The Grift

I talked about this book on the latest TPL Radio News podcast. It's by Debra Ginsberg, who wrote Blind Submission, a book I just loved. I wasn't disappointed by her latest effort. The Grift follows the story of Marina Marks, who makes her living giving psychic readings. Through the years, she has learned to read people's expressions and gather information from them intuitively, but in the sense that most people think of psychics, she's a fake. The book is told in parts that jump forward in time, a tactic I've seen in a lot of modern novels (A Thousand Splendid Suns, The Memory Keeper's Daughter) and it works quite well with the story. The characters--Marina and her clients--are exposed over time, and the reader sees how they all interact with each other. When Marina makes the startling discovery that she does, in fact, have psychic powers, her business and her entire life changes, and every supporting character is shaken as well. This is a powerful read, deftly written, and expertly plotted.