Into the Fire

Leanna Ellis, author of the CFBA Tour novel Once in a Blue Moon published by B & H Fiction, creates the divorced obituary writer Brynda Seymour with such spunk, sorrow, self-confidence, and self-loathing that we can’t help but find a way to care about her, to root for her, and even to somewhat admire her for her desire to find a way to make peace with her single mother’s death which occurred when Bryn was only nine years old. Bryn faithfully visits her widowed grandmother, who finished raising her, at the nursing home where the woman languishes with Alzheimer’s, unable to provide the comfort Bryn desires but can no longer receive from her. Bryn’s younger lover Eric occupies a place in Bryn’s life but not in her heart, and Bryn’s daughter Ginger is stepping up her independence as a college student. 

Before I fill in a few blanks about this engaging, unusual story, I simply must say Leanna Ellis nails this one down. The writing from Bryn’s first-person POV is cryptic and cynical, honest and hilarious, while being filled with sorrow and sarcasm. Leanna Ellis writes an amazing, quirky plot with candor, empathy, real romance (but it’s not a romance novel, folks, it’s so much more), and literary skills which keep the story down to earth while expressing humorous and pathetic situations with beautiful language that dives deep into pain and motive.

When Bryn meets an old bizarre genius-type high school friend of her mother’s at a NASA anniversary celebration of the moon landing, which also marks the day of her mother’s death so many years ago, his mysterious knowledge of her and her mother and his secretive invitation to visit him in another Texas town several hours away piques her curiosity and sends her on a journey which she hopes will dispel the secret she’s carried since her mother died. This trip to Marfa delivers answers Bryn never expected to find about her mother and about herself. 

To tell you more about this unusual but fulfilling novel would spoil the adventure. It’s a rare time when a reviewer can say a story captures a unique take on the human condition and expresses it so well that it feels brand new, but Leanna Ellis manages to do just that in Once in a Blue Moon—the title fitting the story and reading experience in so many ways. Highly recommend this novel for fans of literary novels, quirky plots, and for those readers who desire to see characters portrayed with raw authenticity and built-in need plus a beauty which comes from the honesty of human frailty.

So very well-written in a unique story with just enough heaviness and heart to drive a reader to a meaningful conclusion with a dash of humor.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0805449884

Father, you’ve clearly gifted Leanna. What a pleasure to read her work. I pray you would continue to give her insights into the human soul and expand her audience to share in her redemptive work. Bless her efforts to honor you in her writing and all those things in her life done to bring you glory. In the Name of Jesus, Amen.