A Rough Way to Go

A financier turned surfer investigates the mysterious drowning of a hotshot investor, in Garonzik’s cutting yet thin debut noir. Former New York City financial analyst Peter Greene has moved with his wife, Lauren, and three-year-old son, Luke, to a sleepy beach town a few hours outside the city, where he regularly delays his search for employment by catching waves with his buddy, Frank. One day, the body of Robert Townsend, who made a name for himself at the shady Manhattan private equity firm GDR, washes ashore on the beach Peter and Frank frequent. The police rule it an accidental drowning, but Peter’s not so sure. Sensing that his financial connections might qualify him to find answers about Robert’s death—and that doing so could provide his life with some much needed direction—Peter sets out to uncover Robert’s many secrets. Though Peter’s voice is well-developed, Garonzik stumbles when drawing the supporting players: Peter’s tense relationship with the nameless mothers at Luke’s nursery school is clunkily satirical, and Lauren and Frank feel mostly like two-dimensional foils. A late-stage plot turn surfaces some interesting ideas about contemporary fatherhood, but by the time it arrives, the book’s waters have been too choppy for too long. In the end, this doesn’t live up to its aspirations. Agent: Emma Parry, Janklow & Nesbit Assoc. (May)