Somebody's Fool

North Bath #3

by Richard Russo

The Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Empire Falls returns to North Bath, in upstate New York, and to the characters that captured the hearts and imaginations of millions of readers in his beloved best sellers Nobody’s Fool and Everybody’s Fool.

Ten years after the death of the magnetic Donald “Sully” Sullivan, the town of North Bath is going through a major transition as it is annexed by its much wealthier neighbor, Schuyler Springs. Peter, Sully’s son, is still grappling with his father’s tremendous legacy as well as his relationship to his own son, Thomas, wondering if he has been all that different a father than Sully was to him. Meanwhile, the towns’ newly consolidated police department falls into the hands of Charice Bond, after the resignation of Doug Raymer, the former North Bath police chief and Charice’s ex-lover. When a decomposing body turns up in the abandoned hotel situated between the two towns, Charice and Raymer are drawn together again and forced to address their complicated attraction to one another. Across town, Ruth, Sully’s married ex-lover, and her daughter Janey struggle to understand Janey’s daughter, Tina, and her growing obsession with Peter’s other son, Will. Amidst the turmoil, the town’s residents speculate on the identity of the unidentified body, and wonder who among their number could have disappeared unnoticed.

Infused with all the wry humor and shrewd observations that Russo is known for, Somebody's Fool is another classic from a modern master.

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Contemporary, Audiobook, Novels, Literature, Humor

464 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 25, 2023

About the author

RICHARD RUSSO is the author of seven previous novels; two collections of stories; and Elsewhere, a memoir. In 2002 he received the Pulitzer Prize for Empire Falls, which like Nobody’s Fool was adapted to film, in a multiple-award-winning HBO miniseries.

Reviews

[Angela M · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dear Sully,
You’re my favorite Russo character and knowing you from the first two books of this series, you probably won’t give a damn, but maybe you will when I tell you why . I’ve read pretty much all of Russo’s fiction (as well as his memoir), so since I had a lot of characters to choose from, I think it’s quite an honor. At first I missed you in this one, so I’m glad that some of those left in North Bath remember you - most times fondly, even though you were not perfect . The truth is though, that while flawed, you are perfectly irresistible because even though you come across as a miserable s.o.b. , you’re really a good man . Your loss is felt. I discovered that this novel really is in so many ways about your legacy and you really were here throughout.

None of these characters are perfect either, but Russo has a way of endearing them all to me, well maybe not all . We get to know so much about them, both head and heart as we did about you and like in any good novel, they seem so real. That’s just one of the strengths of his writing. He has an incredible way of connecting us with his characters, making us care about what happens to them. I can’t imagine what you’d be thinking now that you’re gone and North Bath is being taken over by Schuyler Springs, but I think you’d be really pissed off. I’ve been on the edge of my seat wondering how the town’s people will be impacted. I’m sure you would be on the edge of your bar stool at the Horse, too, because you cared about them. Even after you’re gone, you’re still looking out for them having asked them to check in on each other. You’d be proud of your son Peter as he does good by you and watches out for those you asked him to. You’d be proud of your old sad sack friend Rub who probably misses you the most because with a little luck and his remembering the gems of wisdom you imparted to him, he’s come a long way.

There’s a lot happening in North Bath these days. There are complicated relationship issues galore between father and sons , mothers and daughters and lovers . You know all about complicated relationships with your son, with your ex-wife, with the married woman you had an affair with for years . There are some really ugly things here as in life like blatant racism as well as the inconspicuous kind, and oh they find a dead body. It’s also a true to life reflection of what we see in the news - there are good cops and bad cops, one really bad cop in particular who would have had your wrath as he did mine.

This is crazy, I know, writing a letter to a fictional character and a dead one at that. I blame Richard Russo. There’s something extraordinary about that man’s writing that took me right back to North Bath for a third visit making me feel as if I never left . He is a master at creating these small towns, a wonderful story teller of their inhabitants. He has such a keen sense of awareness of who we are as human beings - flawed and vulnerable and many times resilient. It’s like you said when things aren’t working, “Try something. And if that doesn’t work, we’ll try something else.” It’s no wonder that I connect as if I really knew you.

Fondly,
Angela

I read this with Diane as one of our monthly reads. Another good one ! We’re on a roll.

I received a copy of this from Knopf through NetGalley.

[Diane S ☔ · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Raymer was struck by just how complex and multilayered even the simplest of lives were, how they intersected in strange, unpredictable ways, people magically appearing at just the right moment, others turning up at the exact wrong one, often giving an impression that fate must be at work, though in all probability it was little more than chance........

Although larger than life Scully has been dead for over ten years, his presence still looms large. His beloved town of North Bath will soon cease to be, annexed by the more successful town of Schuyler Springs. Needless to say, this has caused many changes, changes that are receiving a mixed reception. When a body is found in the old, supposedly soon to be sold hotel, it presents both an ending and a beginning.

Russos talent lies in presenting a reader with characters they can identify with and take to heart. With small town life, showing both the minutiae of daily existence and the challenges as well. The importance of the people and their relationships, how they tend to bond together and the issues that can tear them apart. Russo shows us life, with all its warts and glory. All our characters will come to some sort of crisis moment, but by books end most will have changed in different ways, and though i felt the ending was a little too pat, I wouldnt have had it any other way.

Angela and I are on a roll. Our last several books have been terrific.

[Cheri · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

While there are sections of this story which include Russo’s most beloved character, the majority of this story takes place ten years after the passing of the character that is beloved by most of Russo’s readers - ‘Sully.’ He is, of course, remembered among those who live in North Bath, which will also be changing as it will soon be a part of Schuyler Springs. Aside from some of those who live in North Bath not really being happy about this, it will mean the loss of jobs for some, as there will be no need for an additional Mayor, or Chief of Police to start with. The town has been struggling for some time, and the people in it, as well.

In the meantime, soon after a new Chief of Police has been installed, a body is discovered at the Sans Souci. But, since people are creatures of habit, the phone call goes to the now former Chief of Police, who attempts to get out of it by reminding them that he is no longer Chief, he ends up going anyway. Curiosity wins in the end.

This is a story about change, and the impact it has upon not only the town, but the people who can’t imagine the concept of things changing. It is almost unimaginable to them, despite the fact that they’ve been feeling the change happening slowly for a long time. Businesses are barely hanging on, people are barely hanging on. Still, despite that, they are rooted there, and they can’t imagine a life elsewhere.

Richard Russo’s characters are rooted to this place, they would rather stick with their old frustrations, they’ve already learned how to react and vent about those ones, than take on new frustrations. This place may have its faults, but they’re used to them. There’s a lot of charm and love inside these pages for this place they call home, and the people who live there.


Pub Date: 25 Jul 2023

Many thanks for the ARC provided by Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Achor, Knopf

[Ron Charles · Rating 4 out of 5]

The reassuring theme of Richard Russo’s new novel is that it’s never too late to try again.

Russo would know.

In 1993, he published “Nobody’s Fool,” a tragicomedy about a collection of rough-hewed characters in Upstate New York. We met these handymen, waitresses and cops again in 2016, in a sequel titled “Everybody’s Fool.” And now, three decades after the launch of the “Fool” series, Russo is giving the gang a third try in “Somebody’s Fool.”

This is optimism in print.

Russo has become our national priest of masculine despair and redemption. The gruff grace that Russo traffics in might seem sentimental next to the merciless interrogation of John Updike’s Rabbit series or the philosophical musings of Richard Ford’s novels about Frank Bascombe. But Russo understands the appeal, even the necessity, of those absurd affections that exceed all reason and make the travails of human life endurable.

Although “Somebody’s Fool” is a novel predicated on death, it’s pitched against hopelessness. And yet it would seem that the spirit has finally drained out of North Bath. After decades of wheezing on a rusty ventilator, this depressed town is being annexed by its far wealthier rival, Schuyler Springs, a place of “latte-drinking homosexuals and one-God-at-most Unitarian churches, a town where morally upright, God-fearing, hardworking people couldn’t afford to live.” Not that morally upright, God-fearing, hardworking people seem particularly prevalent in the soon-to-be-dissolved town North Bath. But like hanging, the annexation has concentrated the minds of old-time North Bath residents.

Still a decade from retirement age, Police Chief Douglas Raymer has been given the dreary job of shutting down the town’s police force, which is proving easier than wrapping up his own career. In his spare time he might finally get around to reading “Great Expectations,” which is more ironic than Raymer knows. Therapy hasn’t helped. . . .

To read the rest of this review, go to The Washington Post:"
https://www.washingtonpost.com/books/...

[Andy Marr · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely adore Russo's novels and count the first two books in this series among my all-time favourite reads, so it was quite a surprise to find myself close to bored a few times during the first half od this third installment. The second half of the novel, however, was pure Russo and a pure joy to read. And that ending - ooft! It's pretty rare that I cry at a book and rarer still that I LOL, but those final chapters had me doing both. Fabulous!

[Diane Barnes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sully has been dead for 18 months when this book begins (The book jacket says 10 years, but whoever wrote that didn't read the book). He's still remembered fondly by everyone who liked/loved him, and because of that, he infuses every page. So does Miss Beryl, who has been dead even longer. We continue the story of the hapless residents of North Bath that began in the previous two books. Just as funny, just as sad, and just as entertaining. The ending left me hopeful that Russo may not be finished with these people, I'm dying to know more about their futures.

As Sully would say:

"We'll try something. And if that doesn't work, we'll try something else."

[PattyMacDotComma · Rating 5 out of 5]

5★
“ ‘Anybody ever tell you you look more like your old man every day?’

‘No one needs to. There’s a mirror in my bathroom.’

‘Must be discouraging.’

‘A little,’ Peter admitted.”

His old man was Sully, hero (?) of Russo’s previous ‘Fool’ books featuring Donald Sullivan, known only as Sully by everyone. He was a rumpled, unkempt, guy who did everything, fixed things, was kind to drunks and old ladies, and was increasingly hindered by his ‘bum knee’. I think you would enjoy this on its own, but for me, I loved revisiting the people.

Russo fills in the background details well, but it’s impossible to capture the long and ongoing back and forth, the to and from of everyone’s conversations and interactions over the years. We are now a generation or two removed from Sully, Peter being his university professor son. (Who would ever have thought he’d produce a son like Peter?!)

Peter has come back to North Bath to fix up the house he inherited from his father, who had inherited it from an old teacher (one of the old ladies Sully helped). The idea is to renovate and sell.

North Bath is on the skids, about to be amalgamated (swallowed up) by the more upmarket, nearby Schuyler Springs.

“Naturally, not everyone had been in favor of this quantum shift. Some maintained there was really only one genuine redundancy that annexation would eliminate, and that was North Bath itself. By allowing itself to be subsumed by Schuyler Springs, its age-old rival, the town was basically committing suicide, voting for nonexistence over existence, and who in their right mind did that? This melodramatic argument was met with considerable derision. Was it even possible for an intubated patient on a ventilator to commit suicide?”

Chief of Police Douglas Raymer has been talking about retiring, so the timing for him is perfect. Charice Bond, whose boss he’s been for some years, is now the Chief of the new amalgamated department. She is also his lover, and her unusual brother, Jerome, was Raymer’s late wife Rebecca’s lover with whom she was going to run away before she tripped, fell, and died.

Oh, there are lots of entwined threads in this community’s stories, and I totally enjoyed both the reading of the text and listening to some as audio. Mark Bramhall’s narration made it clear who was speaking to whom, and I’m sure he enjoyed doing Jerome, who is certainly unique.

I almost forgot – early in the book, a decomposing body is found hanging from an abandoned building, too far gone to identify. And there are crooked cops.

Oh yes ... Raymer is white, Charice and Jerome are black, so there’s that dynamic, too.

I was delighted to visit what’s left of North Bath, and I hope to see more of Schuyler Springs, if Russo sees fit to continue. After all, there should be even more cross-pollination of stories now.

“Schuyler Springs, a lucky town if there ever was one, had money to burn. The city was flush. It was full of fancy restaurants and coffee shops and museums and art galleries.”

[Jill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thomas Wolfe famously wrote “You Can’t Go Home Again”…but Richard Russo proves him wrong. In Somebody’s Fool, he triumphantly returns to the place where it all began, North Bath in upstate New York – this time a decade after the passing of his main character, Donald “Sully” Sullivan.

And oh, what a homecoming it is! The best compliment I can give this book is I was absorbed every minute I was reading it and sad when it ended and I had to say goodbye to these characters again.

When the book begins, North Bath is in sorry state. It’s about to be annexed to its more bustling and vibrant neighbor, Schuyler Springs. Sully’s ghost (not literally) permeates the town and its inhabitants, who often stop and wonder, “What would Sully do?” And then the thread of the plot emerges – a hanging body is discovered at the deserted San Souci hotel.

I say “the thread of a plot” because solving this mystery is less important than the themes at play – how the sins (and sometimes, the redemptions) of the parent travel down to affect the offspring, how those who seem down-and-out can claw their way back, and how the signals that might have saved some of them never makes it through the noise.

The heart of the novel is former Chief of Police Douglas Raymer, who is living apart from his love, Charice, who is the first Black woman to hold his former title. He desperately wants her back, but there’s her twin brother, Jerome, who is OCD and quirky, to contend with. The dialogue between Raymer and Jerome about false equivalences, Black and white time, and the evolutionary purpose of plumage is…well, let me settle on the word “brilliant.”

Then there’s Peter, Sully’s son, who has long been estranged from his own son, Thomas. Once upon a time he left with his older son, Will, leaving Thomas and his brother Andrew to the vagaries of his mercurial ex-wife. Now Thomas is passing through – and that leads to a whole subplot on bad vs. good cops, bad vs. good parents, and the thorny complication of relationships. Add in Sully’s former lover, Ruth, and her own daughter and granddaughter (who happens to hold an unrequited crush on Peter’s son Will) and this novel quickly catches fire.

This is flat-out a wonderful book, one that engrossed me from start to finish. I owe a huge thanks to Knopf, who sent me a signed first edition in exchange for an honest review. I was so excited to open the package and see Richard Russo’s name that I squealed with delight. Richard Russo doesn’t just create novels, he creates worlds.

[Albert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ten years have passed since Sully’s death, and yet he is as ever-present as in first two iterations of this trilogy. Richard Russo didn’t start out with the intention to write a trilogy. It doesn’t matter. Sully is welcome in my life anytime. Unlike Sully, perhaps unfortunately, I don’t regularly find my way to a corner bar, have a beer and strike up a conversation with whoever is sitting beside me, or visit the same coffee shop every morning and become close friends with the owner. But I thoroughly enjoy reading about Sully’s life in the small town of North Bath in New York State.

Even with Sully gone in Somebody’s Fool, he is there. He is in everybody’s memory. He is frequently at the core of whatever story is being told. His son, Peter, has grown from an angry, selfish man into a likeable one who emulates many of Sully’s qualities and realizes that this behavior is an improvement for him. Sully’s physical absence has even resulted in the blossoming of some characters. We get to know Rub to a degree we never did before as he learns about himself and of what he is capable. The lives of other characters, such as Doug Raymer, take off in new directions. This novel was simply a lot of fun. Catching up with old friends, people that you like; watching them work through their struggles, failures and successes. The interactions of Doug Raymer and Jerome Bond were hilarious.

I am the first to say that I often need a novel to be more than a plot and great characters, but in this case the plot and characters were enough. More than enough.

[Debbie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was so very excited to see a new book coming out in this celebrated series. It has been seven years since the last one. It was fun to take a literary journey back to North Bath, New York. Back to this struggling town and the lives of the people that I first became acquainted with in "Nobody's Fool" and "Everybody's Fool". It's obvious why Richard Russo is a Pulitzer Prize winning novelist when you read this book. I quickly became immersed in the story.

Ten years after the death of one of Bath's most colorful characters, Sully Sullivan, the depressed town and its inhabitants are still struggling, but now they are being absorbed by the more well-to-do nearby town of Shuyler Springs. Bath is a town filled with people full of regrets and resentments. With the backdrop of a mystery surrounding an unidentifiable dead body found in an abandoned luxury hotel, we follow the lives of these people.

Even though he is gone, I enjoyed how many of the resident's individual stories touched on how their lives had been affected by Sully: including his son and his grandsons. Along with bursts of humor, this character driven and richly woven story includes new and old friendships and people who are learning what is most important in their lives, while also undergoing change. It may even have you reflecting on your own life.

Though this is the third book in the North Bath series, I believe that it can be savored as a standalone novel, but Russo fans will relish this book even more.

My sincere thanks to NetGalley and Knopf Publishing Group for giving me the opportunity to read a digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Deborah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the third and final entry in Russo’s North Bath trilogy. It works pretty well as a stand-alone, though I think the enjoyment is greatly enhanced by having read the other books first. It’s set in a failing working-class community in upstate New York, and the feckless and larger-than-life Sully (on whom the first books focused) has been dead for several years now. His college professor son (seemingly the polar opposite of his blue-collar father, but we know appearances are deceiving) has reluctantly stuck around Bath even though he’s keen to escape back to NYC. He’s stayed for a string of reasons—temporarily, he keeps telling himself—but largely to please his own son and to lend a hand to a number of locals who need different kinds of help, who were “bequeathed” to him by Sully. A beautiful, humane mix of laugh-out-loud comedy and pathos. The author is truly generous with and likes his characters, no matter how flawed they are—and some of them are really messed up.

[☮Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 rounded up.
I've read all that Russo offers, I think, and I can't get enough of him and his great characters. In this one I was at first a little bogged down by being introduced to so many people at once, because even though I've read the other books in the series, I didn't immediately remember everyone, along with the new characters being introduced as well. But the more I read, the better it became and in no time, I was fully invested. I miss Sully as do all his old friends, but his son Peter has taken up where Sully left off. They all check in on each other as Sully had asked them to. But that doesn't mean everyone has good intentions, no indeed, as there are a couple of bad eggs thrown in also. One of those is a cop, who is just despicable. How it ends makes me wonder if there might just be one more story up Russo's sleeve. We can only hope!

Back in 2002 when Empire Falls (my personal favorite) won the Pulitzer, the Boston Globe had this to say about Richard Russo:
Russo is an unpretentious master of fictional technique whose deeper wisdom expresses itself in the distinctive fallibility, decency, humour and grace of the indisputably, irresistibly real people he puts on the page.

It still applies; his talent is unfaltering.

[Lorna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Somebody's Fool is the third book in the trilogy of North Bath, New York and featuring Donald (Sully) Sullivan. However, in this book Sully's presence and wisdom is still palpable even though he has died. There are many pilgrimages to the cemetery to speak with Sully and try to glean some of his wisdom by asking the question, "What would Sully do?" Or there are conversations in his favorite bar as one sits next to his bar stool pondering what would Sully do or say? His son Peter Sullivan has returned as well, teaching at the local community college now that his son Will has completed his graduate studies and gone to England. While Peter acknowledges the troubled times between he and Sully, he readily admits that Sully was the perfect grandfather to Will helping him though some difficult times. It seems like the underlying theme of the novel was that it is never too late, as past generations have much to impart as it seems like one generation bleeds into the next in a circular fashion.

As the book opens, the blue-collar town of North Bath is slowly being taken over by its more sophisticated and trendy neighbor Schuyler Springs. The merger will resolve some of its budget issues but will ultimately drive up the costs in the area resulting in the hazards of gentrification. The Chief of North Bath Police Department was forced into retirement as his department was taken over by Schuyler Springs. There are many plot lines throughout the book. One is the investigation into the apparent suicide in the previously abandoned hotel the Sans Souci in Schuyler Springs bringing the former North Bath Chief of Police to lead the investigation. In addition to possible corruption in the police department as well as race relations to complicate the narrative. There also are a host of people that Sully entrusted his son to look after which adds a lot of interest and quirky characters. All in all I loved my time in North Bath and found it a moving narrative on a lot of levels. I think Sully would be proud.

[Holly R W · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is author Richard Russo's sequel to Nobody's Fool and Everybody's Fool, which featured his unforgettable character, Sully. In this novel, Russo returns to the town of North Bath, NY, and catches the reader up with its residents. It is 2009 and Sully has been deceased for 18 months. The story focuses upon two central characters - Sully's son, (Peter Sullivan) and North Bath's police chief, (Doug Reymer), who has just retired. North Bath itself has been annexed by its more affluent, neighboring community, Schuyler Springs.

Russo has a gift for crafting believable characters. I found myself remembering them from Nobody's Fool and becoming invested in them again. And, Russo has surprises in store for the reader.

Here is a sample of his writing. In this scene, Peter had taken Sully's mistress Ruth (at her request) to Sully's grave. They have the following conversation afterwards, in his truck.

Ruth: "Thanks for indulging an old woman."
Peter: "My pleasure," he said, turning the key in the ignition and starting the windshield wipers. "Tell Tina (Ruth's granddaughter) I said hi."
"I'll do that."
"She was on the list," he said, putting the truck in gear and following the tire tracks between the long row of graves.
"Which?"
"The list of people my father wanted me to check in on after he was gone," he told her. "You didn't get one of those?"
"I did, actually," she told him. "Mine just had one name on it, though."
"Yeah?" he said. "Who was that?"
"You."
***********************************************

I can only hope that in time, Russo might write another sequel.


4.5 stars

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

It’s been a long time since I’ve read one of his novels but I don’t remember so much inner dialogue. It slowed down the pacing of the novel. I resent that the author didn’t trust his readers enough to let them figure out the inner turmoil given the situations his characters found themselves in. This style decision made it a horribly boring read. Every rumination included a repeat of backstory already divulged. All the inner dialogue seemed like the author’s notes to develop later. Pages and pages of listing potential home intruders should have been deleted. A good editor could have made this a great book. Unfortunately maybe an excellent writer has become too big for an editor and now I see his previous success wasn’t necessarily on him. Maybe I was too excited for this latest from a favorite author but I am so disappointed.

[Algernon · Rating 5 out of 5]

[9/10]

Lunatic and necessary aren’t mutually exclusive.

A ghost roams the streets of a ghost town.
Sully has been gone from this world for ten years, and now his city of North Bath has finally thrown in the towel and accepted to be absorbed into it’s luckier, more prosperous neighbour of Schuyler Springs.
Probably, you must be a lunatic to chose to live in this derelict, ruined former town, but some people are left with no other options. What they apparently need is a crippled, cantankerous and boozy old guardian angel to remind them who they are to each other.

For some reason the idea that Sully might actually be haunting North Bath didn’t seem all that far-fetched.

This is the sequel I wasn’t looking forward to reading, despite my five star ratings for the first two episodes, also set in North Bath and ten years apart. I wasn’t keen to return because I thought there can be no story without Sully, the actual beating heart of this community, the fellow who played the same numbers at the lottery all his life, refusing to give up on hope despite ample evidence that bad luck followed him around everywhere he went. Sully is the proverbial fool from the title, but maybe, like that other fool from a Beatles tune, his eyes have seen the world spinning ‘round.

“And now you don’t know what to do.”
“There’s something to do?”
“There’s always something to do.”
“Yeah, but most of it’s wrong. Either wrong or too late.”
“Your father used to say, ‘Do some f_cking thing. If it doesn’t work, do something else.’ ”

Sully’s son Peter is renovating the house that his father inherited from his literature teacher, Miss Beryl. After a grievous divorce and the abandonment of two of his sons and of his academic career, Peter is somehow putting his life back together, when he receives a visit from Thomas. His now grown-up son might have a bone to pick with the father who left him, and Peter cannot help but see here a repeat of his own relationship with Sully. Is it too late now to mend those broken fences?

Peter is not the only person in North Bath to hear the words of Sully in his or her mind as they contemplate their failing businesses and their broken relationships.
Ruth struggles to communicate with her resentful daughter Janey and to make sense of the actions of her autistic niece Tina. Rub Squeers, Sully once faithful companion, has just come out again after a crippling depression and tries to hold on to temporary jobs. Carl Roebuck, the former business shark, is now homeless and in ill health.
Even Doug Raymer, the rather slow-witted policeman from book two, is hitting rock bottom. His department has been erased after the merger with Schuyler Springs, his fiancee Charice Bond has broken up with him and his sessions with a psychiatrist only drive him to more questions instead of answers.

What on earth had he been thinking? Raymer asked himself. The last thing he needed was a roommate, especially this one. So why, why, why? Love, he supposed. What else? Charice needed him to do this and so he would.

Oh yeah, I almost forgot, Charice is too busy with her new role as Schuyler Springs police chief and with handling a couple of openly racist officers in her team, so she dumps her OCD and manic-depressive brother Jerome on Raymer.
Sharing an apartment leads to a lot of hilarious clashes of personality, but it is also an occasion for Raymer to reflect on some of the things he took for granted in a community that is almost exclusively white skinned. Charice and Jerome will make him acknowledge and question his own racial prejudices.

The more he listened, the less outlandish they seemed to him as well, which was, in its own way, even more unsettling. Moreover, the idea that injustice and inequality might be systemic cast police work in a whole new light.

The whole novel takes place over an extended weekend, but it is quite eventful in the usual tragic comedy of North Bath, where despair and bitter resentments turn into slapstick and witty repartee under the masterful pen of Richard Russo.

It’s a slippery slope. Expecting things to be fair? Next, you’ll be demanding justice. Equal opportunity. One morning you’ll wake up and discover you’ve moved to Denmark.

Linking it all together is an investigation into the identity of a dead man discovered in the abandoned luxury hotel in North Bath. The hanged corpse was discovered too late in winter and without any identification, but it is probably another one of the people whose life intersected with Sully’s at one point of the trilogy.

Doug Raymer, in his slow but steady internal monologues, is the one who provides us with the key to these disparate events. The answer comes as a combination of the ghost voices of Sully and of Miss Beryl, the two people who didn’t give up on him even when Raymer himself was wrecked by self-doubt:

Now, sitting outside the house that had once belonged to his eight-grade teacher, Raymer was struck by just how complex and multilayered even the simplest lives were, how they intersected in strange, unpredictable ways, people magically appearing at just the right moment, others turning up at the exact wrong one, often giving the impression that fate must be at work, though in all probability it was little more than chance, like Raymer entering that used bookshop and noticing Great Expectations . Finding meaning in such happenstance often seemed impossible in the moment, but over time patterns did emerge, or seemed to.

This is, in the end, the role of literature: to find patterns in random events, to create stories that give meaning to our lives.
And this is also the only true form of immortality: to be remembered by the people you met, or by the people who were inspired by your stories.

Dithering led to further dithering and, in the end, to paralysis. Peacetime had only reinforced his father’s conviction that trial and error – or, as he put it, Do something, even if it’s wrong - were preferable to armchair theorizing. The latter involved sitting down, which told you a lot right there. In Sully’s view, life demanded being on your feet and – speaking of feet – putting one in front of the other. You sat down only when you were done doing.

On his death bed, Sully left a list of people to ‘look up’ for his son Peter. He left some sort of list with other people too. Because Sully, in his own recalcitrant way, high atop his foolish hill, understood that you are only defeated when you give up, when you lose sight of who or what is important in your life.
Once again, it is Raymer who finds the right words to give it a name: That’s what the Schuyler job is going to require. Basic decency.

North Bath might be erased from the administrative map of the district, but as long as the ghost of Sully still passes by, its people can still draw hope that their struggles are not in vain.

His fear had been that one day he’d forget Sully altogether, but what if dead wasn’t the same as gone?

[Laura Rogers · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read Somebody's Fool back in August but somehow failed to post a review. Richard Russo is a master storyteller and one of my favorite authors in the world. Before I sat down to read the last book of the North Bath series, I spent some time thinking about what I find so captivating. It came to me that I honestly remember little of the plot lines but what I find unforgettable are the characters and small town settings. His characters are ordinary people but portrayed with such insight and humanity that they jump off the page and into my heart.

In Somebody's Fool, Sully is ten years gone but his spirit lives on in the lives he touched and the town he loved. Sully's son Peter, far more like his father than he cares to admit, is now the main character as the town struggles with loss and change. I expect a lot from Russo's writing and he always delivers.

I received a drc from the publisher via NetGalley.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the third novel in Russo’s wonderful trilogy set in North Bath, a small town in upstate New York, and it lived up to my expectations. (I would suggest reading the other two first, and this review will assume that the reader has done just that.) Sully, the main character in the two preceding novels, has died, but his family and friends live on - - and there is still plenty going on in North Bath!!. As in the previous novels, we see a wide range of small-town people, from restaurant owners, to tow truck drivers to cops. But more importantly, Russo shows us how they relate to themselves, each other and their small- town environment. One of the main characters in this novel is Sully’s son, Peter, who has returned to town for only a short time - - but may be finding worth in the hometown he so sought to leave. Other “returned” characters play a large part as well, including Charice’s brother, Jerome, and Peter’s long rejected son, Thomas. Life as described by Russo is so reflective of the mundane (lots of time in breakfast spots, diners and bars) as well as the constant human struggle to figure out life. Russo takes on some current issues such as race and police brutality, both of which he handles well and integrates perfectly into the storyline. I think that Russo handles small town life with an unbeatable combination of seriousness and humor. I hope we hear more from Russo soon.

[Kasa Cotugno · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having followed the inhabitants of North Bath for decades, I was thrilled when there was a third in the series. Richard Russo's facility with description and especially dialogue is on full display here, situations rendered almost cinematically. Changes are inevitable with time, and with North Bath's very existence in doubt, her townspeople continue in their own quirky way. Yes, Sully passed in the second of the series, but his family prevails in scattershot fashion, and thanks to Russo's fine writing, continues to hold interest.

[Brian · Rating 2 out of 5]

“But true is true, whether you want it to be or not.” (2.5 stars)

If you, like me, fell in love with Richard Russo's North Bath Trilogy—starting with NOBODY’S FOOL and continuing with EVERYBODY’S FOOL—you enjoyed the rich tapestry of salt-of-the-earth characters. These were real, complex people you came to love, navigating the gritty realities of small-town life. However, I suggest you skip what I hope is the final installment of this series, SOMEBODY’S FOOL. It pains me to say this, but Russo has seemingly lost his touch with North Bath.

To begin with the positives, there are a few moments in SOMEBODY’S FOOL that reminded me why I loved this series. The character of Rub Squeers returns, and Russo handles Rub’s grief over Sully’s death with poignant care. It’s deeply moving, raw, and authentic—one of the few elements of the book that stayed with me.
Additionally, there’s a lovely chapter titled “Too Late,” in which a mother and daughter, who have struggled throughout the series to connect, share a moment of profound understanding. This chapter stands out as Russo at his best: simple, human, and deeply resonant.

Unfortunately, these highlights are overshadowed by the book’s numerous shortcomings. The hallmark wit and dry humor that defined the first two novels are noticeably absent. This loss of humor leaves the story feeling flat and lifeless by comparison. Moreover, the novel leans heavily into contemporary cultural tropes and stereotypes, which feel forced and out of place in the world Russo has built. For instance, there are obligatory mentions of a closeted homosexual character and the latest cultural fad, a man who decides he is a woman. These moments are not explored with the depth or nuance one would expect from Russo; instead, they feel perfunctory, as if included solely to tick cultural boxes. Each of these topics is given less than half a page, making them feel like superficial nods rather than meaningful elements of the story.
Another issue is the inconsistency in the text’s treatment of race. The word “Black” is capitalized when referring to ethnicity, while “white” is not. It struck me as distracting, inconsistent, and ridiculous.

On a literary level, the novel suffers from excessive internal monologues and navel-gazing. While Russo’s earlier works allowed readers to inhabit the minds of his characters, these internal explorations were balanced with action and dialogue that brought the characters to life. In SOMEBODY’S FOOL, however, the narrative spends so much time inside the characters’ heads that it feels stifling. The story lacks the spark of dynamic characterization and the engaging momentum of its predecessors.

Quotes:
• “If potholes and second-rate schools kept taxes low and degenerates, atheists and Starbucks out, then let’s hear it for potholes.”
• “Did lust count as a feeling? he wondered. It should.”
• “Aren’t we all trapped in our heads?”
• “Maybe she figured a few chips and cracks were worth it, proof she’d lived and loved.”
• “His myriad, strident opinions on a wide range of subjects he viewed as proof of enviable intellectual acuity, whereas in reality, they rendered him tiresome in the extreme…”
• “…I’ve learned to put hurt in a different room from the one I’m in.”
• “People who love you are the easiest to lie to.”
• “After all, how long could you stay pissed off at somebody for trying to be happy?”

Ultimately, this text feels disconnected from the heart and soul of the series. The characters and storylines that once felt organic now feel contrived, as if Russo were writing not from a place of inspiration but out of obligation. It’s disappointing to see such a series conclude on a note that feels so inauthentic and lackluster.

If you’re a fan of the first two books, my advice is to cherish them and let the series end there in your mind. I doubt I’ll pick up another installment if Russo chooses to continue. SOMEBODY’S FOOL left me with a lingering sense of regret, wishing I had stopped after book two and preserved my admiration for this once-brilliant series.

[Victor · Rating 3 out of 5]

Russo's my favorite author, and the first installment is an all time favorite of mine. This book concludes well, but there's choices I wish Russo never made. For one, he spends too much time on Raymer, who's simply not his strongest character, and his whole drama with the girlfriend and brother, who goes all woke, which just destroys this character led series. The biggest loss is that so much time was spent on this, and not the humor that's such a strong point of Russo. This book has no humor. The best characters that aren't dead by now are Rub and Carl Roebuck, who have such bit parts, that it feels like such a missed opportunity. The same with Tina, who's completely intriguing, but underdeveloped, and Wacker, a welcome return, but his other brother is completely absent. Why go the political route, and spend time on this, where you have all these cards in your hand that are not played? And I miss the hiijinks--remember Reymer teaming up with Carl and Sully to dig up the judge? That's so missed here. Look, it's never bad writing with Russo and merits a 3 star read because, despite what he did here, he's still Russo and created an amazing world in Bath, but he didn't storyboard this and work with his strengths.

[Jonathan K (Max Outlier) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Of all Richard Russo's books, I've always felt that the 1993 Nobody's Fool was one of his best, though Straight Man is equal if not better. The story of Donald Sullivan, aka Sully, a construction worker in North Bath, NY renting a room in elderly Miss Beryl's home, he does what he can to keep his head above water along side Rub Speers, a stuttering sidekick who depends on him. Sully's wry humor, life philosophies and ability to 'see through' people is not what you'd expect from a character like this. Divorced with three sons, Peter, Will and Wacker, Sully does his best to maintain status quo, though his lack of patience and disconnection from being fatherly doesn't exactly help.

Here we are in North Bath many years later where we find Sully dealing with old age while his son Peter has blossomed and moved back to be close with him. The nearby town of Schulyer Springs has grown by an order of magnitude causing the residents of Bath to flee, save for Ruth, her daughter and 'the crew' we knew from Nobody's Fool. Russo adds an interesting touch by incorporating a mystery in need of a solution but does his utmost to maintain the wry sense of humor he's known for. Among the highlights are the inclusion of Charice Bonds, a cop that worked with now retired Sheriff Raymer and her twin brother, Jerome who could carry a story on his own. Since they're black, Russo incorporates poignant racial elements coupled with his classic humor.

There's plenty of melodrama and reminders from the original story which keep the reader engaged. That said, the overwhelming use of back story lengthens the book while bogging down the pace. Soon after the story begins, we learn Sully has passed away, but for some reason, Russo doesn't explain how, why or where. That said, having loved the original, this was a much needed walk down memory lane, having loved the the Oscar winning adaptation with Paul Newman and others. While reading this I could 'see' the characters making the experience more enjoyable.

Whether you're a Russo fan or not, this is a delightful story written by a Pulitzer winning author and worth adding to your list, though I recommend reading Nobody's Fool prior to this one.

[Lynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

The characters are wonderful and familiar but the writing, while often smart and witty, felt forced. So much therapeutic inner monologues and so many rhetorical questions made the story drag. It felt like a TV series that should have been 8 episodes but was stretched into 22.

[Jean-Luc · Rating 2 out of 5]

Richard Russo is a wonderful American wordsmith but unfortunately I found this novel extremely boring. I just couldn't keep reading it and enjoying it without giving it all the enthusiasm it probably deserved if I were still yearning for the 90s...Is the maestro running out of steam or am I simply fed up with all the blandness that American fiction is unfortunately dishing out nowadays? This mild and easily forgotten fictional "cul de sac" will not make any wave upon its publication.
It's 2023 and it's time for Sully to stay dead and buried...Sorry but it was a big bore....

Many thanks anyway to Knopf and Netgalley for this ARC

[Sonny · Rating 4 out of 5]

― “Jerome,” Raymer said, not really caring if his own exasperation showed through. “I’m white, okay? I’m sorry, but that’s what I am. How am I supposed to know who all these people are?” Jerome massaged his temples. “The same way I know who Charles Dickens was.”
― Richard Russo, Somebody's Fool

This is the second Richard Russo novel I have read. I loved Empire Falls, which won a Pulitzer Prize for fiction, so I am at a loss to explain why it has taken me six years to read a second novel by him. Russo’s novels realistically capture life in a small town, and he also realistically captures the challenges of everyday life, as well as the dysfunction that is a part of some people’s lives.

The novel is set in the fictional small town of North Bath, New York. One of the main story lines involves Peter Sullivan, a college professor and divorced father of three. Peter is the son of Donald “Sully” Sullivan, the main character of Russo’s novel Everybody's Fool (a novel I am sad to say, I have not yet read). The other main story line involves Chief of Police Douglas Raymer.

As the story opens, the town of North Bath is being annexed by its neighbor, Schuyler Springs. The merger results in the closing of the North Bath police department. Raymer chooses not to lead the new, merged police department. When a body is found at the long-closed Sans Souci hotel, Raymer is asked by the new chief of police of Schuyler Springs, Charice Bond, to investigate. Raymer and Charice have had an on-again, off-again romantic relationship for several years. Raymer is White; Charice is an attractive Black woman. Their relationship is currently in a time-out and Raymer is struggling to deal with it. Her troubled twin brother, Jerome, will help him in the investigation. The interplay between these two men is humorous, although Raymer doesn’t find it funny at all.

The divorced father, Peter, has largely been estranged from two of his sons—sons he did not raise. When one of them shows up on his doorstep one day carrying a grudge, Peter must deal with having been a bad father.

Somebody's Fool deals with the things of life—complicated and dysfunction relationships. It is a story of acquiescence and reconciliation, or at least movement toward those goals. A solid, four-star novel.

[Laurie · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favorite authors returns to one of my favorite places in this third book about the residents of North Bath, New York. This book can be read as a standalone, but why miss out on the pleasure of reading Nobody's Fool and its sequel, Everybody's Fool before reading this "fool" book? All three are wonderful reads.

It has been ten years since Sully died and North Bath, which has been circling the drain towards extension, has finally been annexed by its more vibrant neighbor, Schuyler Springs. Some municipal jobs have been absorbed in the process, but many small businesses are facing bleak futures as are some of the residents. One such is Peter Sullivan, Sully's son. He is mulling a future outside of North Bath but is saddled with continuing renovations to his father's old house and keeping tabs on various residents at his father's request. When his estranged son Thomas shows up, his priorities suddenly change.

Focus shifts among the residents and their trials: Charice Bond has been appointed the police chief when Doug Raymer decides against pursuing his law enforcement career. On top of her new responsibilities, her emotionally crippled brother Jerome shows up at the same time a body is found. Meanwhile, Janey is trying to keep her diner going and at the same time, try and repair her relationships with her mother and daughter. Quite the juggling act.

This witty and engrossing story about the residents of North Bath is as compelling as it is insightful. The characters are just as finely drawn as they were in the previous two books. Everyone is a little older, but are they any wiser? That's for the reader to decide. This is an entirely satisfying read, but it left me wanting more. Please, Mr. Russo, don't let this be the last we see of these characters!

Thank you, NetGalley and Knopf for an advance copy of this book. The publication date is July 25, 2023.

[Truman32 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sully gave his son a list of people who needed to be checked on once he passed away, In Somebody's Fool, I feel this is what author Richard Russo is doing to his faithful readers who have stuck around for each installment of this North Bath trilogy.But like most authors of Russo's standing he pulls a switcheroo, something not seen since that quick one pulled by Henry Gondorrf as portrayed by the surprisingly look alike for Sully, actor Paul Newman, in the crowd-pleasing motion picture, The Sting. In Somebody's Fool, Russo is not giving his readers a list to check up on these characters we have spent so much time with and who oddly enough resemble movie stars such as Bruce Willis,Melanie GriffithPhillip Seymour Hoffman. I feel what Russo is telling his readers is that these characters are going to be just fine and we do not need to check in on them anymore. Police Chief Raymer, Peter Sullivan, even Rub Squeers are all going to make it. But are we? Not to be a petulant cry man-baby, I for one am not ready to say goodbye to these weirdos. Somebody's Fool is written with Russo's standard wit, humor and empathy. While his characters may act silly, we are never laughing at them. There are moments of hilarity that may make readers think twice about reading this while imbibing refreshing liquids so you do not give a spit -take shower to the poor commuter sitting next to you on the bus.But there are other moments that will play with your heart like Sergei Rachmanioff played those ivory piano keysRusso, always one of my favorite authors has done it again writing a novel that is an utter delight.

[Christopher Febles · Rating 3 out of 5]

North Bath, a sleepy town in upstate New York, gets incorporated into the swanky, more developed city of Schuyler Springs, ten years after Everybody's Fool. Sully passes away, leaving Will with money and a huge house with which he has no idea what to do. Residents of the old town deal with retirement, past relationships, past children left behind, racism, classism, domestic violence, corruption, self-determination.

My, there are a LOT of storylines here, over a period of three-four days, so I’ll leave you to determine what they are. They all cleverly interweave, however. There’s a distant center in Sully, but the plot centers on a man hanging in the abandoned San Souci resort from an apparent suicide. That’s done well: Raimer’s brought out of retirement by Charice (his GF and former colleague), the new Chief, to solve the mystery. I loved how he seems reluctant and lethargic in the task, but he figures it all out using his old-fashioned skill.

I also liked the story of Peter Sullivan’s son from a past relationship coming back to visit in unusual circumstances. Thomas goes epistolary in writing to his other sibling about what he’s learned about their estranged father, in a very earthy approach.

There’s a lot of expository here, where the narrator gets lost in the head of the character in each chapter. It’s OK, though, since it’s easy to grasp and funny in spots. The characters are described well and given a good little existential challenge. I thought “Del” was a good villain here.

Overall, strong writing yet again and another interesting tale of North Bath. Will there be another?

[Mary Lins · Rating 5 out of 5]

It should be no surprise that Richard Russo’s third and final trip to North Bath via, “Somebody’s Fool”, is absolutely wonderful in every way. It’s like a Christmas homecoming with people you adore and who make you laugh AND think.

The novel spans three days in the winter circa 2009. The recession is raging, North Bath has been annexed by the “sexier” adjacent city Schuyler Springs, and a body has been discovered hanging over the ballroom in the deserted Sans Souci hotel. Doug Raymer is stepping down as the North Bath police chief since the city no longer exists, and Sully’s son Peter is back living in town and he’s becoming more like his late father every day…including looking after the locals (hi Rub!) and in possession of Sully’s trademark witty repartee! Your favorite denizens of North Bath each have a story here, and all can be described thus:

“People who have problems never have just one.”

And Oh! the problems they all have! Some self-inflicted, some societal-inflicted. Peter’s abandoned and troubled son Thomas (aka Wacker), appears suddenly with questionable intent, and Charice, the new police chief in Schuler County, is addressing police brutality and racism on the force.

And who was that dead body in the Sans Souci?

“Somebody’s Fool” is the perfect bookend to the North Bath Trilogy and I thoroughly enjoyed it. Thank you, Richard Russo, for these wonderful novels which I will re-read many times.

[Rhonda · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a familiar place but missing the main character of Sully, but it is still worth visiting again. I love Richard Russo and this new book returns to the town of North Bath and returns to Russo's writing style that is so easy to read. This book has made me want to go back and read Nobody's Fool and Everybody's Fool again, which is in itself enough of a good review.