⭐️ 3.5

Morgan Talty's writing was heartbreakingly beautiful in Fire Exit. The last third or so of the book gripped me and I was so eager to find out what would happen next with each page turn.

However, it left me wanting for more. I liked that the ending wrapped up everything in a nice bow, but I wish we had gotten to see more of the relationship between Charles and Elizabeth. The book felt like it was mostly about the relationship between Charles and Bobby and Charles and his mother.

That being said, I enjoyed Fire Exit and am eager to read more of Talty's work in the future!

Although I think that Talty's somewhat dreamlike prose gives me some difficulty trying to keep the flow of the story, overall I found it quite the poignant read - touching upon a wide range of themes ranging from family, to mental health, to belonging, and so, so much more, leaving an immense amount of material to reflect upon.

Fire Exit was my entrance into the mind and writing of Morgan Talty though I'd heard (repeatedly!!) wonderful things about his award-winning short story collection - "Night of the Living Rez." That word of mouth is what prompted me to request this novel. So grateful to #netgalley and #TinHouseBooks for the arc. I have much more to learn about the author, biographically, but it was clear that the main character, Charles Lamosway, embodied more than a passing similarity to the author..

In the foreward to the book, Talty outlines crucial information that helps to inform the plot of this novel. This included information related to bloodline, legacy, and the historical origins of "laws" made by the US federal government which reduced and classified Indigenous people in unfathomable ways thereafter. A person's "real life" and status were determined by information recorded in "The Book" which denoted a family's/individual's percentage of, in this case, Penobscot blood. This is what allowed enrollment as a member of the tribe. a place on the reservation, the chance to belong and to have a home.

In this foreward, the author explains that an individual needs at least 25% "blood quantum" -- these laws created by the government to classify and legally define racial statuses. For years and years, Charles Lamosway had been an outside observer to what he believes is his true and meaningful life across the water from the daughter he "gave up" for the sake of allowing her inclusion to the reservation - to the benefits and sense of belonging. Apparently, admitting Charles was her paternal father would disqualify her from these things based upon blood quantum laws. But Charlies has grown increasingly conflicted and begins to feel it is his duty to let her know the truth.

The stakes are already very high and then a series of exacerbating circumstances occur in conjunction with this building tension.

This novel is about paternity, power, secrets, and what constitutes family. It's about genetic legacy -- body, mind, and spirit. It's a hero's journey filled with life-changing decisions -- decisions which greatly impact all of the characters in the novel.

No spoilers by saying that Louise, Charles's mother, was the single most enigmatic, touching, and multidimensional character for me. The daughter Elizabeth ("Ellie") and Louise carried this novel levels about the already strong plot outlined above and brought historical damage down to a deeply personal level. The characters were incredible - memorable (from Bobby to the "neighbor" to the stepfather to Ellie's mother, Mary).

Fire Exit is a compelling, multilayered story, about selfishness and selflessness. Legacies and loneliness. The story alternates between two timelines (moving back and forth to provide crucial backstories on different characters) and looks at the cultural, medical, psychological, and spiritual impact of bloodlines and discrimination. I loved this novel.

#FireExit is on shelves on Tuesday, June 4th

Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

“Fire Exit,” Morgan Talty’s debut novel, is an exploration of identity, legacy, and the indelible marks of the past.

Set against the backdrop of Maine’s Penobscot Reservation, the story follows Charles Lamosway, a man grappling with the weight of his history and the secrets that have shaped his life.

Talty, a citizen of the Penobscot Nation, crafts a narrative that is both intimate and expansive, delving into the complexities of belonging and the pain of estrangement. Charles, raised by his white mother and Native American stepfather, is haunted by the choices he made and the relationships he abandoned. Now, as he watches his mother succumb to dementia and contemplates the daughter he never knew, Charles’s story unfolds as a meditation on the stories we tell ourselves and the truths we hide from.

The novel’s structure is a testament to Talty’s skillful storytelling, weaving together past and present in a tapestry of vivid character portraits and emotional landscapes. The prose is rich and evocative, capturing the stark beauty of the reservation and the turbulent waters of Charles’s inner life. The narrative is a quiet storm, building tension and emotion with each page, leading to a climax that is both inevitable and surprising.

“Fire Exit” is a novel that resonates with authenticity and heart, and earns 5 stars from this book reviewer.

Talty’s characters are rendered with depth and clarity, their struggles and desires palpable on the page. The themes of family, culture, and inheritance are explored with sensitivity and insight, making “Fire Exit” a deeply moving read.

🔥”Fire Exit”🔥
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Heartbreaking. Untouchable. “Fire Exit” by Morgan Talty is a slow-moving intimate tale of Charles, an outsider who watches his little girl grow up across the river.

Growing up alongside the Penobscot community, Charles never fully belonged to the tribe since he had no blood relation. Integrated by the marriage of his mother to his stepfather, Charles struggles to find his place in “a pursuit of only remains” and is haunted by a hunting accident.

This lit fic is a powerful short read (235 pages) that brings you close to its protagonist through a fireside chat like narration. I loved the wise old soul like reflective narration the author chose to go with.

The book looks at how much of the truth we owe others and the importance of the history that makes us. Read if you like “Berry Pickers” or family drama novels.

Thanks to @tinhouse and @NetGalley for the #advancedreaderscopy.

I am very thankful the media group, the publisher, Netgalley, and Morgan Talty for granting me advanced digital and audio access to this book before it hits shelves on June 4, 2024, but it just wasn't for me.

I feel like this was falsely advertised, was more about a man caring for his aging mother and alcoholic friend rather than the mystery of his daughter. It kept me engaged but unsure how long it will stay with me.

I have been waiting on something new from him ever since I read Night of The Living Rez. This book did not disappoint! I loved this so much! I can't wait for his next book!

“We are made of stories, and if we don’t know them—the ones that make us—how can we ever be fully realized? How can we ever be who we really are?”

Thank you to NetGalley and Tin House Books for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This is my second work I’ve read of Talty’s (first was from Never Whistle at Night), and it did not disappoint.

The ending was so heartbreaking yet so hopeful, and I think that encompasses the book in its entirety. Following Charles through his mother’s decline and depression and the desire to tell his daughter who he is felt raw. As someone who worked in the mental health field, it all just felt so realistic, raw, and vulnerable.

I’m looking forward to picking up a copy of Night of the Living Rez to read more of his work, and I can’t wait to see what he writes next.

This book comes out 6/4, don’t miss it!

CW: death of parent, alcoholism, injury/injury detail, homophobia, suicide attempt, terminal illness, medical treatments (medication and ECT), violence

This book had the unfortunate effect of being read in between some really great books and it unfortunately didn't measure up. The story is impactful, deeply insightful but the writing is very lackluster for me. While i would recommend it, it's not one I would revisit.

5 stars

Come for the understated and gripping style but stay for the family and personal drama. Readers will be immersed in all of this as they enjoy this short but powerful debut novel from Morgan Talty.

As an incoming fan of Talty's short stories, I couldn't wait to engage with this novel. I was - as expected - NOT disappointed.

Charles, the m.c., has a deep secret that he somewhat troublingly keeps an eye on constantly, and he has a number of other challenges, too. Most of his drama revolves around friends and family, and prospective readers who really enjoy introspective characters who dig into these issues will find a lot to chew on here. There are secrets, sacrifices, instances of longstanding guilt and uncertainty, and deep-seated questions about how we can best connect with each other while maintaining a healthy sense of self.

For such a powerful title and cover, this novel has a quiet quality that made me even more drawn to the way events unfold. Some of that slow burn heightens the intensity that is often punctuated by challenging characters and Charles's interactions with them. I was fortunate to access both the ebook and audio version, and the narration of the audiobook is also excellent. I'll be recommending this format, especially, when and where accessible.

I enjoyed this thoroughly, remain a solid fan of this author, and look forward to what Talty offers up next.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tin House for the ARC!

Morgan Talty’s "Fire Exit" is a good story that doesn’t fit well in a novel.

Thematically, there are some interesting concepts about identity—particularly in the context of blood quantum—because the narrator is a white man who was raised on a reservation. This aspect of the book is largely held in the background, which keeps it subtle and lends complexity to the story without playing into tropes.

Unfortunately, "Fire Exit" seems like it just doesn’t belong in a book of this length. Everything about it would be more at home in a tightly crafted short story, whereas it feels slack and cumbersome in a full-length novel. It’s written such that readers gradually learn more about its characters’ past, which might feel satisfying if constrained to a few pages, but because the book is so contingent on a constant unfurling of “major revelations,” it begins to consume itself, with each revelation carrying less weight. Furthermore, the characters always feel a little impressionistic, so learning more about them doesn’t add much shade or dimension—the new information just feels needlessly deferred.

When the book finally picks up momentum near its cataclysmic end, it feels like too little, too late, and I wished I could have just read those 50 or so pages independently. To be clear, I don’t think novels are obligated to take any particular shape—it can be enjoyable to feel a writer’s self-conscious decisions about form through the text; in "Fire Exit," though, it feels less like intentionality and more like uncertainty.

All in all, I found "Fire Exit" to be deeply disappointing. It isn’t bad by any means—maybe I would have enjoyed it more if it were—but it feels strangely obligatory, like a book that was required to exist instead of a book that needed to.

"This was something I had no claim to talk about - as in I had no Native blood - yet I knew and still know what it was like to both not belong and belong, what it was like to feel invisible inside the great, great dream of being. We're all alike, even when we're not."

So muses Charles Lamosway, the main character of Morgan Talty's forthcoming book, Fire Exit (Tin House, June 2024). Charles is a white man who lives on the fringes of the Penobscot Nation in Maine, literally within eyeshot of the reservation across the Penobscot River. His mother, Louise, was married to Frederick, a tribal member, who raised Charles and loved him, taught him Penobscot ways, but could never give him Native blood. In adulthood, Charles has a daughter with a Penobscot woman, but because he is not a tribal member, claiming her means the child's blood quantum would fall below the required 25% for membership. Here lies the book's main point of tension: Who gets to belong? Who decides the rules of inclusion? And what happens when inclusion is based on a lie?

Throughout the book, Talty gives the reader several examples of found families that have nothing to do with blood relation: Charles and Frederick share a father and son bond as strong as any biological one; Louise treats Bobby, Charles’ friend from Alcoholics Anonymous, like a son despite the fact that they have known each other only a short time; Roger takes in Elizabeth as his daughter even though she is not his own; Gizos and Dave adopt a son; and so on. On the other hand, Talty also gives examples of families or groups that reject members despite having blood relation: Lenos rejects his son because he is gay; Mary rejects her child’s father because he is white; a drumming circle rejects Mary because she is female; Louise rejects her son as her mind deteriorates.

Through these examples of acceptance and rejection, Talty exposes the power of belonging and its impermanence. Talty never gives a definitive answer to the questions the book raises. Like every good writer, he’s more interested in raising questions rather than giving answers. However, there is a passage about a quarter of the way through the book where he comes close: “The three drum groups were set up, and when one played, the other two listened. It was during those times that others – always boys, of course – would go over to the drumming group and ask if they could be part of the next song, and always some older Native would hand them his drumstick and move for them.”

What if we listened more?

What if we all got up and made room?

I have to admit that it took me some time to get into Fire Exit. After reading his debut short stories, I expected to be transfixed from the start but Fire Exit is a slower story that trickles in and weaves together themes over time, but then you realize you’re 60% in and desperately need to know: does he ever speak to Elizabeth, what does his mother know, what happened to the house??

Talty is an expert at wounded characters who bring a humble, raw perspective to the world and life. The complexity of families, community, friendship, boundaries, and expectations all come together in this novel and make it impossible to not end up in your own quiet pondering. There is a heaviness to the writing but there is such humanity to the characters that you can help being drawn in and investing. The descriptions of nature, stillness, and being in one’s own body are so distinct.

I think Night of the Living Rez is still my favorite of the two for its sharpness and the way the stories developed a picture over the course of the book but it’s a bit unfair to compare formats and either way I’m excited to keep reading Talty’s writing. If you enjoy stories of family drama, beautiful descriptions of nature, and contemplative writing check out Morgan Talty’s books!

2.5. this book was a little too slow for my liking and I felt like it was going in circles. I enjoyed the end once the pace picked up but the pacing felt like it shifted from super slow to super fast with little flow.

I love the intimacy of FIRE EXIT; it almost feels like immersing yourself in a personal journal. Charles is a captivating narrator. The contemplative prose will not be for everyone, but fans of literary fiction are sure to enjoy it - and I appreciated it very much. The writing is simply lovely. I especially admired how the author treated the theme of forgiveness.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance e-galley; all opinions in this review are 100% my own.

Morgan Talty's FIRE EXIT is so compelling, I could not put it down. Even with e-galley file trouble, I thought about this story when I wasn't reading it. Talty's ability to paint deeply developed, flawed characters on the page is so impressive--and yet he makes it seem effortless. He can deliver a character's backstory in a few sentences (or less). This is one I don't want to risk giving away a single detail. I will be using it in my novel writing classes and can't wait to discuss it with my students.

Thank you to NetGalley and Tin House Publishing for this ARC. Fire exit is a literary fiction piece with a first person narrator Charles. Charles is white but lives on a reservation. His mother, Louise, married his native Stepfather, frederick, when Charles was 3. Frederick has just passed away, the only father Charles has ever known. He feels most at home on the reservation, he fathered a child with a neighbor, this is a secret. Charles is not a part of her life, and she doesn't know she is not a full blooded indigenous person. A great character is Charles' best friend Bobby, who he met in AA. Bobby and Charles struggle with their sobriety most of the book... as his mother Louise falls deeper into dementia. What makes a family? What makes someone part of your family? What do we owe to our memories and family history? The answer to all of these questions are complex, and some of what Charlie explores in this sensory descriptive novel.

Fire Exit was a really solid read! I enjoyed Charles as a narrator and appreciated his meandering, pensive inner monologue. If you're looking for a reflective contemporary fiction novel about family, the things that tie us all together, and forgiveness, definitely pick this up.

Thanks to NetGalley and Tin House for my review copy.

This felt very much like reading a journal. It is an intensely intimate portrait of family, self-loathing, self-discovery, and what it means to belong. The narrator struggles with his identity - not just in terms of his race, but also in terms of how he relates to those in his own life. Is he still a son if his mother doesn't remember him? Is he a father if his daughter doesn't know his name? Is he a friend if hid buddy only calls him when he's drunk at the bar?

Talty's writing is loose - not overly structured, but nuanced. Reading at moments like a stream of consciousness and at other times so descriptive, you can feel the cold and hear the crunch of the snow. The reader is transported into the moment and into the narrator's life.

This was a fantastic read and the only reason it was not five stars for me is because I did not connect with the character. I would highly recommend to anyone who is looking to discover a truly gifted writer.