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A review by neufangledmark
Sure of You by Armistead Maupin
4.0
It's interesting that Sure of You was nearly Armistead Maupin's final chronicle in his famous Tales of the City series. This is not because it's not good; I actually like how - after taking his characters out of the city for most of the prior novel - he brings the focus back to San Francisco in this one (with a slight detour/trip for Anna Madrigal to Greece with Mona), but rather, Sure of You brings some really crucial decision making into focus for several of its main characters and results in more of a bittersweet ending than one might anticipate.
Mary Ann is offered a job in New York. Her marriage with Brian seems "iffy", even as they raise their adopted daughter, Shawna, together (to be honest, I really don't like Mary Ann too much after this one... her character has gotten decidedly more selfish and impulsive). Michael seems joyous in a new relationship, but the specter of his HIV status hovers over him as a persistent "what if" ghost. Even Anna Madrigal seems at-odds with whether she intends to spend her remaining days at 28 Barbary Lane. The final pages of this chapter feel a touch sad. Decisions are made, lives move on. In an ironic nod to the title, the characters seem confused, perhaps less surer of one another than they originally expected. It's intriguing to think of how this would have felt as "the end" of this marvelous series, had Maupin not decided to return to it almost 20 years later, with Michael Tolliver Lives, book #7. I'm relieved I can keep reading and not have to find out.
Mary Ann is offered a job in New York. Her marriage with Brian seems "iffy", even as they raise their adopted daughter, Shawna, together (to be honest, I really don't like Mary Ann too much after this one... her character has gotten decidedly more selfish and impulsive). Michael seems joyous in a new relationship, but the specter of his HIV status hovers over him as a persistent "what if" ghost. Even Anna Madrigal seems at-odds with whether she intends to spend her remaining days at 28 Barbary Lane. The final pages of this chapter feel a touch sad. Decisions are made, lives move on. In an ironic nod to the title, the characters seem confused, perhaps less surer of one another than they originally expected. It's intriguing to think of how this would have felt as "the end" of this marvelous series, had Maupin not decided to return to it almost 20 years later, with Michael Tolliver Lives, book #7. I'm relieved I can keep reading and not have to find out.