An Open Vein by J. M. Warwick

He’s a doctor, of course I trust him. Or I did, once.

Doesn’t that one sentence just pull you in? It did for me. That sentence lets the reader know that this book is all about betrayal and confusion.

Main character John Banks is sixteen and already a graduate of high school. He plans to spend the summer with his “uncle” Kane in New York before heading off to USC. Kane isn’t actually related to John; he’s more of an honorary uncle. But they’ve known each other so long that it seems like they’re family.

Kane is a strange and rather inconsistent character. Sometimes he acts normally, and sometimes he seems like a complete psycho. At first, John jumps the chance to get closer to his uncle. But Kane is so mysterious, and it seems like he’s harboring a secret. And there’s been mysterious letters threatening John. He keeps saying that he is protecting John, but John can’t shake the feeling that something isn’t quite right.

This novel was very thought-provoking for me. As Kane threw everything John knew to be true into question, so the same went for me. I found it a little strange that John seemed so lacking in common sense at times, even though he is a genius. The whole part about “reading people” that Kane supposedly taught John to do was very confusing for me to read. And Kane’s character I think was mentally sick to pull off those sorts of things that he did.

Overall, I did find myself losing interest at times. I felt that the story tried a little too hard to go deep, and that didn’t work for me. But it might’ve been that I didn’t completely understand the story. I was a little disappointed with the story, but not to the point that I hated it. I did like the ending, because the story leaves you off with a sense of forgiveness and understanding. I do not recommend this novel unless you are interested in psychology.

Rating: 3.0

Review copy from author J.M. Warwick