BOOK REVIEW: Moving Day by Jonathan Stone

SYNOPSIS

Forty years’ accumulation of art, antiques, and family photographs are more than just objects for Stanley Peke—they are proof of a life fully lived. A life he could have easily lost long ago.

When a con man steals his houseful of possessions in a sophisticated moving-day scam, Peke wanders helplessly through his empty New England home, inevitably reminded of another helpless time: decades in Peke’s past, a cold and threadbare Stanislaw Shmuel Pecoskowitz eked out a desperate existence in the war-torn Polish countryside, subsisting on scraps, dodging Nazi soldiers. Now, the seventy-two-year-old Peke—who survived, came to America, and succeeded—must summon his original grit and determination, to track down the thieves, retrieve his things, and restore the life he made for himself.

Peke and his wife, Rose, trace the path of the thieves’ truck across America, to the wilds of Montana, and to an ultimate, chilling confrontation with not only the thieves, but with Peke’s brutal, unresolved past.

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REVIEW

"Moving Day" is more than just a story.  It is a look into the mind of a man whose childhood was spent in Poland, hiding out from Nazis in WWII.  If you like stories where a not insignificant amount of the action is mental, you will enjoy "Moving Day".

I recently reviewed a book I had found difficult to read because of the actions of some of the characters.  In "Moving Day", a group of con men pretend to be a moving company and go in and load up the vast majority of 70-something Stanley and Rose Peke's worldly possession and drive into the sunset with them.  What a bunch of ... wait, this is a family-friendly blog ... I can't use words like that.

If you ever needed proof that senior citizens (a group with which I have more in common every day) are not 'past it', Stan Peke is it.  He comes up with the audacious plan to implant a GPS tracking device into an antique German timepiece stashed in a safe-deposit box on the off chance the thieves find the box key taped in his desk.  He lets them steal everything in the box rather than leave only the watch, which could arouse their suspicions.  Pretty gutsy move.

Anyway, the criminals take the bait.  So Stan and Rose's cross-country move becomes a manhunt.  Along the way, Stan has a running discussion with himself as to whether or not this is the best course of action.  After all, the stolen items are just things.  They are insured, so they are not out in terms of money.  When the couple catch up with the thieves, they must confront not only them, but also the same evil from Stan's past.

"Moving Day" is a solid read.  It demands as much from the reader as it gives to the reader.  It will make you think.  It will help you feel grateful for the little (and big) things in your life.

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AUTHOR INFORMATION

Jonathan Stone writes his books on the commuter train from his home in Connecticut to his advertising job in midtown Manhattan. Honing his writing skills by creating smart and classic campaigns for high-level brands such as Mercedes-Benz, Microsoft, and Mitsubishi has paid off, as Stone’s first mystery-thriller series, the Julian Palmer books, won critical acclaim and was hailed as “stunning” and “risk-taking” in Publishers Weekly starred reviews. He earned glowing praise for his novel The Cold Truth from the New York Times, which called it “bone-chilling.” He’s the recipient of a Claymore Award for Best Unpublished Crime Novel and a graduate of Yale, where he was a Scholar of the House in fiction writing.

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(Disclaimer:  I received a print copy of "Moving Day" from the author and publisher via TLC Book Tours in exchange for my honest review.  No other compensation was offered, requested or received.)