Rating: Summary: Unsettling...Unconventional..Gets under your skin Review: I thought this looked interesting at the library and once I started it I couldn't put it down. Leebron's short, succinct, unnerving tale of a family's (near) collapse makes for fascinating reading. It's a completely unromanticized look at married life in the real world, complete with whiny spouses, annoying kids, problems at work, arguments at home, and meddling in-laws. Violence erupts without warning, and the family is nearly torn apart as each character undergoes considerable unhinging. I loved this book because it is certainly a depressing and dark look at the need to make "six figures" and keep up with the Joneses. Many of the incidents are disturbing and get under your skin. This book deserves to be thought about long after it's finished. It also benefits from loose ends that stick out like sore thumbs; as with life, certain questions are never answered. SIX FIGURES would make a great film and I couldn't help seeing it as a movie in my mind. My favorite character was Nan, the wife's bitchy mother who you soon love to loathe.
Rating: Summary: You Won't Miss A Thing By Waiting For the TV Movie Review: Leebron has a dead-on take on modern suburban life....it's dark, yeah, but anyone who's struggled with the money, kids, job, social climbing, marital mistrust thing (Come on, raise your hands) is bound to see a lot of themselves in Warner and Megan. Maybe too much for comfort, but the novel is haunting and stays with you long after you put it down. Although I was interested in Leebron's analysis of the husband-wife dynamic, I really enjoyed his skewering of rah-rah materialism in an all American boom town.
Rating: Summary: A modern day novel of manners Review: Leebron has a dead-on take on modern suburban life....it's dark, yeah, but anyone who's struggled with the money, kids, job, social climbing, marital mistrust thing (Come on, raise your hands) is bound to see a lot of themselves in Warner and Megan. Maybe too much for comfort, but the novel is haunting and stays with you long after you put it down. Although I was interested in Leebron's analysis of the husband-wife dynamic, I really enjoyed his skewering of rah-rah materialism in an all American boom town.
Rating: Summary: Too Many Loose Ends Review: Leebron's story of an average white-collar worker disenchanted with his pursuit of climbing the "corporate ladder" and "keeping up with the Joneses" misses the mark of being a first rate suspense-thriller. There is fast-paced excitement, but the story doesn't add up, no motive is ever revealed and too many loose ends.
Rating: Summary: How did it all go wrong? Review: Most readers will be able to identify with wrong career choices and the feeling of not being able to compete with some of their peers. Some of the plot twists did not seem "realistic" but wierd things happen in life.
Rating: Summary: How did it all go wrong? Review: Most readers will be able to identify with wrong career choices and the feeling of not being able to compete with some of their peers. Some of the plot twists did not seem "realistic" but wierd things happen in life.
Rating: Summary: How did it all go wrong? Review: Most readers will be able to identify with wrong career choices and the feeling of not being able to compete with some of their peers. Some of the plot twists did not seem "realistic" but wierd things happen in life.
Rating: Summary: Oh no it isn't... Review: Protagonist is a blob of jello who is wheeled around through the plot in a barrow. Pushed around by his boss, his wife, his parents, his in-laws, his kids, anyone else who wanders onstage... Not nearly interesting enough as a character to carry this novel on his shoulders. And all his reactions are far too passive and cringing to make for interesting fiction. Why other reviewers like this blob is beyond me.
Rating: Summary: Rare book Review: Six Figures is a rare book that turns the common struggles of marital life into page-turning drama. Any short-comings stem from the books length.
Rating: Summary: An Interesting Story; An Engaging Novel Review: Six Figures is an interesting and enjoyable read, quick, but with substance. It is the story of Warner and Megan a not so happily married couple, living on the fringes of Charlotte NC's successes with their two young children. The stresses on their marriage ring true and any married person with young kids will recognize them. The daily grind of diapers, preschool, the depressingness of seeing others so much more successful, driving new Volvos when your Honda is falling apart. Leebron doesn't dwell on any of this envy, this unhappy marriage-ness for too long, he delves in and out of his characters heads so the reader gets a flavor of their misery without without making the reader miserable. Megan is then brutally attacked and near death. Warner is the only suspect. Leebron then explores what happens to the marriage, and the family after it is torn apart by the attack. We never really, truly know if Warner did it or not, but that's OK. It's not necessary because this novel is not a mystery-thriller, it is a story of marriage and of family. What makes this book so enjoyable is the total believability of all of Leebron's characters and their relationships. We have met people like them and have felt like them many times. Warner is not exactly a likeable guy, but he's not awful either, probably because the envy he feels is something we have all felt at one time or another. Six Figures is a satisfying read. I am surprised at, and have to disagree with, the negative reviews at this website. Give this book a read, I don't think you will regret it.
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