The Night Always Comes by Willy Vlautin

Willy Vlautin creates a window into a world not many of us know. His characters never fall wholly into the sinner or saint category but you always root for them. They are ordinary people who find themselves in a bind and we always want someone to help them. Lynette is a prime example. She is 30 years old and far from perfect but so close to realizing the dream that has consumed her for the past three years. Working herself to death at three jobs (not all of them doing something that her mom would approve of ) she is ready to buy the house that she, her mom and her developmentally disabled brother Kenny have been renting. Just when she is so close, her mother pulls out and uses the saved money to buy a car leaving Lynette in the lurch scrambling to come up with the rest of the downpayment. What she does in the next few days she may not be proud of but she is desperate. Battling with depression and other demons she has fought so long to control she goes back to collect what is owed her. Flashbacks explain why she makes some of the choices she does. This is a lyrical, bittersweet look at working class people who are doing well enough to not qualify for help but still not well enough to grab the American Dream. If you are new to Willy Vlautin, this will make you a fan for life and if you are already a fan you will be looking for someone to pass the book to the minute you finish it.  5 heartbreaking stars