[photopress:Recovering_Charles.f_product.jpg,full,alignleft]Luke Millward has made a good life for himself as a photographer in New York City, despite his traumatic high school days after his mom died. He’s put his past behind him, which is why when a strange man calls and asks him to come looking for his past, he’s surprised to find out that he’s missed out on more than he knows.

Bestselling author Jason F. Wright (Christmas Jars, The Wednesday Letters) is back again with yet another thought-provoking, heartfelt novel. Recovering Charles takes place in the aftermath of August 2005’s Hurricane Katrina. Main character Luke Millward receives a call from a man he’s never met, asking Luke to come to New Orleans to find his father, Charles Millward who has been lost since the deadly hurricane. The trouble is, Luke has had a troubled past with his father.

After the slow and painful death of Luke’s mother, his father turned to the bottle to ease his sadness. Luke decides that he wants more for himself and leaves right after high school and doesn’t look back. When he gets this cryptic phonecall asking him to come to New Orleans, it’s been 2 years since he’s even spoken to his father.

Still, Luke feels the need to reconnect with his father. Maybe things have changed. What he finds in New Orleans will not only change his past as he once knew it, but also his future.

I’ve read all three of Jason Wright’s novels, and to me, this book is right in between Christmas Jars and The Wednesday Letters in likability. The unique angle that it has is that it takes place in New Orleans shortly after Hurricane Katrina, which seems like such a short time ago in history. I think it’s a wound that still hasn’t healed, and for Wright to author a novel that takes place there opens the door for more understanding and closure. Luke Millward isn’t necessarily a fascinating character, but it’s the people that help him find his father that create the tone in the book.

For me, it was a quick read. Perhaps it’s because it’s larger type, but I think it also had to do with how the characters interacted. I had the feeling that I was uncovering a piece of the Hurricane Katrina puzzle and learning a little bit more about the people that suffered and their commitment to each other and their beloved city. I would suggest that this book be limited to an adult audience because of the nature of the scenes portrayed in the book (no violence or sex, but disturbing imagery relating to the aftermath of the hurricane).

Recovering Charles is published by Shadow Mountain and can be found not only at Deseret Book stores and online at www.deseretbook.com, but also at nationwide book retailers (i.e. Borders and Barnes & Noble).