Rec'd via Librarything.com's Early Reviewer Program.
ARC copy.

PS - Thank goodness this one is short.

--

Product Description
The story of a crossed love that is star to every wandering bark. Together as husband and wife, Nick Ward and Lena Grant ran a successful boutique law firm in Minneapolis, vanquishing all their legal foes side by side. When Nick's charming erratic behavior finally became too much for Lena, the marriage and the partnership ended. But-like C.K. Dexter Haven and Tracy Lord-Lena and Nick just can't quite separate. Lena works out fiercely, keeps her dates with the boring and conventional Preston Winter, and daily battles on against corporate greed. But Nick's not doing so well. Still brilliant and devilishly clever, he is now also almost crazy. He is prone to fantasy and the big gesture, and he engages frantically in guerrilla activism for the sake of animals wild and domestic. Nick doesn't make plans; he has visions. And eventually his antics put him back into Lena's hands. While she tries to navigate the legal waters into which he's thrown them, Nick veers out of her wake and into the midst of a strange set of companions, including Oscar, his psychiatric attendant and Action Comics collector; Ralph and Alice Wilson, the rebellious managers of the city animal shelter; and an aging Russian hound named Wolfram. Often laugh-out-loud funny, with bright wit and brilliant machine-gun dialogue, The Marriage of True Minds sweetly explores modern love, undying idealism, and one cracked partnership that can't be sundered-from without or from within.

Started reading today.

Finished at about 10 am this morning.


--

Quirky and fun, The Marriage of True Minds follows Lena Grant and Nick Ward, two brilliant lawyers who were partners both in and out of court. Unfortunately, Nick may or may not be completely nuts and Lena’s divorced him. She’s trying to move on with her life, taking on new clients and dating Preston Winter, a state attorney, but she’s torn between her lingering affection for her ex and a desire for a “normal” life. Nick, as sharp and intelligent as ever, is constantly causing her grief with his wild stunts – like putting 100+ lobsters in the mayor’s swimming pool. Constantly, Lena wonders why Nick can’t just act normal.

The strength of the novel (perhaps novella? It’s quite short) comes from its quirky cast of characters. Nick is spontaneous and full of love – for the Earth, his e-wife, animals, his puppet Sancho, his fellow men – but he creates the world to suit his tastes and needs, whether by dressing Lena in couture that perfectly complements his own signature pinstripe suits (custom-fitted in Italy) or reshaping past events to make a better story. It’s difficult to be sure of his sanity but Nick’s choices are intended for the good of all (in his own mind). His doctor, Oscar, loves comic books (but only well-used, beat-up and severely deteriorated copies will do) and believes that all knowledge can be gleaned from the pages of DC and Marvel. With his own sense of playfulness running strong, Oscar makes the perfect watchdog-playmate for Nick. Toss in a judge straight off of daytime TV and Lena’s mouthy assistant Sharon and situations explode. The more ludicrous the scene, the funnier the book becomes.

While The Marriage of True Minds is certainly a love story, it is also a condemnation of humanity’s habit of getting rid of anything inconvenient. Whether it’s pets or animals – Nick briefly works at the city animal shelter and learns about the shelter’s “30-day-limit” – or half-mad people, author Stephen Evans seeks to remind us of the pain caused by giving up on the ones we love.

Culling books from the ol' permanent collection.

sent to a moocher in San Jose, CA to fulfill a request on Bookmooch.com!