Southern
ScribeSouthern
Scribe
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General Fiction Review |
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Twin
City is a
southern gothic tale of fictional Greentown, a small town in north
Georgia. The title does not
refer to the actual town of Twin City, Georgia located in Emanuel County.
The title does refer to a safe place for the main characters and
symbolizes several twins or parallel lives in the complex course of Jerry
Lee Davis’s novel. Tommy
Byers has been charged with first-degree murder. As he tells his life story to his attorney in preparation for
his testimony in the courtroom, Tommy weaves a tale of survival.
At
birth, Tommy was unwanted. He
was the youngest of three boys, and his father wanted a daughter. It may be to replace his father’s sister who was
accidentally shot at age three as his grandfather was cleaning a gun.
The Byers were dirt poor and the home was abusive.
One brother spent most of the time behind bars and the other turned
to drugs. Tommy’s mother was always planning her great escape.
On
the first day of school in the first grade, Tommy discovered his soul mate
– Blayne Bussell. She is
the daughter of the only Jewish family in town and comes from wealth. Blayne has a quick wit and a natural ability to draw people
to her. A favorite teacher
refers to them as “ twins”, and they name their special oak “twin
city”. Growing
up during the sixties and seventies, Tommy and Blayne must face a climate
of social change. A variety of
extremes cause tension. Tommy’s
mother complains about the Bussell’s money and reminds Tommy that he is
poor. The Bussells are a
loving family, while the Byers household has fear as its foundation.
There are the old stories Klan or white abuse on blacks, and the
reality that the abuse continues for the weak.
There are stories of sexual awakening, that range from crude
language directed at Blayne to Tommy’s experience at a sleepover with a
male friend. There is the story of the Vietnam vet, who loses his battle
against inner demons, but gives Tommy the means to escape the demon at
home. One
night the charmed world of Tommy and Blayne ends.
As Blayne is driving home from dinner at Tommy’s, she is forced
off the road, beaten up and raped. At
this point their roles reverse. Where
Blayne had been the stronger twin pulling Tommy into the light, it is now
Tommy’s turn to pull Blayne from the darkness.
Blayne
gets Tommy to drive her to Atlanta for an abortion. The nurse assumes he is the father and instructs him on the
use of condoms. When they
return to Tommy’s house in Greentown, Blayne begins to hemorrhage, but
she has actually had a miscarriage. Blayne
had been carrying twins. The
Bussells blame Tommy, until the next day when Blayne disappears.
Tommy finds Blayne at Twin City, where she tells him what happen
the night of his dinner party. During
the novel, the possible victim at Tommy’s hands changes from time to
time. After Blayne finishes
her tale of abuse, Tommy becomes a vigilante and shoots Blayne’s abuser
between the eyes. Until the
last page, that abuser could be one of two people.
Davis cleverly stages the courtroom scene to create a strong impact
at the end. Twin
City is
strong southern fiction that captures the humor and tension of the period
in the spirit of Harper Lee and Truman Capote.
Note:
This book may be too upsetting for pregnant women or new mothers.
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