Love May Fail

Summary (from the publisher): Portia Kane is having a meltdown. After escaping her ritzy Florida life and her cheating pornographer husband, she finds herself back in South Jersey, a place that remains largely unchanged from the years of her unhappy youth. Lost and alone, looking for the goodness she believes still exists in the world, Portia sets off on a quest to save the one man who always believed in her—and in all of his students: her beloved high school English teacher, Mr. Vernon, who has retired broken and alone after a traumatic classroom incident.

Will a sassy nun, an ex-heroin addict, a metalhead little boy, and her hoarder mother help or hurt Portia’s chances on this quest to resurrect a good man and find renewed hope in the human race? Love May Fail is a story of the great highs and lows of existence: the heartache and daring choices it takes to become the person you know (deep down) you are meant to be.

 

Review: I received an advance reader's edition of this novel from HarperCollins.

 

This novel is about second chances. Portia Kane leaves her cheating, pornographer husband and finds herself living back at home with her hoarder mother. Along the way, she reconnects with her former high school teacher Mr. Vernon and a classmate, Chuck Bass. All of the main characters are in need of a second chance to find their purpose and path in life and through their chance encounters, they all eventually find their way.

 

Similarly to the other novel of Quick's I've read, The Good Luck of Right Now,  this is a quirky and quick read. The novel is broken into four parts, each told from the perspective of different characters: Portia, Mr. Vernon, Sister Maeve Smith, and Chuck Bass. I particularly enjoyed the early parts of the book that described Mr. Vernon's high school teaching methods. In fact, both Portia and Chuck are deeply motivated by their former teacher, who gave each of his graduating students a membership card to the "human race," that entitles them to "ugliness and beauty, heartache and joy - the great highs and lows of existence - and everything in between. It also guarantees you the right to strive, to reach, to dream, and to become the person you know (deep down) you are meant to be. So make daring choices, work hard, enjoy the ride, and remember - you become exactly whomever you choose to be."

 

The novel opens with Portia crouching in her closet, "peering E.T.-like through the white door slats," waiting to try to catch her husband in the act of cheating. It's a rather absurd scene, followed by another when she meets a nun on the plane she takes to leave her husband (the nun who turns out to be the mother of her former high school teacher - who had him before she became a nun of course). Over time, Portia as a character emerges not as a lunatic in a closet but as an impassioned and bright woman who has made poor choices in her marriage and the way she has been spending her life. Portia realizes she has failed the challenge issued to her by Mr. Vernon and decides to remake her life for the good. In reaching out to reconnect with Mr. Vernon, she finds that life has taken a turn for the worse for him too and finds him broken and suicidal, living alone in the woods with his dog, Albert Camus.

 

After Portia and Chuck fail to "save" Mr. Vernon from his depression and sad way of life, they begin to focus on their own lives and budding relationship. Chuck is a recovering addict and a devoted uncle, and together Portia and Chuck begin to build a life together, pursuing their dreams and making the most of their life.

 

This novel argues that, while you may get help along the way, ultimately your fate is in your hands and it is up to each individual to reach for the life that they want to have. Although improbable, I enjoyed the quirky characters and narrative. The novel abruptly deviates from the Mr. Vernon storyline halfway through. I do wish more could have been seen about Mr. Vernon's reclaiming of his identity, as well as his relationship with his students Portia and Chuck, but overall an inspiring and enjoyable read.

 

Stars: 3