Title: Where the Allegheny Meets the Monongahela
Author: Felicia Watson
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Anne Cain
Buy Link Amazon:
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: Novel (308 pages)
Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5
A Guest Review by Aunt Lynn
One Sentence Review: An impressive first effort from a new author, a romantic tale in the midst of the topic of domestic abuse.
THE BLURB
Logan Crane’s life changed dramatically the day a blind fit of temper resulted in him accidentally injuring his wife. Although he’s now in an abuser counseling program, Logan cannot face the real source of his unhappiness: he’s always been attracted to men but has refused to accept it since witnessing an act of violence.
During his therapy, Logan meets Nick Zales, a counselor at a shelter for victims of domestic violence. Nick is understandably suspicious of Logan despite an immediate attraction to him. Logan feels the same attraction and faces a critical internal struggle as he finds himself falling in love with this enigmatic man.
Both men are haunted by unacknowledged ghosts and abuse in their pasts. How can they help each other heal if they continue to ignore their own wounds?
THE REVIEW
I may live in Berkeley, but my heart belongs to Pittsburgh, the city where I was born, raised and lived for the first thirty-five years of my life. As a native ‘Burgher, I of course could not pass up a title with the names of two of the three rivers Pittsburgh is known for, the two, of course, that are pretty much unpronounceable by many (let’s say them together —
Al-lah-GAIN-ee and Mah-non-gah-HAIL-ah, or the Mon). In fact, I didn’t even read the blurb; I just picked it up for the title alone. 🙂 And I am glad I did. Felicia Watson’s first published work packs a wallop in good way; it’s a complex, very detailed, emotional, well-written novel that has me looking forward to what she’ll put out next.
The story opens with thirty-two-year-old Logan having a really bad day, culminating with him in yet another argument with his wife. He seems to be unhappy for many reasons — job, money, neighbors, nosey relatives, those buff, young, sweaty guys at work — and her harping on him again is not making things better. Snapping, he lashes out and accidentally hurts her, landing her in the hospital. We then meet Nick as he waits on his mother’s caretaker, who is late and will make him late for work at the domestic crisis/abuse center where he is a counselor. When he finally arrives at the center, he learns that a new auto maintenance/repair class has been added to a program he runs that teaches domestic abuse clients basic skills, and that it will be taught by volunteer Logan, a mechanic who is now on probation from an altercation with his wife and in counseling with Nick’s boss, Trudy. Nick is very wary of having a “wife-beater” — especially one who apparently has anger management issues — teaching the class and is determined to supervise in case Logan gets out of line. When he meets Logan, he is surprised by the quiet, brooding man, and as time goes on and they become friendly, Nick must adjust his pre-conceived assumptions of what makes an abuser. For closeted Logan, he must come to terms with his feelings, not just for what happened with his wife and his ever-present anger, but also for his attraction to men in general, and Nick specifically.
Where the Allegheny Meets the Monongahela carries themes of blame, taking responsibility, self-realization, forgiveness, healing and happiness. It’s an emotional, angsty read, though in my opinion, it never dives so deeply in to the angst end of the pool that it is overwhelming. The subject of domestic abuse — its impact and the healing — is at the central here, and as I was reading, I found that I was getting an education that never felt preachy to me. Watson covers the uncomfortable subject — for both the reader and Logan — with skill and sensitivity, but at the same time not sugar-coating it.
Featuring complex, three-dimensional, flawed characters, both in the protags Nick and Logan and the secondary cast as well, I found these characters to be real and very sympathetic, a real mix of Pittsburgh and the surrounding region’s diverse make-up. I expected Logan to be difficult to understand and forgive, but I figured out pretty early on how it is with him. Boy, he’s one screwed up guy, so full of anger and fear with seemingly no way to easily articulate it — even to himself. I just wanted to give him a hug, tell him it was all going to be okay, then smack him one for being so…him.
I thought Nick was really interesting, with his own scars as a secondary victim of abuse and the need to heal in order to move forward. I liked that it took him a while to “get” Logan, was able to see past his experience and education to realize that people can and do make mistakes and those people can avoid repeating those mistakes.
Pittsburgh is a protag in itself, with such wonderful details that only someone intimate with the city could possibly bring forth on the page. I felt like I was home again, especially since Nick had opportunity to venture into Penn Hills, my section of town (go Indians!). The streets and the landscape came alive for me. And can I just say how jealous I was of these guys, getting to eat Potato Patch fries from Kennywood and Primanti’s during the course of the story? Yum.
One thing to note: while there is absolutely a believable romantic element here, it at times takes the back seat to the rest of the story, much of which is devoted to the two men as individuals and their journeys to recovery. There is a slow build-up to the romance, though the attraction is there from the beginning, and high smexual tension leads to pretty hot smexxin, which that is a good thing.
OVERALL
If you’re in the mood for a well-written, angsty, hopeful tale, I highly recommend this one. I am eager to see what this new author will give us next.
Lynn, I’m so glad you all have posted a review of this book – I read it when it first came out and thought it was *so* good! I liked how subtle the discussions of guilt and blame were, and definitely felt the slow romantic and erotic pay-off was worth it!
Hi GR. It was good, wasn’t it? I thought the discussions were some of the best parts and where I learned the most.
I need to take a break from the angst books but it looks an interesting reading so I will keep it in mind for the future :computer:
Thank you for your review 😎
Hey there Helena. I get that, totally, so just shelve this one and come back when you’re in the mood for something a bit heavier.
Only the title is worth 5 stars!
Thanks for the review Aunt lynn, slow sounds good 🙂
Yeah, that title is a whopper all right. 🙂 Slow is good here.
this was such a good read – wonderful story.
Hi Minnie. I’ll be revisiting this at some point for sure, I liked it so well.
Great review, Lynn. You pointed out almost all the reasons why I liked this book so much.
With no connection what so ever to Pittsburgh I fell in love with the title, read the blurb and excerpt and nearly DIED of impatience waiting for it to come out 🙂 And I wasn’t disappointed. Last time I fell for a book and author this hard was ZA Maxfield and Crossing Borders!
Good afternoon kaija. The title sure is great and unusual, and I think it is definitely a hook. And it lived up to the title for me.
I’m so glad you reviewed this book. I was eying it for a while, but, like you, I thought it impossible for me to understand and sympathize with Logan, so I never gave it a chance. Now I will. Thanks!
Hey there Jelena. You need to go and pick this one up now. Give it a chance, it will be worth it. I’ve thought about it all morning and even upped the stars to 4.75.
Thanks, Lynn. I wasn’t sure about character and themes either and was holding off, but your review has really piqued my interest — especially that the setting is so well done. I’m going to have to look into this one! 🙂
Val, hold off no longer. It may be angsty, but it’s a good angst. And yes, as a native, I am very happy with the setting (and it being right!).
Awesome review Lynn.
I have read this book and really enjoyed it.
Hi Jaime. Glad to hear from folks who liked it as well.
Hi, Lynn – thanks so much for taking the time to read and review. I’m so glad WAMM worked for you on so many levels – especially with the city as a character in and of itself.
It’s funny, but as a native of the area (though on the Ohio side) I honestly never thought of the rivers as hard to pronounce. Since getting WAMM published, I keep answering puzzled readers by saying, “It’s (either river) pronounced *exactly* the way it’s spelled. Why do you ask?” 😀
Felicia
Hi Felicia! You are welcome, and thanks for penning such a wonderful book. I hate reading books where the locale is depicted wrong — wrong spellings, things placed wrong geographically, just WRONG — and I was prepared to grill the author for getting it all WRONG, but hell, you took the wind out of my sails by getting it right. 🙂 (Except for Duff Street, by the way, since it’s Road, but maybe you did that on purpose?)
And yes, the pronunciations — I thought this might trip others up, even if it just rolls off my tongue without a thought…
I have to admit I don’t remember if I changed Duff to Street on purpose (like I did changing Watson Blvd to Matson) or not!
Thanks again,
Felicia
I won’t tell you how long it’s been since I was in Pittsburgh. I was supposed to go to a wedding there last Spring, but the car rental agency here let me down – despite a reservation, nothing available when I went to pick up. So…but I liked the title and the review is intriguing. Maybe I’ll just have to visit Pittsburgh by proxy…
That many years, huh? 😉
I loved the trip back home for those several hours, even though I try to get there once a summer. I do miss it, especially when it snows.
I also picked this book up by the title alone; I have never heard of the rivers (before I read this book anyway) so I had absolutely no idea what those words in the title meant 😕 The cover is really awesome as well. But boy oh boy, what a great story!!!!! I know you gave it a 4.5, but for me, it’s a DIK all the way. I can’t wait to read more from this author. Unbelievable that it’s her first. 😯
I just upped the review to 4.75 and I may move it to 5 before the day is over. I though a lot this morning as I re-read the review and the comments. I was teetering back and forth, and it may be worth the extra star bits. 🙂
Great review. I did love this book as well. Although I’ve never been to Pittsburgh, I really felt the writer knew the area well even pinpointing the changes in attitude depending on which part of the city you were living in. It’s an emotional read that pulls you into the story & have you rooting for the other characters in the story as well. I’d also love to read another story from this author.
Thanks for commenting as yet another person who loved this book. The city and the surrounding areas are very diverse socio-economically and educationally, but it really a working-class town. She did a great job and I eagerly await what she has in store for us next.
Great review, Lynn, I thought this one was fantastic and it was one of my best discoveries of the year so far as well (book and author). I was just amazed how she managed to do such heavy themes realistically and weave such beatiful romantic tale.
Thanks Sirius. I agree completely.
Glad to see this one reviewed. Ive been undecided about this one as well. Im gonna pick it up.
I hope you like it as much as I — and others here — liked it.
I definitely agreed with everything you said; I thought it was wonderful! The most refreshing thing for me was that author allowed plenty of time for everything to develop so nothing felt rushed and, therefore, unrealistic.
Great review, Aunt Lynn! I also didn’t realized this was a first-time author – that makes it twice as awesome!
Thanks Lacey. Yup, no rushing here. Totally believable.
I figured out pretty early on how it is with him. Boy, he’s one screwed up guy, so full of anger and fear with seemingly no way to easily articulate it — even to himself. I just wanted to give him a hug, tell him it was all going to be okay, then smack him one for being so…him.
This did it for me, Lynn. Terrific review, as always. It was on my “Probably” list, but you tipped it over to the “ASAP” list. Thanks!
Thanks Buda. I think you’ll like it if that’s what did it for you.
I totally loved this book too, and being a lifelong, die-hard Pittsburgher, I was especially impressed with how much I totally felt like I was a part of the story. I felt like I could easily bump into Nick and/or Logan some Saturday night down on Carson Street, or walking down from Arlington Avenue (don’t ask!), or even up at the Duff Office… which almost scared the heck outta me because i know EXACTLY what office Nick was going to!
It’s so easy for us “natives” to gush about somebody finally writing our place correctly, but the story was really just as spot-on for me as the setting, all the way. These were two very realistic guys with an unlikely relationship that they’ve had to do a lot of work on (just like they have with their own selves, and that old car). I know i couldn’t stop reading and pretty much finished it off in 1.5 sittings 🙂
Hey Jessica. So many metaphors here for sure, with the rivers and the car. It all worked.
And yeah, I know the building on Duff as well! I practically lived in the PH Shopping Center when I was growing up, especially as an employee of the Theater.
I completely agree with your review.
I genuinely adored this book and it’s characters. I loved that the author didn’t try to rush anything, and how it all developed naturally. She didn’t try to gloss over anything either, and that made it feel even more real to me. There’s nothing I love more than flawed, three-dimensional characters in a well-developed plot line, and this book fit that bill to a T.
Also, about the title, I must confess that I went to dictionary.com to learn how to pronounce them before I began the book. And now I’m weirdly proud of myself for actually remembering the pronunciations. Yes, I am a dork.
(As a side note, I only had so much time per sitting to read this, and each time I picked it up the title made me think of the TV show “Three Rivers.” That, in turn, made me think of Alex O’Loughlin, and that led to me casting Alex as Nick. I still can’t decide if that was weird or brilliant…)
Hi Nichele. The characters, the pace, the handling of the subject — it all worked.
Re: the pronunciation, I think most natives agree that the Mon is pronounced “hail” on that fourth syllable, not “heel,” but I’ve heard it both ways.
Interesting. It works for me! No we need a blondie for Logan…
Wonderful review. I just started the book, but can tell I am in for a great ride 😉
Thanks. Let us know what you think after, Hellga.
Hi Lynn,
Thank you for reviewing this book! I was very interested in this book when it came out, but not having heard any responses to it, I was reluctant to read it… It seemed like it could possibly be a very heavy read and I wasn’t too sure how I felt about that. I love angst, but I have to be in a certain mood to read really heavy angst. I’m happy to hear that isn’t the case here and I’m definitely going to put it back on my list 🙂
Thanks again for the wonderful review!
It is angsty, Cole, but it never overwhelming. I think you’ll love it.
count me in, please?
Hey solop, this isn’t a giveaway! 😉
I just finished this and wanted to say thanks for the great review! It was on my TBR pile and I bumped it up. I loved it! Loved the characters, the setting, the plot, and the writing. The author clearly knew what she was talking about (even a little mention about the couples counseling in abuse cases being a hot button issue).
This went instantly on to my reread pile!
WARNING: MY REFLECTIONS INVOLVE DISCUSSING SOME PLOT POINTS OF THE NOVEL
This book is wonderful! As a psychotherapist, I often cringe at the depiction of mental health professionals in fiction, but Felicia Watson does a wonderful and very accurate job. She just nails it over and over again: the way Nick unconsciously “uses his therapist’s voice,” when talking with Logan; the way Dr. Gerard’s commitment to theory blinds her to the message that her patient is trying to send; the way Nick intuitively knows that something is going wrong with a client but refuses to trust his intuition because his caseload is so heavy. Finally, Ms. Watson’s depiction of Nick’s therapist is a spot-on depiction of what it’s like to be a therapist in therapy. I kept wondering if she was a counselor, she does such a good job. I was thoroughly impressed.
Sometimes in life you find a book you need at precisely the right time. I lost a client unexpectedly to death 2 months ago. The only time in 17 years of working as a counselor. It was extremely painful. I found reading about Nick’s struggle with the death of his client both soothing and fascinating. I imagine one reason good fiction compels me is that the hyperreal lives and choices of fictional characters allow me to reflect on and explore the decisions and feelings of my own life.
I hope Felica Watson happens to read this comment so she can know how grateful I am for her novel. I also hope anyone reading this comment chooses to read the book.
-Stu
Stu, I just found this comment – I cannot tell you how much it touched me. Thank you so much. I am not a counselor but I did work with a few when I was volunteering. The accuracy of the portrayals is the result of long months of research. Comments like yours make all of that work SO worthwhile.
Thanks again and again,
Felicia
Stu, thanks for commenting and adding a perspective that I didn’t have because I lack the background you do. The author commented herself that it was all about the research to make it obviously believable to a member of the profession and this goes to show how that kind of research pays off. I’m glad you liked it as well as I did.