![]() ![]() ![]() These jumps contributed to the scattered, almost rambling style of narration. After this, the book jumps back and forth, from past to present and from character to character, story to story. Then the novel makes one of many jumps through time and we find ourselves following Anna as an adult woman trying to forge a career for herself and support her family. Anna's care for her disabled sister and her desire to appear strong and capable to her father drives the first few chapters, but it is over all too soon. The first section is the strongest, introducing us to the spirited young Anna and her father, Eddie, who is about to break into the mob business in depression-era America. Is it a novel about a young woman navigating a male-dominated world and work force for the first time? Is it a gangster/mob story? Do we care either way? Personally, I didn't. This is a messy book, full of plot points that seem unnecessary and deliberately convoluted. Manhattan Beach feels like several stories in one, all struggling to come together, all lacking cohesion, none of them emotionally engaging. is this really the same author who wrote A Visit from the Goon Squad? Um, definitely not what I was expecting from Egan at all. ![]()
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