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Original Essays | September 23, 2009

Jonathan Lethem: IMG Stops: On Those Things My New Novel Forgot to Be About, Maybe



For me, there's a weird, unfathomable gulf — I almost wrote gulp — between the completion of a novel and its publication. Some days this duration feels interminable, as though the book has... Continue »
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This title in other formats:

The Fetch

by Laura Whitcomb

The Fetch Cover

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

A supernatural love story set in Imperial Russia.

"There's something not right about you," said Ana. She wasn't teasing him. She was concerned about what she detected behind his eyes. This made Calder's skin tingle. "You're not telling me something."

She was uncanny. Calder silently prayed she could not see how he had broken his Vows and upset her world and his own.

"You're lonely," she told him. "It must be hard to pretend all the time."

He felt a wave of sadness, sudden and deep.

"Don't be afraid," she told him. "Everyone has a secret. I'll keep yours."

Calder is a Fetch, a death escort, the first of his kind to step from Heaven back to Earth.

The first to fall in love with a mortal girl.

But when he climbs backward out of that Death Scene, into the chaos of the Russian Revolution, he tears a wound in the ghost realm where the spirits begin a revolution of their own.

Review:

"Whitcomb (A Certain Slant of Light) revisits the hereafter with this ambitious fantasy that dips into Russian history to explain why Princess Anastasia and Prince Alex's remains were not found alongside the rest of the slain Romanov family: they were spirited away by Calder, a Fetch, who attends the dying and escorts souls to heaven. Calder is a hugely empathetic figure, abandoned as a baby and killed at age 19, but he errs, first by falling in love with a Romanov, and then in taking the dying mystic Rasputin's body as his own in order to pursue her, causing a major rupture in the spirit world. To heal the wound, he, Anastasia and Alexei (here called Alexis) travel the globe in search of a lost key. The story, riveting until this point, loses its focus as they begin their trek. Whitcomb's inventive vision of the afterlife almost makes up for the plodding pace of the narrative — it's an ultimately comforting place where souls see their deepest regrets woven into tapestries and their contributions displayed in the form of a garden only they can interpret. Ages 12 — up." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Review:

"[A] fascinating, intricately structured vision of the afterlife....The rich descriptions, particularly of the exquisitely imagined afterlife, are exceptionally drawn, as are the sympathetic characters and the unusual premise." Booklist (Starred Review)

Review:

"The rich descriptions, particularly of the exquisitely imagined afterlife, are exceptionally drawn, as are the sympathetic characters and the unusual premise. A challenging book with an intriguing conclusion, this will lead thoughtful readers to spirited discussions."Booklist, starred review

"Whitcomb's writing is clear and thoughtful, and she makes elegant sense of this unusual and original plot . . . The title's genre-crossing nature will make it appealing to fans of several different categories: supernatural stories, mysteries, historical fiction, and/or romance."The Bulletin

Synopsis:

Calder is a Fetch, a death escort, the first of his kind to step from Heaven back to Earth. But when he climbs backwards out of that Death Scene, into the chaos of the Russian Revolution, he tears a wound in the ghost realm, where the spirits begin a revolution of their own.

About the Author

Laura Whitcomb grew up in Pasadena, California, where she lived in a mildly haunted house for 12 years. She has taught English in California and Hawaii. The winner of three Kay Snow Writing Awards, she was once runner-up in the Bulwer-Lytton Fiction contest for the best first sentence of the worst science fiction novel never written. She lives in Portland, Oregon, with her dog Maximus.

What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating based on 2 comments:
C Horne, March 16, 2009 (view all comments by C Horne)
I thought this book was an enjoyable read. It dealt with an angel of sorts, who is sent to retrieve the souls of those who die. He falls in love with a human and breaks the rules of heaven by trying to cross over so that he can be with her. In the process he learns that there is forgiveness even for those who think they cannot be forgiven, and that love may come in a different form than what we expect. I think the writer set this book up to be part of a series, but I enjoyed it. I do not think it is for children 12 and up, but is more appropriate for 14 and up.
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(2 of 3 readers found this comment helpful)
lovemily, March 11, 2009 (view all comments by lovemily)
When a person dies, their souls are escorted into heaven by what is known as a “Fetch”. Calder is one of these escorts, but when he sees a human he wants as his Squire, things start going wrong. First of all, the woman is married with children, second, Calder is now trapped in the body of a man, and third, he has broken his vows and caused a good deal of trouble in heaven, earth, and the world between.

The Fetch is an imaginative story full of impossible detail and excitement. The characters and story-line were well developed and draw you into the story right away. Though it is confusing in some places and you may have to re-read some pages to get the gist of it, the story arc is well paced once it makes sense. Also, Whitcomb does not try to push beliefs onto any readers, but rather creates a whole new intricate world for readers to enjoy. I recommend this book to everyone: it is clean, imaginative, and all together an excellent book.
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Product Details

ISBN:
9780618891313
Author:
Whitcomb, Laura
Publisher:
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (HMH)
Subject:
Death
Subject:
Forgiveness
Subject:
Family - General
Subject:
Historical - Military & Wars
Subject:
Historical - Other
Subject:
Situations / Death & Dying
Subject:
Future life
Copyright:
Edition Description:
Trade Cloth
Publication Date:
February 2009
Binding:
Hardcover
Grade Level:
from 7
Language:
English
Illustrations:
Y
Pages:
379
Dimensions:
800x650x100 130
Age Level:
from 12

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