Book In Review

        As with most books about beautiful places in the great outdoors…the writer of The Signal, Ron Carlson, is gifted with describing the mountainous scenery and creating an image in the mind of the reader.  This builds a background of love and commitment behind the story; after all, who couldn’t love the bond between the land and the main characters in this story.  It adds richness and depth to the lengths to which a man will go to protect a legacy of preserving land that has been in the family for generations.  When that legacy is threatened because of finances, Mack finds himself on a downward spiral as he tries to come up with ways to save the ranch.  Before he knows it, he has jepardized his relationship with his wife who loves the man and his ranch and sacrifices right along with beside him willingly.

        When his failure to overcome financial obstacles starts to consume him and destroy him…it causes her to leave temparily.  This in turn leads him to a life of crime and an over-indulgence in substances that numb him and allows him to lower his moral standards even farther until he can no longer tolerate the man he has become.   As he tries to regain his self worth he attempts to reconnect with his wife who has divorced him.  Can they find their way back to one another after such devastation?

        One last time, they agree to camp and fish together on the land they love so that they can have closure on their relationship.  He has hurt her badly and regrets it; knowing that when he let her go it was a huge mistake.  He had temporarily in the midst of his addictions had a relationship with a fellow addict…his wife Vonnie knows of this and is hurt.  On this last time together on the land that drew them together in the first place and upon which their love was grown they come to a place of healing only to find their future endangered by the past illegal relationships that Mack had tried to walk away from.  Where they go and how they get their is why you will want to dive into the words between the covers of this book.  If you love action, stories about commitment and relationships you will enjoy this book.

          The Signal was copyrighted in 2009 by Viking.   You can visit their site here: http://www.vpbookclub.com/