Book Review: Twin Piques by Tracie Banister
Twin Piques tells the story of identical twins Willa and Sloane Tobin. While DNA is the architect of the sisters’ similar physical appearance, their personalities stand in stark contrast. Willa is a good-natured, lovable pet psychic who is just as comfortable with her canine friend Cicero as she is with human counterparts. In fact, Willa is well-versed in the emotional language of dogs (an asset in her chosen profession). Sloane is serious and often cynical. She doesn’t subscribe to Willa’s romantic musings preferring instead to focus on her career. Willa is “qualitative” in her approach to life(i.e finding the best in situations) while Sloane is more “quantitative” (refusing to offer the benefit of the doubt when things don’t quite add up). Actually, it is a good thing that Sloane is quantitative since she is a forensic accountant.
Aiding our twin protagonists is an array of well-written, interesting characters including charming rosarian Brody Wyatt and loyal friend and talented graphic novelist Gavin Shaw.
Banister has an inviting writing style; her first person narrative approach is almost like breaking down a wall and enabling the reader to become a silent voyeur as the plots and subplots unfold in a mesmerizing fashion. Humor is also a staple in Twin Piques: the plot, of course, has some serious undertones, but the sprinkles of humor are appropriate and delightful.
While Twin Piques might fall within the genre of “Chick Lit” one should not equate this classification as signaling the appeal of the book for only female audiences. Male readers will root for Brody and Gavin, and perhaps, feel a twinge of envy wishing they could be like these characters.
In addition, Twin Piques is intelligent writing. I have loved Shakespeare since I first read Hamlet way back in 1979 in my high school Honors English class. Banister peppers her book with references to Shakespeare’s work, a fitting homage to the Bard. There’s even something for the pop culture lovers.
I don’t want to spoil the plot for anyone. I would highly recommend Twin Piques. It is an enjoyable read.