Soapy new novel from NC writer is set largely in Wilmington and Topsail Beach

Ben Steelman
·2 min read
Triangle novelist Elizabeth Langston's latest is "The Measure of Silence."
Triangle novelist Elizabeth Langston's latest is "The Measure of Silence."

Family secrets come to a boil in Triangle novelist Elizabeth Langston's latest, "The Measure of Silence." The recipe calls for a liberal dash of soap opera, but it's entertaining nonetheless.

The story opens Nov. 22, 1963, in Dallas. Nineteen-year-old Mariah has just fled her domineering father back in Southeastern North Carolina and eloped with her boyfriend, Hal, to Texas. Before they head to the courthouse to get hitched, they stop by Dealey Plaza to watch the presidential motorcade so that Mariah, a camera buff, can take photos of her idol, Jackie Kennedy.

Fast-forward 60 years. Mariah is now in a memory-care unit in Raleigh. Her husband, Gregor, a prosperous contractor, has just died. (Hal is not in the picture. What happened?) Her granddaughters, Jessica and Raine, are left with their grandfather's papers and a last wish: to clear up the family mystery.

We learn that Mariah was a state senator devoted to education, but Jessica and Raine have no idea she ever picked up a camera.

For decades Mariah had been estranged from her family. Now, Jessica and Raine discover they have a raft of uncles, aunts and cousins in the Wilmington area. They also uncover old scandals: unwed motherhood, broken marriages, child and spousal abuse.

At the same time, the two sleuths are coping, not very well, with their own problems. Jessica is a successful TV news producer with a local station, but her 24/7 work life leaves little time for her husband, Luke, or for having children.

Raine, a forensic accountant, is a total introvert, unlike her sister. After a toxic relationship, she's fearful of attachments, and she can't bring herself to take the CPA exam.

The two sisters have squabbled for years. (You might say Jessica stole Luke from Raine.) They bury their differences, though, to discover Mariah's past, and their occupations give them the investigatory skills to do so.

Triangle novelist Elizabeth Langston's latest is "The Measure of Silence."
Triangle novelist Elizabeth Langston's latest is "The Measure of Silence."

I didn't find all of Langston's characters in "The Measure of Silence" convincing. Some seem like they were borrowed from episodes of "Dr. Phil." Langston, however, can tell a story, throwing curve ball after curve ball. As with any good soap opera, I had to keep going to see what happened next.

Much of the action is set in and around Wilmington and Topsail Beach, and the novel comes with ready-made discussion questions for book clubs.

Book review

'THE MEASURE OF SILENCE'

By Elizabeth Langston

Seattle: Lake Union Publishing, $16.99 paperback

This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: Novel 'The Measure of Silence' by Elizabeth Langston set in Wilmington