November 16, 2020
Jones’s intense debut explores the poverty and crime in Baxter’s Beach, Barbados, amid an explosive collision between tourists and locals. The place, called Paradise by foreigners and residents alike, turns out to be a living hell for two women whose lives are changed by one horrific incident. Lala, a local hair braider, is stuck in a turbulent marriage to Adan, a burglar. Mira Whalen, a former local who now lives in London, is vacationing with her English husband, Peter, at their beachfront villa. One night, Lala is on the beach, in labor and about to give birth. Adan, meanwhile, is nowhere to be found. Lala stumbles upon the Whalens’ mansion and presses the buzzer for help. She hears a gunshot and Adan rushes out, an ear-piercing shriek following on his heels. A parallel narrative follows Mira dealing with the aftermath of Peter’s murder by Adan, while a detective works the case, and more violence ensues as Lala and Mira’s lives eventually collide. Rich characters and pulsing backstories add a great deal of flavor to the drama. Jones is off to a strong start. Agent: Clare Alexander, Aitken Alexander
November 15, 2020
The only people enjoying themselves in Paradise are the tourists--at least the ones who haven't been murdered. Barbadian author Jones' harrowing debut is set on a fictional strip of Caribbean shore called Baxter's Beach in the town of Paradise. It opens with a fable told by Wilma to her 13-year-old granddaughter, Lala, about the nasty fate of a girl who didn't listen. "Curiosity kill the cat, says Wilma, don't make yourself stupid like the one-arm sister." This gambit backfires--when we next see Lala, she's 18, very pregnant, in horrible pain, and bleeding "blurry poinsettia flowers everywhere" in a rickety beach shack. She stumbles to the nearest neighboring house, a fancy villa, presses the doorbell, and hears gunshots inside. She has interrupted her baby's father, Adan, midrobbery, and he's had to shoot his victim. It's the man's own fault, says Adan. And Lala's fault what he does to her, what will happen to their baby, to their friend Tone--yet he's the one who has been torturing animals since he was a boy. In fact, Adan is one of the most repellent and unredeemed villains we have encountered in quite some time. Lala has pretty much figured it out--"Maybe it is time to accept that this man is not the laughing giant you meet riding a unicycle at a fair two summers ago"--but still cannot escape him. He won't let her work--she's a braider on the beach, a job she loves--and has stolen what little money she has. The novel moves among the perspectives of several characters, including Mira Whalen, the widow of the murdered man. Mira is a former prostitute whose tourist client left his wife for her; Adan's crime severs her from the amazing life she lucked into, with homes in England and here on the beach, with sweet stepchildren, friends, and travel, and the only conjugal love and happiness evoked in the entire novel. A compelling and terribly sad story of lives defined by trauma generation after generation.
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December 15, 2020
After a robbery gone wrong in Baxter Beach, Barbados, locals Lala and her husband Adan are caught in a dangerous web of deceit and danger. The victims of the thievery are Peter and Mira, who reside in the Baxter Beach Mansions. Shortly following the incident, Lala and Adan's newborn daughter's lifeless body is found in the sand nearby. For both couples, the turn of events unravels a complicated weave of trauma, steeped in lust and legacy. Jones's debut is a microscopic look into the lives of local Barbadians and the rich people who colonize their spaces. The pages are filled with the juxtapositions of wealth versus poverty, choice versus survival, and love versus abuse. Told from multiple perspectives, Jones debut novel provides readers with an arsenal of stories, which ultimately validates the reasoning behind the characters' senseless choices. There is a rhythm to the writing and the words are often a poetic stream of movement. Jones is meticulous, giving a strong pulse to each perspective. The cinematic ending is sure to leave readers wanting more.
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