Relative Consequences

Jessy Tate has been haunted by a couple of missing years in her memory for a long time. Plagued by anxiety and depression, the sudden loss of her husband in 2005 sends her searching for answers to her sleeplessness. Vivid flashbacks featuring her childhood friend, Rita May, and a giant banyan tree fill her dreams. Uncovering the truth means digging into the days of her childhood in the late 1950s, but with so many years gone by, seeking answers will prove painful, especially when Rita May insists on keeping quiet about that time. Still, inspired by her family, Jessy sets off to find the truth about her past no matter what the consequences.

A thought-provoking story, “Relative Consequences” examines the late1950s, from the perspective a child in a small Florida town. While facing family struggles, Jessy Tate makes some new friends and witnesses firsthand some of the prejudice of the civil rights era. Readers are offered the events through her childhood memories and her feelings about them as an adult years later in such a way that makes one consider what should have or could have been done. This is contrasted with Rita May’s view of the past and that of Jessy’s family. Although a great deal is told instead of shown in the first and third parts of the story, and some of the descriptions are lacking at times, the mystery itself is well laid out, and part 2 in particular is very interesting and unique in its perspective and depictions. Overall, readers looking for a little more depth in their reading will find this book worth adding to their to-read lists!

Sarah E Bradley