Envy

Having read all of Harrison's books, I can't recall her ever being overly worried about plot. But "Envy" is stacked with it. It brims over with shocking and explosive twists that fulminate like psychological bombs. This is a very talky novel, and it's true (as others have noted) that it sometimes runs over with therapy talk, but Harrison's characters are so precisely realized and her insights are so sharp you tend to forgive her this minor flaw. There are two characters -- the main character's brother and a young patient of his -- who absolutely deserve their own books. I would personally love to see through their eyes. One is fascinatingly and purely evil and the other has mommy/daddy issues (and maybe just mental-health issues) so astounding she is a spectacular train wreck. This is not Harrison's best book. It's not nearly as tight as, say, "The Seal Wife" or "Exposure." But it's something different and often amazing (and a knowledge of the author's past makes the whole thing run even deeper).

Will Moreland is a successful psychoanalyst, married with two children and much as he thinks he is able to think his way through his grief over the death of his ten-year-old son Luke a couple years earlier, he can't. He thinks he sees clearly, but his vision is clouded. And he is obsessed, obsessed over the tragic drowning, obsessed over sex and obsessed over the fact that he may be the father of a child he's never seen. Add the fact that he is horribly jealous of his famous twin brother and you have a man who has some serious problems, successful psychoanalyst or not. Will is about to take a trip into a dark place nobody wants to go, deep into the netherworld of his mind, a kind of self brought about hell on earth and his first step is when he goes to his twenty-fifth college reunion and confronts his old girlfriend, demanding to know if he is the father of her child. She tells him to buzz off and, of course, he won't, so it's down, down he goes and on his journey he meets a patient on his shrink's sofa who is so seductive that, well you get the picture. Then there is his philandering father, just another notch on the gun handle of Will's problems. Will's obsessions and his journey make for delicious reading. The book is sexually explicit, sexually frank and sexually exciting, even if it is a bit rough on the old psyche at times. I know I couldn't put it down, but then I'm no stranger to sexually explicit writing. A prude might have a problem with this five star book, but if she gave it a chance it might open her eyes a bit and she might learn a thing or two worth knowing. This is a darn good book and worth every one of the five stars I'm giving it. Review Submitted by Captain Katie Osborne

Kathryn Harrison's latest novel, "Envy," opens with protagonist Will Moreland, a New York City psychoanalytic psychotherapist, about to attend his 25th college reunion. His wife Carole is adamant about not accompanying him, although he tries to tempt her with descriptions of the luxury hotel where he will be staying, the pool, excellent restaurants, room service, and pay-per-view. The fact is, Carole cannot cope with the inevitable questions that will be asked by strangers. Until three years ago the Morelands were a family of four. There were two children then, Samantha and Luke. Ten year-old Luke died in a tragic boating accident and both parents are still dealing with their grief. Then there will be the comments and curiosity about Will's identical twin, another Cornell alumni, the famous Mitchell Moreland. Mitch, a world renown long-distance swimmer, is as well known a sports figure as Lance Armstrong or Tiger Woods. Unfortunately the athlete has been estranged from his family since Will's wedding. He left the reception shortly after delivering the traditional best man's toast to the bride and groom, and has not made contact with his relatives since - over ten years now. Although Will is not thrilled about discussing these private aspects of his life, his inquisitiveness about his fellow alumni of the class of '79 overcomes his reluctance to attend. He also wants to obtain some information from an old lover about something he had read in the recent alumni bios - something which is causing him great anxiety. At the party Will strikes up a slightly flirtatious conversation with Elizabeth, the ex-girlfriend whom he has not seen in twenty-five years. He discovered that she has a daughter, now in her mid-twenties, and after doing the math realizes the baby was born a few months after the two broke up. Although Elizabeth married late in her pregnancy, Moreland cannot help but wonder if he is the father. Their encounter turns hostile when he requests a DNA sample - a strand of the daughter's hair to determine paternity. He leaves the festivities a day early and when he returns home does not mention the incident his wife. Carol Moreland, a calm, serene woman, had always been open to discussing anything with Will. Her husband thinks of her as a woman who "seems at peace with life, with herself. Not like me." Since the death of their son, however, she has distanced from her husband both physically and emotionally. She used to be a passionate sexual partner, up for anything - not any more. Oddly, though Carole practices yoga and meditation, she is addicted to violent true crime books - so graphic that she hides them from her young daughter. She really does not want to discuss their problems, although Will, as a shrink who is his own favorite patient, longs to talk about and analyze their lack of communication, among other subjects. Actually, Will is something of a motor mouth, always ready to go on at length about his feelings, problems, dreams, the u

Katherine Harrison has made her specialty the dysfuctional American Family in her fiction ("Thicker Than Water" - 1991 and "The Seal Wife - 2002) and in her memoirs ("The Kiss" - 1997 and "Seeking Rapture" - 2004). Given her own painful past history of incest and eating disorders, Ms Harrison writes poignantly of the suffering and healing within the family. "Envy" is the tale of a therapist, Will Moreland, and his wife reeling from the death of their son. The sexual complexities between this couple is touching -- for how can one physically love again after the death of a child? Similiar in theme with Judith Guest's "Ordinary People", Ms. Harrsion expands her plots to explore the losses within Will's life with an estranged twin brother, an eccentric father and possibly a long-lost daughter. Will is a "wounded healer" initially unable to heal himself. With its dark themes of pain, sexuality and death, this novel is not for everyone. The therapy sessions have the touch of truth to them (though they are too brief). But if the reader stays until its redemptive ending, you will be rewarded with a rich and well-written novel.