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Brine
Meet Elliot, respected Cape Cod painter. Unbeknownst to his admirers, Elliot's got some demons in his past. When he tries to paint them out of his system, his plan backfires. Now Elliot's got some demons in his present and future as well. Spawned by a power of both mind and matter, Elliot's demons are very real, very weird, and very, very pissed off.
- GenresFiction
Nook
First published June 1, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 14, 2011
Imagine your inner demons coming to life, the mysteries of the subconscious manifested outside your back door. It could be a little uncomfortable-- the troubling secrets, the dark doubts, the guilt and fear. How would they manifest themselves? Imagine them again. Imagine them a hundred times: no, the vision won't come close to the bizarre, strangely humorous, curiously seductive, wildly energetic nightmare that is Brine. Because Brine is the working of Adrienne Jones's imagination, and where she goes cannot be anticipated.
The artist Elliot Newton has the idyllic setting in which to paint, a lighthouse on the ocean's shore. And this is what he paints, successfully, until an emotional upset and a drunken night brings out his past, a past that has been buried long in the lighthouse, and deep in the sand, long enough and deep enough to come up mutated--genetically mutated--as if on their own, his memories have evolved, and they've come up to breathe again.
Brine begins, not in medias res, but at what feels like a climax. My first thought was where can the author possibly go from here? That's what is remarkable about Jones's work. She takes off where others would end, and she does it with fascinating, twisting plots and a momentum borne both from the persistent demons and the unflinching characters. This is the kind of book you finish in one day.
But what I always love most about Jones's work, here and in The Hoax and in Gypsies Stole My Tequila, are her characters. Brine is written in three parts, and with each part, the reader meets new characters. Not only is it great fun to watch how the author weaves these new characters into Elliot's nightmare landscape, but also, with each new character, the reader becomes more invested. They are all that likable, and funny, and even at their worst, ultimately humane.
When I picked up Brine, I was in desperate need of a weekend off. This was my entertainment. I couldn't have asked for anything more tantalizing, disturbing, and fun. Read it and then go buy her others too.
The artist Elliot Newton has the idyllic setting in which to paint, a lighthouse on the ocean's shore. And this is what he paints, successfully, until an emotional upset and a drunken night brings out his past, a past that has been buried long in the lighthouse, and deep in the sand, long enough and deep enough to come up mutated--genetically mutated--as if on their own, his memories have evolved, and they've come up to breathe again.
Brine begins, not in medias res, but at what feels like a climax. My first thought was where can the author possibly go from here? That's what is remarkable about Jones's work. She takes off where others would end, and she does it with fascinating, twisting plots and a momentum borne both from the persistent demons and the unflinching characters. This is the kind of book you finish in one day.
But what I always love most about Jones's work, here and in The Hoax and in Gypsies Stole My Tequila, are her characters. Brine is written in three parts, and with each part, the reader meets new characters. Not only is it great fun to watch how the author weaves these new characters into Elliot's nightmare landscape, but also, with each new character, the reader becomes more invested. They are all that likable, and funny, and even at their worst, ultimately humane.
When I picked up Brine, I was in desperate need of a weekend off. This was my entertainment. I couldn't have asked for anything more tantalizing, disturbing, and fun. Read it and then go buy her others too.
April 26, 2011
Adrienne Jones is one of my favorite authors--she has a way of straddling several different genres without it feeling the least bit awkward or contrived. And she's funny. And clever. Her writing style is clean and direct.
I was hooked by the first part of Brine several years ago when it was published as a short story entitled, Temple of Cod. It became a fan favorite, so Jones recently expanded it into a three-part novel, and the result is a book you can't put down. It is horrifyingly funny, surreal, really not like anything else I've ever read.
The book itself is a beauty to behold too--done by Creative Guy Publishing. Nice paper, great graphics, not like the cheesy stuff the bigger presses are churning out these days. A good old-fashioned hard-bound.
Definitely worth having on your shelf.
I was hooked by the first part of Brine several years ago when it was published as a short story entitled, Temple of Cod. It became a fan favorite, so Jones recently expanded it into a three-part novel, and the result is a book you can't put down. It is horrifyingly funny, surreal, really not like anything else I've ever read.
The book itself is a beauty to behold too--done by Creative Guy Publishing. Nice paper, great graphics, not like the cheesy stuff the bigger presses are churning out these days. A good old-fashioned hard-bound.
Definitely worth having on your shelf.
December 23, 2010
It's an Adrienne Jones novel. What more do I need to say?
And if that means nothing to you, get thee to the store and read her work, says I.
And if that means nothing to you, get thee to the store and read her work, says I.
December 22, 2011
It started off fun but got rather cliched once the body snatching started.
June 23, 2013
Another fun read. Beach-heavy and set in Cape Cod so it is even seasonally appropriate. If you liked Duma Key you will like this one too.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews