differs in every family, and it is a very hard thing to figure out when and how to do.

It also demonstrates out how important it is to have your affairs in order. We never know when it will be our time to go. The people you leave behind may have to deal with all sorts of trouble if things are not as they should be. Marie sheds many tears because she must work through governmental systems that care little for her pain. It is hard to do these things when you are grieving the loss of a loved one.

This book has many lessons in it. It is definitely a cautionary tale. The writing is quite emotional at times, so be prepared for a bumpy ride. However, it is very true to life - I suspect more truth than fiction here - and the author does a good job of carrying the story forward.

I am very proud of Elena for moving forward with her project. It takes guts to venture out into the world with your baby (i.e., the story). She has also undertaken some interesting and different marketing techniques here locally. I have been watching her activities with curiosity and admiration, and it has been quite an adventure for her.

I congratulate her on her accomplishment.