GRAND PRIZE WINNER of the 2017 WRITER’S DIGEST BOOK AWARDS
“I only wish other writers had Laqueur’s kind of talent. This precise and vivid word choice…”–Panel Judge #65September 11, 1973: Eleven-year-old Alejandro Penda watches from his apartment window as Santiago, Chile falls to a military coup, destroying his family and his childhood. Arriving alone in America, he’s taken in by the Larks: a … Arriving alone in America, he’s taken in by the Larks: a prominent family in the town of Guelisten. Though burdened by unresolved grief for his disappeared parents, he becomes fiercely loyal to the Larks, eventually marrying one of their daughters, Valerie.
September 11, 2001: Javier Landes watches from his apartment window as New York City falls to terrorism. As one of Manhattan’s top-paid male escorts, this professional lover has never lacked for company and is loyal only to himself. But in the wake of 9/11, Jav is named guardian for an orphaned nephew in Guelisten and must open his carefully-guarded heart to pain he’s long suppressed.
Alex, Valerie and Jav meet first in their twenties, with a sudden attraction each finds strange and compelling. When they meet again in their forties, they discover not only is their bond still strong, but their life experiences are strangely similar. Each was shaped by a 9/11, and their unfinished business from the past will change everything they know about love, loyalty and friendship.
“Life has rules. You cannot come in the middle of the night and take what we agreed isn’t yours.”
Across three decades and two continents, Suanne Laqueur’s fifth novel explores the unpredictability of sexual attraction, how family ties are forged, torn and mended, and how love’s downfall can turn to exaltation.
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Under normal circumstances, it’s easy for me to write a review directly after I’ve read a novel. Occasionally, the book is so strong, I need time to think about what I want to say. I only finished Exaltation of Larks, the first in the Venery series by Suanne Laqueur, last night but feel compelled to get some of my thoughts down before I have so many, I can’t organize a review. This book was recommended to me by a very generous blogger who wrote a stellar review of one of my books. Given how much she thought I’d like Laqueur’s work, I accepted the recommendation and got a copy of the book to read. I allotted it as an October read, slightly nervous that it was ~550 pages and I’ve been focusing on other genres lately. After 30 minutes in, I couldn’t stop reading it… and that’s just how it kept on going until I devoured the entire tome in 2 1/2 days.
Do not be fearful of the page count, or that it’s only the first in a series. I haven’t read the others (definitely will this year) but even if you only stopped at the first one, it would be the kind of read you always remember. It goes extremely quickly… I’m a quick reader but I was flipping pages so fast and connecting with the story on a different plane than normal. I’d read 25% before bed the first night and still wanted to keep going despite how late it’d gotten. I finished 50% the next day and then the final 25% before bed last night.
The book was written in a way that I couldn’t help but feel part of it. Between physical and emotional attraction to the main characters, a thirst for something ravenous to happen, a moment or two of crying in pain, and a recognition of things I have and might be missing in my own life, this book kept pushing me to want to climb inside the spine and become one with it. Those are some powerful words, images, and thoughts, but Alex, Val, and Jav are truly the kind of characters I navigate toward. Throw in a dysfunctional set of families, cliffhangers, over-coincidences (which ultimately I love), and a statement about the value of life, I am in awe of Laqueur’s plot and character development to the umpteenth degree.
I’m sure I’ll come back to write more… you don’t need me to describe the plot, just read the summary and you’ll get it. If you’re comfortable with LGBTQ stories, somewhat occasional graphic descriptions of intimacy, and language with multi-cultural references and speech, you will love this book. I bring these things up not as a warning, but as the primary reason this book was so phenomenal. It opens your mind to understanding physical attraction, chemistry, longing, and fear of taking an alternative step in life. It’s about deciding who you are and who you want to be versus what people think you should be or where you’re initially born.
I’m sure there will be more to come in the future, but this is what I’ve got left emotionally to say… just go read it.
“Second chances are given or made.”
4.5 stars
How to describe this book in three letters? – WOW
I guess it was never this hard for me to write a review about a book that pulled so many emotional strings. I really don’t have words for this book. Honestly. But I try to explain what this book did to and with me.
“I know you hate the dark. Believe the light is there. Believe it’s going to come back on. As long as you believe, I’m not afraid of this.”
An Exaltation of Larks is not the type of book I usually picked up lately. And even though it states in the description that it’s not Romance but more Literary Fiction/Contemporary, I was curious enough to give it a go. I jumped at the opportunity to join Suanne’s ARC team and choose AEOL as my very first book by her. And I guess I hit a jackpot!
The story of AEOL is slow burn, challenging, deep, touching. It took some time until I got used to the writing style (which to me is quite sophisticated and not comparable to anyone else I’ve read lately), the switch between the characters and within the timeline and that the characters are not described in the first POV. For me it’s much easier to slip in the mind of one character if the story is written in first POV, so it was no surprise to me, that I needed some time to get attached to the characters.
“Life has rules.”
Everything you read up until about 30% is to get you on to a certain level of information. It’s like you see a lot of puzzle pieces in front of you but you can’t imagine getting them into a picture. However, after the events of 9/11 everything seems to fall into into its places and you start to see the picture. The clearer you see the picture the more attached you come to the characters. Suddenly it’s so easy to feel with and for them. When their hearts break and get ripped apart, you think it’s your own one that just shattered into a thousand pieces. When their hearts scream with happiness, it’s your heart that’s laughing as well.
The connection between the characters is truly bond by the invisible thread. And living through this is a wonderful experience I’d never want to miss, no matter how hard life is. We all know that fate can be as much a bitch as it can be a blessing. Most of the time I kept shaking my head thinking that’s not happening. That can’t happen. How strong must a person be to survive those low blows of fate. It’s amazing to see how all these characters get up again with and through the love and friendship of family and friends. And then I remember the saying “You never know how strong you are until being strong is the only choice you have.” I guess that’s one of my key takeaway from this book.
“Where the lark went, the tiger longed to follow.”
The other key takeaways are that second chances are given or made, that life has rules and that what I feel and believe now is all that matters.
AEOL was a tough read for me. Nothing I expected but everything I wanted and didn’t know until I read it. It’s a book you need to take your time for. It needs time to get into and it needs time to sink. This book gets to you on levels deep down no other book probably will. Thank you Suanne for giving us this intense story!
“What you feel now is all that matters. What you believe and feel right now. Later on, you might feel differently. Later you might be able to explain it better. But it doesn’t ever change how you felt at that time…”
An Exaltation of Larks by Suanne Laqueur
This was a very interesting story of two Families that kept coming together through a series of coincidences and attractions.
On September 11, 1973: Eleven-year-old Alejandro Penda watches as Chile falls into a military coup, changing his life and his families forever. Sent to the USA by himself, (after his family disappears under Pinochet’s reign) there he is taken in by the Lark family, and eventually marrying one of there daughters, Valerie.
On September 11 2001, Javier Landes, watches from his apartment window as New York City falls to terrorism. He also loses someone very close to him on that day.
Alex, Valerie and Jav , first meet when they are in there 20’s and again cross paths in their 40’s with noted similarities in their lives.
It is a story of love and all of its complexities. It is about finding out who you are, through different stages of your life and discovering who you are sexually as well (this story does have a lot of sexually explicit scenes) It is also about the meaning of family, and loyalty.
The story is a very interesting one with a variety of characters you will want to follow and find out more about. A very well written novel with a great story line.
I want to thank NetGalley for the chance to read it.
For so long, a love story that embraced eroticism and alternative sexuality had to either be written like a social justice manifesto for that alternative sexual path, and/or leave out the eroticism altogether, in order to be treated like a book worth reading. I think we’re getting past that, and I’m so glad. This book is an amazing love story that dives deep into the beautiful three main characters and reveals all the splendor and pain that comes with learning to love one another. And, an extra bonus, it ties into two major historical events that changed the lives of so many. It’s romantic, tragic, erotic, glorious and hopeful. It’s about our inner strength, and how love helps us get past the worst that mankind can dish out.
I can’t believe I left this book on my shelf for a year before cracking it open. I was instantly drawn to the cover and title. And since I don’t read blurbs, it sat there for way too long. I LOVED this book. The writing was incredible, the stories were incredible, and every single character left a mark on this story. I’m am just blown away by the time line of decades and how life came full circle. This book reminded me of Forrest Gump, not the same story line but how you see life happen from a young age into adulthood.
I’ve never read anything by this author before, which is frankly a travesty! I was completely unprepared for this beautifully written, intricate story.
Right from the opening scenes, set at the downfall of Chile, I was gripped, I felt! I felt all the things! The lives of these main characters were layered and interwoven with depth and emotion, at times joyful and glorious, but then other times sickening and desperately sad. In particular the treatment of Jav by his own family was heart-breaking.
This book is an examination of the bonds of love, between family, between friends and between lovers. The writing is almost lyrical, musical, you can feel the movement of the words.
I cannot express how much you need to read this book, and I cannot wait to dive into the next one.
Five stars is nowhere near enough!
Beautifully written book with interesting characters. Poignant, sexy, and deeply moving.
Suanne Laqueuer is a master of characterization and storytelling. She lays the foundation for a character so beautifully with so much depth and layers. The same can be said about her storytelling. Her stories are not just a story with a simple premise that’s been told before. No. I experienced that in The Fish Tales. They are unique and powerful.
Here in An Exaltation Of Larks she took risks and chose topics, that were authentic and sensitive but handled them with such care, that after I finished the book I can only bow down and applaud because of its originality.
Alex, Val and Jav were three well developed characters with so much story to tell. Laqueuer succeeded it brilliantly by letting them be a part of two very important events in history. The reader also follows these three amazing people for over twenty years. That only strengthened my connection to them and I was invested in their journey. Both Alex and Jav were dealt some horrible cards but definitely made the best with what they got.
Alex and Val’s connection were instantly. They grew up together when Alex moved in at eleven years and they formed a bond. Despite Alex’s emotional and mentally scars, that affected him throughout his life he was always there for the Lark family. Especially Val. Jav was definitely a character that pulled at my heartstrings. Luckily he met Gloria. A wonderful and intelligent woman who saw the best qualities in Jav and changed his life. He was a solitary man who experienced losses in the most tragic ways.
I loved how seamlessly Alex, Val and Jav’s stories intertwined with one another. Just like the characters I got the feeling that it was meant to be. They were meant to be a part of each other’s lives. Especially Alex and Jav had a lot in common. I enjoyed that Laqueuer chose to got that route and explore their feelings and the impact they had on one another. It was obvious that both Alex and Val gravitated towards Jav but it was so much more between the two men.
I can’t tell how much I loved all the characters not just Alex, Val and Jav but also the secondary characters. They were all important to their journey. And that ending. Phenomenal.
Once again I’m blown away. Mesmerized by Laqueuer’s writing and storytelling which was poignant and extraordinary. Flawlessly written from start to finish. Her words jumps off the pages and takes hold of me. Like a dance. Reading a book of hers is unlike anything else. I connect with the characters, live vicariously through them and experience everything. Suanne Laqueuer truly is an artist and this work was a piece of art.
5 BadAssDirtyMagnificentStars
I am so thankful that this book was brought to my attention. It is definitely my favorite read of 2016 and the best I’ve read in a long time (that’s saying something because I read a lot). I loved everything about it. I had many smiles and tears along the way. My heart squeezed and soared.
The story follows main characters and the people in their lives for several decades, from childhood to middle age. It’s a tale of connected families. Death, love, tragedy, war, hope, lust, friendship, parenthood, PTSD, prejudice, pain, culture, family, loss, happiness, sexuality, marriage…basically every human emotion and state of being are covered. The story is told from several points of view, two being an American refugee from Chile who lost most of his family and a Dominican American who was disowned by his family. The cast is from all walks of life, ages, races, etc. The storyline was completely original for me. It’s a novel about living and all the ups and downs and snapshot moments and bigger pictures. Issues don’t always tie up neatly or quickly. Just like reality sometimes the tone is heartbreaking, bittersweet, beautiful or magnificent.
I’m still so deep in the feels that I can’t get it out of my head. This author truly has a gift. There are a lot of good books out there, but finding something that touches me on this level is a rare unicorn. Bravo!
I read a review of the second book in this series, A CHARM OF FINCHES, by one of my favorite authors, Joey W. Hill. Joey’s writing is absolutely exquisite, and when I read her eloquent words in praise of this book, I ordered all three stories by Suanne Laqueur without reading more than the review.
Joey told me I wouldn’t regret it. I haven’t, and I can’t wait to start #2. Laqueur’s writing is so perfect it’s difficult to explain, but I often skim when I read books, as my reading time is short, but I read every word, often going back to reread paragraphs so beautifully written that one read wasn’t enough, so totally caught up in a story unlike anything I’ve read before that I need to write and post this review so I can get on to the next one.
Beginning September 11, 1973, and concluding three decades later, the story follows two young men who meet in their early twenties and are somehow linked by similar experiences and events tied to 9/11 – events that shape their lives, their loves, and their futures in ways they have no way to predict, and yet are powerful forces leading them all toward lives they have no reason to expect.
I cannot do the writing of this amazing story justice, especially if I want to start the next book NOW! I can’t imagine reading this book and not being changed by the story Laqueur so skillfully writes. There’s a reason it’s won both the Grand Prize in the 2017 Writer’s Digest Book Awards and First Prize in the 2019 North Street Book Prize—it’s as close to perfect as anything I’ve ever read. And with this all too brief review, I suggest you start with the first story, An Exaltation of Larks, and be prepared to need the next two. Make it easy on yourself and just order all three. It’s the only solution. Really. And thank you, Ms. Laqueur, for writing such an amazing book, and my long-time friend Joey Hill for penning the review that hooked me. I’m going to be thinking of this story for a long time to come.
Reading more like a saga, you follow the characters through decades. Making it feel like a long epilogue and I am a sucker for an epilogue. I love the connection I felt to not just one, but all if the characters. It is hard to not be invested when you feel like you watched them grow. Grow as people, grow as friends, grow as lovers, and grow as a family.
There are some heavy topics tackled and the author does it with ease. Words flowing together like a beautiful song.
Though it took a while for me to get into the story, I was sad to reach the last page. I love a slow burn and this story is still warming my heart.
As I jump from book to book in Venery series, my heart drums hard in my chest. I know it’s going to be EPIC This book is Grand Winner in Writers Digest Book Awards 2017. So I know it’s going to be a momentous experience, merely by opening this book.
Suanne’s writing reminds me of how Léon Uris used to write. Chronicling human tragedies against the backdrop of historical events, perpetuated by social evils and how it all effects the characters and ultimately the readers. she expertly braids important events and cultural heritage into a saga of unrequited, forbidden love. The end result is a masterpiece. Visually stunning, emotionally rich and poignantly moving. The story can be summed up as a Perfect Storm of Affections & Sorrows. A crescendo of sentiments and Wallows of grief.
Her prose is eerily close to facts, inspired by true events and thoroughly researched. There’s a thread that runs from events to the characters and it’s pulled taut. A time line is set and all the characters appear and reappear to keep the story going.
But the meat of the story is in the powerful love entangled like Christmas lights and it gets trickier by the page. It’s a triangulation of sorts, with equally fervent emotions flowing between all three people who have the fortune of being in love with each other.
Javi belongs to a tribe of psuedo-Macho race
“Find his way home, even as home insisted it was here. Right here in this house. With Alex. Let me come in. Let me stay. Let me touch you. I want to come home and talk about it. ”
“Javi learned a lot about tiguerismo: the Dominicans’ standard of masculinity. Men were raised to be tigers. Predators of love. In matters of the heart, the ideal man was passionate but strong. Sexually commanding and confident. Above all, macho. ”
Any sort of weakness was unacceptable and had to be beaten out of him….mercilessly.
Javi is a very dignified, stoic man, his world is full of loveless sex, beautiful women and oodles of money which gives him power. He’s definitely never going back to vulnerability of his penniless youth again.
But inside his heart has vacant chambers where people and healing love should’ve been. His quest for that elusive ONE, who can strum his heart strings leads him to serendipitous encounter with charming nerd -Alex or Alejandro and Val.
“For a moment, the three of them stood in a tableau. The golden flame of Valentine posed between the dark pillars of Jav and Alex. For the single, shining, gold-dusted moment, Jav felt part of the charm. They were in his story and he was in theirs. ”
Jav is certainly the most tragically noble figure I’ve ever read. His heart ached for love and mine ached to jump in the book and hide him in my arms.
He’s as lonely as the Giants abandoned toys in Queens Fairgrounds
“It’s kind of a haunted place. Everything about it is crying, Don’t you love me anymore?”
Val & Alex are soul mates, he’s yin to her yang and their reasons for existence, with no space in between. so why does javi fit with both of them so perfectly?
He becomes the blood in their veins, the air they breathe, their voice of reason, the wall to lean on and an arc that completes their circle. Their seamless friendship is taken for granted, till their emotions threaten to boil over and erupt out of their souls destroying everything in its path. Relationships, family ties, past, present and the future.
I’m completely mesmerized by Suanne’s acute sensibility when it comes to portraying human capacity of endurance. She deepens the characters, carves facets into their personalities, till they shine with brilliance. The way she describes misery and grief, makes my heart bleed…..and then she pours brine on it!!
“You’re not fragile,You’re sparse.”
“You’re rake thin with obese emotions.”
I sympathize with them. I want to unearth their secrets. And I’ll continue to follow them despite all the sludge I get on my shoes.
“What I want is nothing I am”
This struggle between what they are, and what they want, teared my soul. It’s disheartening to watch them flutter helplessly in the cages of their own making.
I Noticed that Suanne doesn’t play too much at the unfairness of life. She always gives the characters an out, a back alley of hope. A promise of better things to come. This negates the dejection and fills up the depressive sinkhole which may have threatened to swallow the lot whole. But hers the genius Suanne at work, a master storyteller, who ends the book on a promise of horizon, where the earth meets the sky!!
“This tiger is making himself a third chance,” Jav said.
“Third time’s the charm, right?”
“A group of finches is called a charm.”
I’m going to jump in the next book on the 6th and the nagging at her in pms shall renew.
“Where the fuck have you been all my life?
I for to finding you better late than never chica
6 stars for the Greatest Terrible Idea
Suanne Laqueur is a storyteller and a brilliant one at that. This interwoven story about three individuals from childhood to adulthood is absolutely fantastic. The ups and downs you go through while reading, you feel as if you are taking the same journey as the characters you are reading about, their highs, lows, loves, accomplishments, disappointments, heartaches and heartbreaks. All of it! At the end, well first I don’t don’t want the story to end but I also wanted to be a Lark! Thank you for this wonderful beautiful story!
An Exaltation of Larks is not just a book with a storyline. It is a saga that will capture your soul and have you completely addicted to every word and every page.
Suanne Laqueur is a master wordsmith.
She takes her readers by the hand and heart, and leads them through the trials and tribulations of three main characters Alex, Jav, and Val that all intertwine and lead to bonds that will impact each of their lives forever.
These characters have face atrocities and brutalities that no one should ever have to face.
And yet, they not only prevail … they soar.
Laqueur reminds us that humanity is not perfect. But she gives us glimpses of hope, of courage, and strength.
I am absolutely in love with this book, with these characters, and with all the supporting characters and circumstances that bring this saga together.
This is definitely the beginning of a fascination with Laqueur’s writing. I can not wait to dive into more!
5 Outstanding Stars
I hardly know where to begin to describe just how much I loved this book.
I met the author recently at a signing and everyone was buzzing about this book, so my buddy and I decided to give it a go…we bought the book and shortly after we came home we dove in head first.
It’s been weeks now, since we finished, and just the thought of having to sit down and write some words to express how I felt when I closed the cover on this one, makes me weepy all over again.
The story is amazing and hits close to home for those of us impacted by the events of 9/11, but more than that, the author made me laugh and cry and wish for these characters only the good things that life has to offer.
This story is a journey, not a destination and I’m awfully glad I decided to take it. I recommend you don’t pass this one by.
Can I give this 1 million stars? Seriously this must be how a cat feels slowly stretching after a nap in a patch of sunshine…languid, sated, and completely aglow.
I prolonged reading this book as much as possible because the writing is so rich it demands to be savored. The story, the characters, the depth, I adored it all. Just read it. Only then can you understand how great of an experience reading this book is. #JaviorIsMyFavorite
This book reminded me of an impressionist painting. Beautiful up close in the beginning, and magnificent when you step back and see how all of the seemingly random brush strokes come together to make a piece of art. Every single detail, from names to dates to use of language was clearly intentional and woven together to form a rich fabric. The last page literally gave me goosebumps.
Brilliantly thought-out, planned, and executed. A five star piece of literary fiction.