Campaign for the American Reader: Pg. 69: "The Lightning Rule"

Brett Ellen Block's debut collection of short stories, Destination Known, won the Drue Heinz Literature Prize in 2001. She is also the author of The Grave of God's Daughter (2004), which Publisher's Weekly called, "A haunting, evocative first novel.... Intoxicating."

Her first mystery, The Lightning Rule, hit the bookstores in October.

I asked Brett to apply the "page 69 test" to her book. Here is her reply:

Tests. Never did like them. I don't even like taking eye exams. Too much pressure to get things right. Not surprising then that I had a pang of worry while I flicked through my book, anxious to see what awaited me on page 69. But I lucked out. It was Chapter Eleven. Insert sigh of relief here.

That relief turned to shock though when I realized I didn't remember writing the opening scene. So much for my memory. Maybe that's why tests aren't my forte.

I reread the page and finally recalled why I'd mentioned the main character's mother. Her death was one of many hairline fractures that crippled the relationship between the lead, Detective Emmett, and his brother, Edward, who recently returned home from Vietnam in a wheelchair. The friction in their worsening relationship mirrors the racial friction that's threatening to destroy their hometown of Newark, New Jersey. The historic race riots that swept through there in 1967 turned neighbor against neighbor, begging the question: what is "brotherly love?"

Emmett is a white cop struggling to solve the murder of a black boy and Otis Fossum is a black witness who Emmett protected from mob retribution, a decision that made him an outcast in his precinct. In return for that favor, Fossum is escorting Emmett through the projects to keep him safe during the riots. Their willingness to help each other speaks to the book’s major themes, so as for the test, I’d give this page a passing grade. It may not be indicative of the sense of action or intensity, but hopefully, it does showcase the novel’s poignancy.

Emmett found Otis Fossum pacing the lobby like an expectant father. He reminded Emmett of himself when his mother had her stroke. He and Edward had been stationed outside her hospital room, wearing down the linoleum in the hall, counting the minutes until the doctor came to tell them their mother was going to be okay, that she would make it. She wasn't and she didn't. Every hope and dream that Emmett had longed to fulfill for his mother soon died along with her. Neither he nor Edward cried when the doctor told them. Not for lack of sorrow, but for fear of it and the floodgates it might open. Edward had held off to see if Emmett would tear up, to see if it would be okay to cry. That was how it had been when they were younger, Edward always cautious, yielding to his lead. It was the first time in years his brother had done that and the last since then.

"I was waiting on ya, Mr. Emmett. To see if you needed anything else."

Kindness didn't come easy to Fossum, and he quickly became self-conscious.

"You didn't have to, Otis."

"That's why the call 'em favors, right?"

Many thanks to Brett for the input.

To read an excerpt from The Lightning Rule, click here.

Click here to read Brett's essay, "The Story Behind The Lightning Rule."

Among the early reviews:

"Martin Emmett is hardly the first stubborn detective in fiction, but Block does a superb job of giving him flesh and bone in a gritty, historically rich narrative. Another appearance would be welcome. Many cuts above the typical police procedural."
--Kirkus

"Evocative...(a) vivid portrayal of a city where racial tensions have escalated from a steady simmer to a raging boil."
--Booklist

"A flawless historical backdrop..."
--Publisher's Weekly