The Singer's Gun

Emily St. John Mandel — 2010

Everyone Anton Waker grew up with is corrupt. His parents deal in stolen goods and his first career is a partnership venture with his cousin Aria selling forged passports and social security cards to illegal aliens. Anton longs for a less questionable way of living in the world and by his late twenties has reinvented himself as a successful middle manager. Then a routine security check suggests that things are not quite what they appear. And Aria begins blackmailing him to do one last job for her. But the seemingly simple job proves to have profound and unexpected repercussions. As Anton's carefully constructed life begins to disintegrate around him, he's forced to choose between loyalty to his family and his desires for a different kind of life. When everyone is willing to use someone else to escape the past, it is up to Anton, on the island of Ischia, to face the ghosts that travel close behind him. Emily St. John Mandel follows up her electric debut with a spellbinding novel of international crime, false identities, the depths and limits of family ties, and the often confusing bonds of love. Taut with suspense, beautifully imagined, full of unexpected corners, desperate choices, betrayals and halftruths with deadly consequences, The Singer's Gun explores the dangerous territory between one's moral compass and the heart's desire.

Reviews

Frederik De Bosschere@freddy

Mar 21, 2024

Emily St. John Mandel has a talent for creating compelling characters and weaving intriguing stories.

Manda@mandareads

May 12, 2023

In Emily St. John Mandel's new book, The Singer's Gun, Anton Waker has found himself in trouble, without a possible way out. Anton thought he was finally done with the business of illegal dealings and shady transactions, but when his cousin comes to him with one more job, and the blackmail to force his hand, Anton finds himself once again in over his head. Anton's carefully constructed life hangs on the edge and things take an unexpected turn, he's forced to choose between a life that he made for himself or the one that's thrown upon him. Will he make it out alive, and if so at what cost? This is Emily St. John Mandel's second novel, and I've had the pleasure of reading both of her books. Her writing talent and impressive skill once more shine again. She has proven that her first novel wasn't just a fluke and she is definitely an author I'll keep reading. Again, Mandel jumped from past to present in this novel and it worked beautifully. The shifts in time were never uncomfortable and they flowed beautifully. I loved this novel even more than her first. The story was interesting and detailed and I was pulled into it immediately. I read The Singer's Gun all in one sitting because I just could not bear to pull myself away. I loved the main character, Anton. He was extremely personable and I felt the struggles he went through were believable and realistic. Emily St. John Mandel has won me again, and The Singer's Gun is something that everyone must read. Review originally posted on my blog Draw A Blank Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Unbridled Books. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”