The Thread That Binds

 

This piece of feminine literature contains a chapter structure similar to George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire fantasy series, where each division is narrated through the perspectives of one of many characters, although in this book’s case, the point of view is strictly first-person. The first character introduced his Sherice, who works at an OBGYN clinic and has a child with husband Chase nicknamed Little Roo, her real name Mollie. Her specific duty at her clinic is sonography, and loves her occupation in showing expectant parents prenatal images of their babies, quickly crossing paths with a pregnant French immigrant, Sylvie.

The second introduced character is Joanne, who indicates that in the Deep South, women are expected to be married by their twenties, and notes that she grew up in a trailer with older brothers, further having a homosexual friend named Marty who doesn’t care much for Republicans and bisexuals, and works for a procurement company. Saturday is her favorite day of the week, which she considers her only day of freedom in the week since she attends church on Sundays. Joanne had a good friend in college, with both realizing that they were the only ones in their sorority unmarried and without children.

As mentioned, Sylvie is a Frenchwoman, married to an American soldier named Jonathan, and indicates her troubles dealing with America’s healthcare system compared to the universal structure of that in her homeland. Their initial income is $300 month, with the cheapest health insurance policy available to them running $250 monthly, with Sylvie being ineligible for government age due to her citizenship in a foreign country, and is in the second trimester of her pregnancy. Jonathan and she visit a supposed free clinic to the south, only to discover that they have to pay more for care than their monthly income allows, with said clinic supposedly never turning away military families.

Introduced in part two of the story is Payton, niece to Marty, who works part-time at a gymnastics school and too is pregnant. The final introduced character a ways into the novel is Gloria, who has an unhappy marriage with Hal and detests the stickiness of the State of Georgia. Overall, this is an enjoyable work, with the alternating perspectives keeping the narrative fresh, alongside some occasional twists. The rare political references and discussion of healthcare place the story in the first decade of the current millennium, perhaps even that before, and aside from the consequentially-dated nature of the story, it’s still very much enjoyable and recommended.

Author's Bio:

Originally from Winchester, England, Alice’s plans to read law at a British university were disrupted when she fell deeply in love with Georgia, USA, while studying abroad. After moving all over Georgia, Alice has finally settled in Athens and has no plans to go anywhere else.

She is a single mother to a three-year-old girl and a 65 lb hound dog. She likes coffee, wine, and anything edible with the words ‘salted caramel’ in its description.

At the time of publication, Alice is a 24-year-old history student working full time in a law office, and writing fiction at every stolen moment. She hasn’t slept in approximately two years. Her first published novel, The Thread That Binds won third place in World's Best Story contest.

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