Review: Gordon Osmond's Witty Writing Makes Turner's Point A Wonderful Read
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 04 30, 2014
If you're a fan of Gordon Osmond -- and who wouldn't be as he is an excellent writer and playwright -- you are in for another treat with his witty "Turner's Point," a cockeyed view of the world of America from small towns to the West Coast and finally New York where the Wall Street crowd is wowed.Using a device that writers have long used -- the flash back -- we find Eileen driving to the West Coast following the break up of her marriage due to a little tussle between the sheets with an aging stage Lothario, who still believes he's the handsome, talented actor that he never was, even in his youth. He is in town reviving a Broadway play.Eileen didn't know it but said Lothario also spent an interesting night with her son, who is having a slight identity crisis, and whose gorgeous girlfriend walks out on him. Of course, Kyle, the son, finds a new love interest almost right away. It's just not the love he expected as he is outed and learns of the wonders of the alternative world with Link, a seeming slacker, but a secret programming master, who is to play major role in his life and his mother's life.Meanwhile, Erin falls into the arms of Kyle's dad as she looks for solace, and a new affair is born. It's interesting to see how Osmond not only has the marriage explode, but also implode at the same time. Meantime, his business partner seems to remain solidly faithful to his wife, at least to this point, it's just that his partner and the partner's playmate know how to keep their mouths shut far better than anyone else in the novel. He has his own secret that's revealed at the end of the novel (no spoiler alert -- you'll have to read the book).Kyle, a lawyer and freshly out, removes himself from his dad's firm and moves to the West Coast. He is followed by his dad and his playmate, Kyle's former girlfriend, Erin, who eventually becomes the new Mrs. Dad. She is also a top graduate legal student who is part-timing it at hubby's new law firm and working a real job, as well to help pay the bills.Along the way to the last page, we come across practicing fraudsters who are trying to bring down dad and his firm. It turns out Mrs. Fraudster is the wife of a lawyer that was fired by dad's firm and it looks like she's trying for payback. Meantime, mom -- with a fresh lump of cash in her bank account from the sale of the house she won in the divorce settlement -- wants to start a restaurant.So with the help of her reconciled son Kyle and his friend Alan they set out to buy the only "real" restaurant in Johnson, Ohio, The Blue Cow. The only problem with the blue cow is that it serves blue meat and Lord knows what other kinds of mystery meat and things that really don't taste like much. The restaurant is leaking from every orifice.Writing a very classy contract that gives her 51 percent control plus carefully written put and call statements -- Alan is an excellent attorney -- they begin their rise to restaurant hegemony, using Link's talent. He's a software wizard (something like a "pinball wizard") who knows how to pump out the code they need. I think I'll stop here so you can have some of the book left to read. I will say the author has a fantastic eye for the delicious pieces of life. His talent is such that the observations he makes come out as witty comments on society in general. He is an excellent writer.Gordon Osmond is definitely a writer who knows his way around the sentence. His work sparkles with great characterization and very neat, very real-sounding dialogue and with a very plausible plot. He is a skilled author whose work isn't to be missed. If you have a chance to read or buy "Turner's Point (a great pun if you understand the story, so you will have to read it anyway)" please do so now. You won't be disappointed.