Review: Ambivalent
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 07 4, 2012
I'm of two minds about this one.  I like the writer's style, with short, staccato sentences, many of which are like journal entries and may, for instance, include the subject only by implication. For a long novel, this style can get boring; a short story or novella carries this style of writing better.I liked the characters and the psychological character development over time.  Except for one character, whose unraveling didn't ring true to me (I speak from a long lifetime's worth of professional experience).Ethical considerations are so often painted in black and white; this book showed the shades of gray and did so in a very perceptive way.One character did as many tours of service in Vietnam as he could.  The book recounts, over and over, the savagery and viciousness of that one man's war.  I got it: after the second Vietnam episode, I started skipping the gory details, just skimming enough to see if anything was relevant to the character's inner life and growth.  A good editor could have made a big difference.I wanted to stand up and cheer for the hero at the end.  I won't say more than that because I don't want to spoil it for you.  This author has lots of potential.