Wavemaker II: A Novel

An exhilarating debut, Wavemaker II is a heart-stopping story of what happens when one man takes a fall for another, leaving his family in disarray. Combining poetic intensity with a gritty realism, Mary-Beth Hughes has delivered a masterpiece of page-turning suspense. The novel opens in the summer of 1964 at the seaside home of Kay Clemens, who is serving drinks to two federal marshals who have accompanied her husband, Will, on a brief visit from the penitentiary. With this charged opening we enter the splintering world of the Clemens family, poised for collapse when Will is sent to prison for refusing in court to rat on the notorious McCarthy-era lawyer Roy Cohn. Wavemaker II, which zigzags between a quiet, suburban beach community and the high-rise, glitzy frenzy of New York City, is brilliantly told through the points of view of each family member: lovely Kay, who moves elegantly through both worlds, trying to keep a grip on her deteriorating family; heart-wrenching little Bo, who is battling cancer; burgeoning adolescent Lou-Lou, who aches for her mother's lost attention; and beguiling Will, who, with a tired strength, ushers us through spectacular prison scenes. Finally, there is Roy Cohn, who has become the family's shadowy protector in gratitude for Will's loyalty. Cohn is a surprisingly empathetic childlike innocent who, for all his notoriety, is generous to a fault with his friends, fiercely attached to his mother, and conflicted about his sexuality. He is the enigma around whom the Clemens family is forced to circle. Mary-Beth Hughes reveals a keen understanding of the interior shifts that occur as her characters try desperately to gain a foothold after the ground beneaththem has fallen away. Charged with an exquisite tension that is riveting clear through to its winning denouement aboard the Wavemaker II, this is a flawlessly executed novel.