Imagine a totalitarian society in which fast-food restaurants have become the guiding force in everyone's lives. There's a glorious Leader, cameras and listening devices everywhere, and competing fast food chains, like Neetsa Pizza, each with its own political and moral agenda. That's the world of Rachel Cantor's A Highly Unlikely Scenario.
Leonard is a perfect Neetsa Pizza Listener; he covers phone support for the chain, helping clients in pain feel better with the liberal application of coupons and pizza recommendations. When Leonard gets a call from Marco Polo--the actual, 13th-century Marco Polo--he begins to realize he is much more than just an employee, perhaps even a hero meant to save the world.
Leonard is directed by many: in addition to Marco, there's his own long-dead grandfather and the new love of his life, Sally, an enigmatic librarian who leads a group of men and women dedicated to the ideas of Sir Francis Bacon. Leonard takes his nephew Felix along for the adventure of a lifetime, giving the anchor-less hero someone to protect.
Against this backdrop, Leonard and Sally are charged with saving the world by protecting its deepest mystical secrets. The plot rockets along, getting less and less confusing on each page, wrapping up with a satisfying, warm, human conclusion.
With a deft, Vonnegut-like style, Cantor tells a ripping yarn that manages to incorporate themes of Jewish mysticism, corporate identification, pre-destination and human connection in one quirky, deep novel. --Rob LeFebvre, freelance writer and editor