Beneath the surface of Luscious
"Lucy" Peterman's life as a well-respected Elmwood, Wisconsin breast
surgeon is a woman with a shattered psyche. Eight months before, Lucy lost her
loving husband and her unborn child in a single afternoon. Ever since, Lucy has
tried to bury herself in work. But there's a problem. Lucy has developed an
inexplicable urge to pilfer hospital supplies such as bandages, tape, IV tubing
and stockpile them in the bedroom she once shared with her husband. When the
powers-that-be at the hospital catch Lucy in the act of stealing, she is given
an ultimatum: go for psychological counseling or forfeit her medical license.
Under protest, she chooses the former, soon understanding that the root of her
addiction stems from the realization that if she had such provisions with her
on the day her life forever changed, Lucy might've been able to alter her fate.
The bond Lucy shares with her
brother deepens as she undergoes treatment for her kleptomania and is propelled
on a journey that connects her with a concerned psychoanalyst; an anorexic
stranger with deep-seated emotional issues of her own, who might have friend
potential; quirky attendees at a local 12-Step, AA meeting; and a snarky cop
who once knew Lucy in high school. Along the way, a stray dog unexpectedly wins
Lucy's affections and helps soothe her languishing grief.
Engrossing characterizations and
unexpected complications permeate The
Dog Year by Ann Garvin (On
Maggie's Watch), a novel that addresses serious issues of loss and
self-actualization in a very entertaining way.
Publication Date: June 3, 2014
Note: This review is a reprint and
is being posted (in a slightly different form) with the permission of Shelf
Awareness. To read this review on Shelf
Awareness: Reader's Edition (6/6/14), click HERE
