With the Wall Street Journal labeling as one of the “Mysteries: Best 2018” plus being Book of the Month Club Selection, “The Last Equation of Isaac Severy
Unfortunately, this “novel in clues” turned out to be a dud. It came out as a slow-moving mystery, which turned out to be very little mystery at all. “The Last Equation of Isaac Severy
My minor in college was Math, but perhaps, things had changed so much since I was at university that I was totally lost about the equation. I just did not see its significance in the grand scheme of things.
But, the math aside, the interaction of Isaac Severy’s family was worth the read. I would have totally given this book 5 stars because of that. That said, I’m deducting two stars because of the “equation” aspect. Forgive this old fool who thought that some understanding in math will make this book truly interesting. I was wrong. I was lost. So, three stars it is.
“The Last Equation of Isaac Severy: A Novel in Clues
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The Last Equation of Isaac Severy
Description: The Last Equation of Isaac Severy
The Family Fang meets The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry in this literary mystery about a struggling bookseller whose recently deceased grandfather, a famed mathematician, left behind a dangerous equation for her to track down—and protect—before others can get their hands on it.
Just days after mathematician and family patriarch Isaac Severy dies of an apparent suicide, his adopted granddaughter Hazel, owner of a struggling Seattle bookstore, receives a letter from him by mail. In it, Isaac alludes to a secretive organization that is after his final bombshell equation, and he charges Hazel with safely delivering it to a trusted colleague. But first, she must find where the equation is hidden.
While in Los Angeles for Isaac’s funeral, Hazel realizes she’s not the only one searching for his life’s work, and that the equation’s implications have potentially disastrous consequences for the extended Severy family, a group of dysfunctional geniuses unmoored by the sudden death of their patriarch.
As agents of an enigmatic company shadow Isaac’s favorite son—a theoretical physicist—and a long-lost cousin mysteriously reappears in Los Angeles, the equation slips further from Hazel’s grasp. She must unravel a series of maddening clues hidden by Isaac inside one of her favorite novels, drawing her ever closer to his mathematical treasure. But when her efforts fall short, she is forced to enlist the help of those with questionable motives.
