When young Charlie Boykin gains entry into the wealthy society of the most exclusive part of Nashville, he falls under its spell. But he soon learns what he'd have to give up in return in this novel that asks why people envy and worship a class of people that so often exhibits the worst excesses.
A gorgeous, deep probing treatise on the myriad manifestations of love, envy, privilege, and longing ... The Fortunate Ones is a fathoms-deep exploration of love, loyalty, and the ties that bind, written masterfully from all angles. It’s a laser-sharp look at the underbelly of power and privilege’s repercussions as told through the power of story.
No one needs to wait for copyright expiration to use Fitzgerald’s plot, that time-honored story in which a person on the fringe of high society becomes entangled in its enchantments and perfidies ... Tarkington, a talented and compassionate writer, neither wishes to shock nor to prevaricate with his plot. His fortunate characters have deep flaws and complicated pasts, and that includes the secondary ones ... Although The Fortunate Ones has some narrative flaws, uneven pacing chief among them, Tarkington’s insight into the meaning of home rings true.
Ed Tarkington's new coming-of-age novel The Fortunate Ones points out the chinks in the gilded armor adorning – and weighing down – followers of the cult of wealth ... The Fortunate Ones can feel like it’s reflecting elite society’s breakneck pace — making characters, events, and settings blur together ... Unvarnished in its look at a society that pours as much pressure onto people as it does spectacle and riches, The Fortunate Ones is a moving exposé — in the same vein as The Great Gatsby and Great Expectations — of how gilded appearances can siphon the luster from one’s innermost self and pressure individuals into keeping up with the breakneck cycle of monetary gain — and spiritual loss.
