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Magic Hour is a fascinating story about a feral child discovered in a small town and the psychiatrist who saves her. Dr. Julia Cates was the top child psychiatrist in LA until one of her patients went on a high school shooting spree. Now trying to escape her ruined reputation and her guilt (Why didn’t she see what was going to happen and find a way to prevent it?), she returns to Rain Valley in the Pacific Northwest at the request of her sister Ellie. Ellie Barton, beauty queen turned chief of police, is faced with her most difficult case yet. A mysterious child who cannot or will not speak has turned up in the center of town, high in a tree and clutching a wolf cub to her chest. She is a very rare case, a feral child, raised in the wild by wolves and no one knows what to do or how to find her family. Julia may be the only person who can reach the poor girl so she answers her sister’s plea for aid. Alongside of Max Cerrasin, town physician, Julia struggles to reach the young girl, whom she has named Alice, in honor of what becomes the child’s favorite book. As the bond grows strong between Julia and Alice, Julia begins to find faith in herself again and finds she is willing to risk everything if it means “saving” Alice. At the same time, feelings begin to develop between Max and Julia but he has his own personal demons to face before he can give her his heart. Magic Hour touched my heart in a way few stories do. I was so emotionally involved in little Alice’s story that it was hard to get her out of my mind even after I finished the book. The terrors and struggles she went through leading up to Ellie finding her wound her deeply, and in turn wound the reader as we experience them through “Girl’s” (for this is all she knows herself as) eyes. We are even thrust deeply into Girl’s bond with “Wolf,” her only companion and experience her agony over being separated from him during her long and trying emotional recovery. I was heartbroken many times over, almost having to pull off to the side of the road (I listened to the novel in my car while driving) in several instances when I found tears pouring down my cheeks over Girl’s internal struggles and memories. I was also overjoyed in the moments when she finally accepts her new name and new life as that step is a huge leap in her recovery. While there is romance in the story found in Julia and Max’s growing relationship, and another love story that is hinted at but not developed until the end of the book, Alice really is the pivotal character in Magic Hour. This book is all about her and the relationship she forges with Julia through months of therapy as she tries to find her way out of the dark pit of her fear. Her return to the civilized world is long and taken in small measured steps, sometimes backwards, but that makes the journey all the more rewarding in the end. Alice is also crucial to Julia’s own emotional recovery as she deals with the fallout and her personal guilt resulting from the LA tragedy. Every single character is strongly developed and each one has his or her own private struggles and fears to overcome. Max struggles with events in his past that led him to hide out in Rain Valley. Ellie’s lack of confidence impedes her personal journey as she discovers who she really is and what is most important in her life. And these are just a few of the beloved townsfolk who bond together in their times of greatest need. Suzanne Toren is brilliant in her performance of Magic Hour. Though this story is very powerful already, Toren’s skill at bringing your emotions to the forefront adds so much more intensity to the story. You can truly feel every single thing the characters are experiencing just through the voices brought to them. Magic Hour by Kristin Hannah is so emotionally intense and heart-rending that it is sure to touch everyone who reads it. © Kelley A. Hartsell, January 2007. All rights reserved.
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Magic Hour: A Novel
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Posted February 2007 |
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