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Reviewed by Karen Pirnot for Readers' Favorite
In "The Grave and the Figure Eight," author Tucker has taken the reader to the post WWI era. Terence Garth has just returned home from battle. Being wounded emotionally, he has returned to his uncle's home in Kentucky, seemingly to rest before a return to college to study history. The uncle has a new young wife and this creates the setting for the multiple agonizing choices ahead. The foreman of the farm steps in to create tension among Terence, his uncle and the uncle's wife Isabel. A romantic liaison develops and Terence and Isabel must then make choices which will affect the present and the future. Isabel becomes mentally unbalanced and she has visions of being dammed for her choices. Terence has problems of his own when he meets another Isabel, a woman he marries. He discovers he still harbors love for his uncle's wife and this completely undermines his effectiveness as both a husband and a provider.
The themes revolve around poet Keats's "Ode to a Grecian Urn." Unheard melodies are far sweeter than those heard and experienced as those experienced must be put into perspective. At times, the story reads like a philosophy lesson and at times, it demonstrates true emotional depth. I found the dialogue stiff and yet it did facilitate the telling of the tale. Although a bit erudite at times, the novel speaks to the human condition and to the choices we make which either facilitate our growth or doom us to a personal prison.
