The Stars at Oktober Bend is an all encompassing novel from talented writer Glenda Millard.
Millard’s absorbing narrative alternates between her two main characters, Alice and Manny.
Alice is fifteen. A horrific attack left her with a brain injury, she finds solace in the words she can write, the words that she has difficulty saying out loud since the attack. She lives with her kindly, protective brother and her ailing Gran. Both are trying to protect her from the world, living on the outskirts of town trying to stay under the radar.
Manny is inexplicably drawn to Alice, ever since he saw her on the roof of her house staring at the night sky. They have a connection. Many is living with a foster family in the town, a child soldier who witnesses the murder of his own family – his history is also a turbulent one.
Millard deftly portrays each character with ease. As the narrative develops we learn more about their history, about Alice’s attack and we witness their growing friendship and romance.
Millard’s poetic narrative pulls the reader gently along. We become totally absorbed in her characters as they learn and grow, both coming to terms with their history and both learning to lean on each other.
The Stars At Oktober Bend is a striking novel, showing the beauty of the human spirit shining through against all the odds.
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