Book Review: TIME TO LET GO by Christoph Fischer

Author Christoph Fischer is a sneaky man, sly, some might even say devious. His new novel Time to Let Go reads like a simple tale of a typical dysfunctional family. The two main characters are Hanna, a single flight attendant dealing with the stress of a workplace death, and her father, Walter, a self-obsessed control freak, trying to handle the declining mental state of his Alzheimer's-ridden wife, Biddy.

You follow the daily travails of their parallel lives, lulled into a sense of complacency about the characters, getting to know them, getting to walk the proverbial mile in their shoes. Slowly, you realize that these two very different characters are both at an emotional turning point in their lives. They both need to acknowledge that sometimes life is going to take the steering wheel and drive for awhile. And there is nothing you can do about it.

Still, they fight for their status quo. Hanna believes she can return to her job as a flight attendant and everything will be just the same. Walter thinks if he can just establish a steady routine in the house, then he can stop the disease that has taken his wife’s mind and Biddy will be able to stay at home with him.

Both of them are wrong. Life is in the driver’s seat and the status quo is not coming back. Ever.

Their parallel stories orbit the character of Biddy, the mother who no longer recognizes her own children, but still likes them all the same. Through Biddy’s Alzheimer’s-induced innocence, father and daughter realize the only way to live their life is by moving forward.

Forward motion comes at a price. To move on, first you need to let go.

Time to Let Go is available on Amazon.

David Bruns is a speculative fiction writer from Minnesota, and creator of The Dream Guild Chronicles. Check out his website for updates, new releases and a free short story.

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