The Names by Florence Knapp
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I was intrigued by the multiple possible futures awaiting Cora and her two children, resulting from the fateful choice of the naming of her newborn son. Cora felt that a person’s name may have influenced the course of a person’s life (citing Amelia Earhart and the Lumiere brothers.)
But regardless of the name chosen and the different path taken, in each iteration, Cora’s life is one of abuse and violence, suffered (mostly) in silence.
The author expertly sets the scenes in the various timelines and creates unforgettable characters. While doing so, she does not fall into the trap of over describing everything…. and yet we feel the full horror of the father’s behaviour and actions in each variation of this “Sliding Doors” style story line.
The repercussions resulting from Cora’s naming of the child are what frame the variations in the parallel timelines and characters. I was impressed and very much moved.
I found it interesting that Julian found solace through art and crafstmanship, and that in one version of her story, Maia became a doctor – like her father – despite the fact that she reviled him for his abuse of her mother. Their father’s violence indelibly impacted their personalities and lives.
The Names does not come across as a debut novel. This was an incredibly well written, often heartbreaking story that fully deserves a 5 star rating. My thanks to the author, Florence Knapp, her publishers, and NetGalley for an ARC of this must-read novel in exchange for an honest review.
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