Author: John Burt
Released: 05/18/26
Genre: Adult Literary Fiction
“That’s the funny thing about doing something really stupid. Everybody keeps telling you how stupid the thing you’re doing is. But you knew that from the beginning so that advice doesn’t help you at all because it doesn’t stop you from wanting it.”
“A Moment’s Surrender” follows adjunct writing instructor, Paul Bishop, as he learns of his best friend’s murder.
Paul’s best friend, Tom Corbin, was a renowned poet with the ability to connect to almost everyone he met. Unfortunately, Tom was also a complicated man with many secrets of his own.
The night before his murder, Tom burdened Paul with the secret that he was leaving his wife, Susan, and his young son, Jack, for Tom’s former girlfriend, Rachel Lake. Burdened by the knowledge of Paul’s intended actions, he sets out to support Susan and Jack.
Unfortunately, Susan has been keeping secrets of her own. And Rachel has her own agenda…
Will Paul be able to negotiate a web of lies, deception and relationships or will it all be too much to handle?
Trigger Warning: violence, sexual situations, reference to abortion, adult language, racist references, cancer-related illness, death, attempted suicide
Overall, I was intrigued by this book. The story is told through multiple POVs, but mostly through that of the protagonist, Paul Bishop. Paul is a complicated man who seems to be stuck in his life and not moving forward. He recognizes faults in himself and in those around him, including his ex-girlfriend, Rachel Lake, and best friend, Tom Corbin, but refuses to accept the extent of the deficits or do much about them. His guilt seemingly pushes him out of his walking slumber and enhances his insight into those around him. Tom was an extremely flawed man who serially cheated on his wife and left his young son at home to have an affair while touting to “Know women” through his poetry. The manipulation that Tom engaged in throughout every relationship in the book is appalling and you can’t but want to despise him. Susan, Tom’s widow, is the dumbest smart woman. You want to feel bad for her, but some of the obstacles she encounters are self-imposed. Rachel, the mistress, has trauma that she can’t get past and invites danger. Each of the 4 main characters is flawed and frustrating and very realistic. This is a slow-burn kind of a book with some repetitive pieces due to the overlapping POVs. This also isn’t a feel-good tale. It’s a guttural, character-driven, life-happens kind of a book that sticks with you. However, the ending feels complete and resolved for all of the main characters and for the main storyline with a bit of a positivity that is missing throughout the rest of the tale.
I received a copy of this story in exchange of a fair and honest review.
OVERALL REVIEW:
A character-driven slow burn about life choices and how lies always catch up to those we love.
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Check out my interview with John Burt
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