Last Call at Smokey Row is a departure for Pat Camalliere, whose previous novels are part of a series of historical mysteries that take place in Lemont, IL. Although also set in Lemont, the latest novel is more what I’d classify as a contemporary woman’s novel set in the early 1980s.
The main character and narrator, Jane Archer, is someone many people can relate to. Raised in a Catholic family, she pursued the goals she thought a good, responsible girl should: education, marriage, a suitable career for a woman—in her case, teaching high school biology. But at the age of 33, she finds herself a divorced ex-teacher, living alone for the first time in her life, working a dead-end job in a grocery store, and wondering if she has the stamina and motivation to figure out what to do next.
Invited by a coworker who participates in a pool league, Jane visits a local tavern called Sami’s. There she meets a collection of people seemingly as adrift as she is: a divorced father being bled dry by his ex, a young woman with no apparent ambition, a traumatized Vietnam vet who rarely talks, another divorced man with the burden of caring for an agoraphobic and hostile mother, and an assortment of other drunks, gamblers, bullies, and weirdos.
Her newfound acquaintances force Jane to think deeply about questions such as, “Why are some people able to find purpose in life, and why do others remain lost or even mired in past heartache?” “Am I taking too long to move forward from my recent failures?” “Do I even know what I want?” Which of us has not asked ourselves questions like these?
In time, Jane builds relationships at Sami’s, some closer than others. With the help of one of her newfound friends, she slowly begins to find a new career path and perhaps even the hope of romance.
With such a diverse mix of personalities, problems in the group are sure to bubble up. One conflict gets resolved in a way that I guarantee you won’t see coming. Through it all, Jane responds to the events around her by continuing to ask questions and to grow. Despite the large cast of characters, it is her story above all, and Camalliere brings it to a satisfying end.
Ruth Hull Chatlien 