The Falls

I love me some Joyce Carol Oates.  It amazes me how she churns out the books and all that I have read, I have liked.

Her books are mostly dark.  But, she deeply psychologically mines her characters.  I think that is what I love the most.  If you are at all interested in character development and character driven writing, Oates is your gal.

Ariah is honeymooning in Niagara Falls when her husband throws himself over the railing, leaving her the "Widow Bride of the Falls".  Ariah determines that she is damned.  Enter Dirk Burnaby.  He is a well liked and rich man from Niagara Falls and falls inexplicably in love with Ariah.  They marry and have a few years of happiness and three children.  Dirk then becomes involved in "Love Canal", a lawsuit against toxic dumpers in the area.  The waste is making people sick and Dirk becomes consumed with the case.  The Burnaby children and their eccentric mother, Ariah, are left to deal with the aftermath of the case.

If you like Oates, I'd recommend this book.  If you are new to her, start with We Were the Mulvaneys.