Out, Out

The narrator of MacQueen%E2%80%99s burbling, unorthodox love story, new mother Deb Soloman, is overwhelmed with life at home and ambivalent about her husband. So she takes an administrative job at the Southern University Primate Language Lab, where she falls for Dr. Soraya Baldwin-Ruhl. However, it%E2%80%99s not long before Deb finds her smoldering feelings for Soraya affecting her personal life. Meanwhile, Soraya is becoming increasingly obsessed with her work and unable to understand the dangers of ape escapes and attacks%E2%80%94not infrequent occurrences at the lab. As the project takes a turn for the worse, Deb finds her life spiraling out of control. MacQueen%E2%80%99s past-tense narrative robs this novel of some of its dramatic potential. However, Soraya is drawn with strong, ferocious strokes, and the details surrounding the primate lab are compelling and authentic. Overall, this novel is definitely worth a read.