Book Review and Giveaway: You Came Back by Christopher Coake

Synopsis: Thirty-something midwesterner Mark Fife believes he has successfully moved past the accidental death of his young son Brendan, as well as his subsequent divorce from his college sweetheart Chloe. He’s successful, he’s in love again, and he believes he’s mastered his own memories. But then he is contacted by a strange woman who tells him not only that she owns his old house, but that she believes it to be haunted by Brendan’s ghost. 


Will Mark–who does not believe in ghosts–come to accept the mounting evidence that Brendan’s is real? Will his engagement to his new love Allison be threatened by the reappearance in Mark’s life of Chloe–who does believe? If the ghost is real, what can these two wounded parents do to help their son?


Review: You know how you pick up a book and you think it's about one thing, then you start reading it, and you realize it's not as straight forward as you thought, and you're not sure if you want to keep reading, because the main character is a little off-putting? Yup, this is one of those books, BUT if you stay with it, you will find yourself 150 pages in, going "wow, did I just read that much?", as you will be wanting to see what is going to happen next!


This really isn't so much a 'ghost story' as much as it is a 'how people deal with grief' story.  It's about where you put your faith when everything in your world falls apart, and how you pick yourself up and move on (or don't). I found myself wavering in sympathy for the character of Mark. You like him, want to shake him, like him, want to slap some sense into him, hurt for him, and finally understand him (though you may still disagree with him). So Kudo's to the author for presenting a flawed, real-life character. I ended up reading this book in 3 sittings, only because my time was limited, otherwise it would have been 2! Check this one out, it's the understated book of the Summer!


About the Author: Christopher Coake was among "Granta's Best of Young American Novelists" in 2007. His stories have been published in several literary journals. A native Hoosier, he received his M.F.A. in fiction from Ohio State University. He now lives in Reno, where he teaches creative writing at the University of Nevada. Check out his website for more info! http://www.christophercoake.net/

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Disclosure / Disclaimer:  I received this book free of charge, from Grand Central Publishing, via Bookblogs.ning, for review purposes. No other compensation, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it, all reviews/thoughts are my own.