Mary Camarillo is a fine writer. Her first novel, The Lockhart Women, presents a richly imagined, well- crafted insight into human nature. Many readers have noted how cleverly she interweaves the O. J. Simpson trial with events in the lives of three California women, whose varying responses to it reflect their levels of development as thinking people. Others have commented on the significant male characters. Indeed, association with the right kind of male is important to the women’s development and potential for happiness. So are economic circumstances, as well as the setting, Huntington Beach. My focus here, though, is with Camarillo’s deft characterization.
The main characters drew me willy-nilly into their ignoble lives, and held my attention from the first page. Though these off-puttingly self-absorbed ladies were hardly models of admirable behavior, I found myself caring for them—even, after a while, rooting for them. That’s a result of Camarillo’s skill at drawing concrete, real people who care enough about themselves even for a heartless reader like me to become involved in their lives. She presents believable, compelling human beings in a realistic style, while setting a quietly suspenseful tone that makes one want to keep reading and reading—as I am hardly the first to remark.
A word about each of these gals. First, the mater familias, Brenda. Superficial, self-satisfied and judgmental, she is soon revealed as a woman who, once thrown onto her own resources, appears incapable of fending for herself, and certainly not her daughters. As she eventually begins to recover from wallowing in the grief of her life’s biggest disappointment, certain events occur that develop her resilience as a woman capable of discovering a better way of being; after flailing about for quite some time, she is finally on her way toward a less superficial, more social and moral maturity.
Her comely older daughter Allison, from the outset shown as having picked up Brenda’s empty values and self-absorption, develops as well her own special gift—for petty theft. Some hard knocks consequent on her own dishonorable choices teach her how counterproductive her misbehavior is proving to be. After a few more self-destructive mistakes, and partly through a more healthy relationship with an earlier flame, she begins to show signs of growing into a more honest and other-oriented woman.
Peggy, who starts out as rather a physical underdog based on the Southern California Shallow Scale, improves her appearance—to a degree consistent with her independent personality and values—while slowly evolving, through her own series of ups and downs, into a mentally, even spiritually worthy human being. Not wanting to be a spoiler, I’ll just say that Peggy’s bookkeeping manner of making a centrally important decision is brilliantly and persuasively rendered. (Hats off to Camarillo for that innovation!) Moreover, the result of Peggy’s Major Big Decision turns out to be a significant factor in evoking more fully the positive potential of the other two, and of herself as well.
Though at times these characters had me feeling pulled through a moral miasma, I didn’t want to leave them. After reading the conclusion and thinking about the entire work, I came to see that just as Dante leads us through his Inferno as a preparation for attaining deeper understanding and grace, so, on a more quotidian scale, Camarillo impels us through this valley of near-despair toward a vibrant recognition of our human capacity for personal redemption. For each woman in this trio does find a measure of grace, and toward the ending we readers perceive that what may feel at times like a slog through a fetid alley turns out to be a brightening journey charged with potential for redeeming moral insight. Closely following these finally rescued members of a once-fractured family brings us to an earned optimism: at the end we see a promising outlook for the future lives of three resilient women; and their triumph is a win for all of us.
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Reviews with images
Very Enjoyable Read!
It’s hard for me to believe a book that takes place in the 1990s can be labeled as historical fiction, so I labeled it as women’s fiction! The OJ Simpson trial makes a fascinating backdrop for this story and I really enjoyed this novel about 3 strong women, each strong in her own way.Brenda is stunned to learn her husband is having an affair with a woman she considers to be unattractive, and even frumpy. Her husband moves out and suddenly Brenda is struggling to make ends meet. Meanwhile her teenage daughters are each having struggles of their own, until a situation comes to light in their family.Read this if you love women’s fiction, historical fiction, family drama, and stories of women’s survival.My thanks to @letstalkbookspromo @marycamel13 and @shewritespress for #gifted copy. My thoughts are my own.
Top reviews from other countries
Sarah Lahey
A smart, funny engaging read.
Reviewed in Australia on September 20, 2021