The Appeal

Hallett, Janice. The Appeal. New York: Simon & Schuster 2021. Print.

First Sentences:

As discussed, it is best you know nothing before you read the enclosed.


Description:

I am always intrigued by epistolary novels. You know, the ones told completely through written documents (e.g. letters, diaries, newspaper clippings, texts, emails, etc.). Here, in Janice Hallett's first novel, The Appeal, she frames the story through the eyes of two junior lawyers assigned by their boss to read through a file of correspondence and related notes, then come to a conclusion about what really happened. Apparently, Tanner, their boss, needs information for an upcoming case he is defending and wants fresh eyes to study the details and present him with their thoughts.

 

Slowly, slowly, we read with the copious emails and notes exchanged between a small group of people who are preparing their roles for a community theater presentation. While they find nothing exciting at first, soon an email surfaces that the director's two-year-old granddaughter, Poppy, has been diagnosed with a rare brain cancer that is probably incurable. But fortunately, her grandfather notes, Poppy's doctor has heard of promising results from a new drug in its test stages that might help, possibly even cure the child. It has not yet been approved for the general public, the Poppy's doctor has a means of obtaining the medicine at a stiff price: $175,000 for the first of four treatments.

An appeal goes out to the theater players and their friends and family to help raise the funds to acquire this test drug privately which can then be administered by the girl's doctor. Everyone contributes, creates fund-raising opportunities, and even dedicates the proceedings from the upcoming play to Poppy's medication.

But there are hints that maybe something might not be quite right in this appeal. And when a cast member is found dead after apparently falling off the balcony, no one knows quite what to think or whether anyone from their group might be responsible.

Epistolary novels usually reveal themselves slowly as we need time to, piece by piece, understand the characters and actions. Lots of writing is placed in front of the researching lawyers (and us readers) full of thoughts, ramblings, misdirection, rumors, accusations, dreams, and relationships flicker across the pages, writings presented to the lawyers (and us readers), for analysis and then discarded or held onto as key information.

Hallett is the master of spreading subtle clues buried in a complex plot and benign yet somehow suspicious characters. As I read these missives, I kept seeing something out of the corner of my eye, unable to clarify whether it was really there or even what, if anything, it was, yet thinking that it might be important to remember and understand. Such is the skill that drew me to Hallett and novel, The Appeal. And I was not in any way sorry to be immersed in its story and characters. A challenging, satisfying read.

 

Happy reading. 

 

Fred

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          (and an Intro to The First Sentence Reader) 

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

Hallett, Janice. The Twyford Code

The best, most baffling, intriguing mystery, full of twists, turns, questionable narration, undiscovered treasure, and a possible code/treasure map found in a child's book. Fantastic. (previously reviewed here)