Irie Parker balances two worlds in his debut novel TWISTED CONSEQUENCES: a polished, credible email romance in Part One and a tenuous, somewhat shaky adventure in Part Two. This novel gives evidence of well-honed skills in manipulating a story about our current obsession with computer driven communication, while also demonstrating the author's need for polishing the 'off the computer' requirements for composing well-paced narrative. There is definitely talent here and the end product of this novel is a satisfying tale of the immediate gratification of email relationships pitted against the realities of traditional courtship.
Tyson is a C5 quadriplegic (the result of a severe neck injury in an auto accident ten years prior to the time of this story) who lives well with specially designed computer equipment and assistance devices monitored by hired nurses twice a day. His attitude is positive, his best friend is his guardian Rottweiler Greta, and his photography business thrives. His love interest is via the internet where he enjoys building a gradually trusting relationship with a beautiful Romanian student Michaela. As their open communication intensifies, each feels the need to visit each other in person and after a long series of attempts to travel either from Bucharest to Colorado or from Colorado to Bucharest, that consignation occurs: Tyson, with the help of his brother Jack and a bodyguard Rex fly to Romania. End of Part One. In Romania the realities of Tyson's cyber romance alter in ways that beg for further development in narration. Yes, Romania post Ceausescu is far different from Colorado and the elements of organized crime and the critical mass of interpersonal implosions result in a reunion far less satisfying than that expected. Tyson returns to his Colorado residence, wiser, but still with the tenuous hope that re-establishing email romantic correspondence with Michaela will be resurrected.
Where Parker is at his finest is his ability to tell a story primarily through the use of dated emails. Part of this success is an uncanny ability to create the persona of Michaela solely through his choices of vocabulary expressions that ring with an accent unmistakably Central European. He also is able to deftly describe the complexities of living life as a quadriplegic without resorting to even a moment a bathos. But where Parker needs to reexamine his ability to write well is in Part Two where the flow of the story line is rushed to the point of neglecting character development of Jack and Rex, and more important the motivation of the changes Tyson discovers in Michaela's real life character: we know more about Michaela from her language of email in Part One than we do of her role as an actual person in Part Two. For this reader, part of the problem with the narrative portion of the novel comes the author's repeated use of slang terms such as 'dude' and 'you the man' which may be meant to keep the story 'current', but which become too noticeable and tiresome.
But in the end TWISTED CONSEQUENCES is an absorbing tale and one that is easily read in a single sitting. In time Parker will be able to polish his considerable skills - and that is the advantage of getting a first novel out there before the public for response. The concept of the novel is far stronger than the 'pulp fiction' cover art would suggest - another area where embracing talent outside the author's own would appeal to the buying public more directly. Irie Parker deserves to be read and with his evident talent here, it seems assured his next novel will be stronger than this one. Grady Harp, August 08
