Tangles

 Tangles

Reviewed By  Ian Banks       December 3, 2024

 

Author  Kay Smith-Blum

Distributor:      Amazon AU
ISBN:                 978-1685135065
Publisher:         Black Rose Writing
Release Date:   December 2024  

   Website:   https://www.amazon.com.au/Tangles-Kay-Smith-Blum/dp/1685135064

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Set in 1944 and then flowing into the Cold War period, Tangles from Kay Blum –Smith returns to a time when Nuclear research was in full flow and, Governments of the day were in denial as to the effects of the radiation.

Established in 1943 as part of the Manhattan Project, the Hanford site was home to the Hanford Engineer Works and B Reactor, the first full-scale plutonium production reactor in the world and this is where the story begins.

Scientists working there are desperately trying to let the world know about the effects of working in a nuclear environment. Many have died, the towns people are suffering from various forms of Cancer. A small group of people are desperate to stop the production of Plutonium.

Mary Boone is one of the activists, a woman on a mission to make a difference, as well as escape from an abusive and loveless marriage. Luke Hinson is the boy next door who is befriended by Mary. He secretly keeps the small amount of coins and notes Mary manages to retain so she can eventually leave her marriage.

Their story is the basis of the narrative, that spans several generations and it is not until Luke, now a biochemical doctoral student finds a harpooned dead whale on the beach, a seriously deformed foetus in utero, that he begins to research, for his PhD, the lasting effects of growing up in Hanford.

This leads him into areas that are still Strictly Classified; a world of deadly deceit and Government cover-ups, as Luke works tirelessly to uncover a tragedy more than 20 years in the making.

As a debut author Kaye Smith-Blum has picked a very topical subject to use as the historic basis for Tangles, and one which down through the years is still very topical, highlighting the real cost of the birth of the Nuclear Age.

An unforgettable read with a surprising ending.

Please note: The links have been left in the narrative for anyone not familiar with this particular period of time whom may wish to understand further the secretive and often deadly nature of those times.

Fiction, General, Historical, Mystery