Saturday, Mar 3, 2012

Book Review: Losing Clementine by Ashley Ream

Author: Ashley Ream

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks

ISBN: 978-0062093646

Publish Date: March 6, 2012

Pages: 306 Trade Paperback

Type: Fiction

Purchase: $10.19 at Amazon.com

Meeting Clementine…

Clementine Pritchard, a world-renowned artist, has decided her own fate.  Tired of living an unhappy life, filled with counseling and  psychiatric medications, she chooses to end her life in 30 days.  Within this last month of her life, she has elected to end the therapy, flush her medications down the toilet, and tie up the loose ends of her life. 

First was her plan as to how to end her life.  She decides to take a trip down to Mexico to obtain a lethal and illegal animal euthanizing drug.  When she drops off her beloved cat, Chuckles, at her ex-husband’s house for him to babysit while she is away, she finds herself faced with telling him a lie about her pending death.  She informs Richard that she has terminal cancer and needs to go to Mexico to obtain drugs for the condition.   Unwilling to let her face a dangerous and notorious Mexican Border alone, he goes on the trip with her, not realizing what she is really there to purchase.  Their unexpected actions in Mexico demonstrate to Clementine that the love between them is not lost.  That loose end was not as neatly tied up as she’d planned.

To the disbelief of her colleagues, Clementine decides to fire her assistant, Jenny, and forgo her upcoming gallery showing.  This is just the beginning of the antics she enacts during the last days of her life.  She plans for her death with precision and poise, yet she is faced with situations pertaining to her mother and sister’s death that she did not anticipate.   Reckless yet thoughtful, Clementine lives each day as though it has a destiny of its own.

Loving Clementine…

As I turned the last few pages of this superbly realistic and poignant novel, I was faced with the last planned day of Clementine’s life.  Filled with both tears and laughter through some of her final steps, I mentally begged Ream not to let Clementine seal her scheduled fate.  I had grown to love Clementine as those around her did.  Only, she didn’t know just how loved and needed she truly was.  Clementine had given up on herself and doubted the loyalty of those who knew her best.   She couldn’t see a future which would bring her not only the great successes but the small indulgences which only life can bring.  However, the reader could see it for her. 

It is nearly impossible to read this book and not find a soft spot in your heart for this unforgettable character.  She became as real to me as a close friend.  As I approached the final pages of the novel, I wished for more and more pages filled with Clementine’s thoughts.  After I finished the book, I was left pondering the outcomes of the vivid characters which Ream had created in my mind.   Few books have left me having to know more, read more.  Losing Clementine is one such book.  It’s the type of story which makes it hard to put the book down and stays with you when you’ve finished it. 

One of my favorite paragraphs in the book is, “I looked at her.  She was ready to crumple.  She was made of nothing more substantial than tissue paper.  She could blow away in the wind right then or dissolve in the rain.”  I have lived such moments, I have loved and lost like Clementine.  I understand the darkness and the light that was so beautifully brought forth in this story.

Rating

I understand that this is Ashley Ream’s debut novel.  I am immediate fan.  I’ve decided to follow her on Facebook/Twitter and encourage readers to explore her website at http://ahream.com/.  Her writing brings you into scenes which are not only memorable and realistic, but also reflect the darker humor in life.   All I can simply say is that I highly recommend the read… it’s well worth your time and will leave you with a lasting impression.

FTC Disclosure:  This book was provided to me from the publisher.  Clicking on the either the photo of the book cover or the link next to the purchase price stated above will bring you to my Amazon Affiliate page.  No purchases are necessary.

4 Comments