This is the debut novel of a native of the northwestern U.S.
An elderly talking caged giant Pacific octopus named Marcellus becomes philosophical as he muses about the limitations of human intelligence, and is befriended by the elderly cleaner, Tova at the aquarium in Sole, Washington. She becomes complicit in his periodic nocturnal escapes from his tank to devour sea cucumbers. He sees relationships among the humans that they are blind to.
There are many such complex relationships. Perennially unemployed Cameron, raised by his aunt after his mother abandoned him at age nine, is evicted by his wife and takes up residence with Brad, his wife and unborn child. Then he undertakes a futile search for his father, seemingly a wealthy real estate developer named Simon Brinks. Failing at that, he gets part-time employment as a cleaner in the aquarium. Another youth named Eric drowns in mysterious suspicious circumstances.
There are a lot of insinuations about inappropriate relationships, and a fair dose of foul language, but no explicit sex. The plot is ingenious with the anthropomorphized attribution of superb intelligence to an octopus but it is in keeping with their known nature as shown by Sy Montgomery’s The Soul of an Octopus, though obviously exaggerated.
I had considerable difficulty keeping some of the minor characters straight, perhaps in part because while listening to an ebook, I have a tendency to multitask. And it is not easy to go back to pick up the plot thread in an audio book. This is also made worse by time shifts here.
6.5/10
Thanks, Pat.
The Passionate Reader 