TWIST by Colum McCann

4 stars

An introspective thriller that explores not only the depths of sea cables carrying all our data between continents but also the depths of our unresolved life emotions.

Anthony Fennell, a discontented Irish writer who has hit both a writer’s block and a sense of life stagnation, nabs a magazine assignment to go to South Africa and cover a crew that specializes in repairing deep sea data cable breaks. He meets fellow Irishman John Conway, an engineer and diver who serves as Chief of Mission for a boat that coverages the Atlantic Ocean. John mostly wraps himself in an air of remove, but while waiting around weeks for the next cable emergency, Anthony does get a chance to meet Zanele, John’s partner who’s a striking, aspiring Black South African actress, and their twin sons.

Fascinated by John, John tries to uncover all he can about John’s seemingly incongruous background with only a modicum of success. Part of his quest also parallels Anthony’s own deeper dive into how he ended up in such a state a low self-regard and quiet despair.

When finally a cable ruptures due to a river landslide into a deep ocean abyss, Anthony sets sail with John and the crew. The cable repair proves one of their toughest ones yet- having to make guesswork of snaring the cable with a large, lowered hook. John also opens up a bit more to Anthony after a brutal attack on Zanele who’s left to England to stage a controversial staging of a Shakespearian play.

McCann leaves many deep questions lingering about the state of the world that’s so dependent on information zipping along the ocean’s depths in a very thin glass cable. With powerful and lyrical prose, and no ready answers, McCann also challenges us to reexamine the often-fragile emotional undercurrents of our own lives, that can get unexpectedly severed and in need of rescue.

Thanks to Random House Publishing Group and NetGalley for an advanced reader’s copy.

Stacy DeBroff

Stacy DeBroff, founder and CEO of Mom Central.com and social and digital consultancy, Influence Central, is a social media strategist, attorney, and best-selling parenting author. A sought-after expert for national media, she trend-spots regularly with national brands and speaks frequently to national and international audiences on a wide range of subjects, including influencer marketing, social media, entrepreneurship, and consumer trends. A passionate cook, gardener, reader, and tennis player, she adores this new chapter of post-college-age parenting.