Follow Here To Purchase The Siren's Call

Author: Matthew S. Urdan

Publisher: AuthorHouse

ISBN: 978-1-4685-0685-3

Every year thousands of individuals in the USA lose their lives to a drunk driver causing devastating consequences on families and friends of the unfortunate victims. And most of us don't realize the crushing outcomes and the excruciating struggle to cope with the tragedy that ensues after the terrible crime has been committed. It is at this moment of our lives that we appreciate the importance of a true trusted friend, one who will always be there for you through thick and thin. Sadly, very few of us are lucky enough to have at least one such friend. It is with this theme in mind that Matthew S. Urdan crafts the plot of his debut novel The Siren's Call.

As the yarn unfolds, we learn that Steven Perry has just lost his fiancée Linda, who has been killed by a drunk driver one day after he had proposed to her. Extremely distraught by the tragedy, he drives all night to his dearest friend Kenneth (Kip) Pierson's place in northern Lake Michigan. Steven and Kip have been inseparable since their childhood and are now successful law partners.

Kip is dumfounded when he discovers Steven one morning sitting at the bottom of the stairs of his home and welcomes him with open arms inviting him to stay as long as he likes. A few moments later Kip invites Steven to swim out with him to a sandbar in Lake Michigan situated near his home. Steven struggles to swim back to Kip's home and as he recounts, it was as if the spirits residing in Lake Michigan didn't want him to reach land. He goes under and swallows a mouthful of water and at this moment hears a voice softly whispering to him, “Steeven, don't leave me.”

Deeply concerned about the state of Steven's mental health that is endangered by his hallucinating of ghosts, evil spirits and manitous that are possessing him, Kip sways his friend that he needs a change of venue and invites him to travel to Hawaii. The two set off for Hawaii and begin to spend some great quality time together reminiscing about their past and the good and bad times they experienced together.

Kip tries everything in his power to uplift his friend's spirits and to help him deal with his painful grief. On the other hand, Steven is also concerned about the disturbingly erratic behavior of his good friend who seems to be pushing him away because he thinks he has too many problems to deal with and that he can't handle Kip's.

The powerful fellowship between these two friends is severely tested when Kip informs Steven that his wife Ellen had ovarian cancer and in all probability she would not be able to have children. Steven is shocked and miffed that he was not informed about this earlier, and moreover, he is angered that Kip is not back home with his wife. Kip assures him that Ellen was supportive of his idea of bringing Kip to Hawaii and that her family is taking good care of her. This revelation is followed by another when Kip finally exposes his inner feelings to Steven and confesses what exactly is troubling him. Both of these events lead to a quickly deteriorating relationship which now is in imminent danger of being completely destroyed. Will there ever be reconciliation?

One of my principal peeves I have about this novel is the lack of a strong captivating hook or tension at the very beginning of the story where Urdan would have dropped me off a cliff into the conflict. Without this hook, you face the danger of having your readers yawn or walk away after the very first few pages.

Another weak aspect of the novel is Urdan should have been more careful when injecting travelogue into the plot. Using paragraph after paragraph of description can prove to be quite troublesome to a debut author, and although it might be great colorful prose, as is the case here, if it doesn't move the plot along or illuminate a character, then what is the point of it? You may easily lose your readers, particularly if the reading flow does not continue smoothly.

Notwithstanding these deficiencies, the novel still contains some positive elements such as the realistic use of dialogue between Steven and Kip, which at times make you feel you are eavesdropping on real conversations. In the final analysis, Urdan shows a great deal of promise and with a good content editor, he should be able to rectify some of the imperfections hampering The Siren's Call. I look forward to hearing more from him in the near future.


Follow Here To Purchase The Siren's Call

Follow Here To Read Norm's Interview With Matthew S. Urdan