Review: The King of Escape by Mark Christopher Mathis

A trifecta of dysfunctionality, addiction, and mental illness forms the backbone of Mark Christopher Mathis’ sobering young adult offering, The King of Escape.

Seventeen-year-old Nicholas Carrier is reluctantly about to embark on a cruise with his family. For most families, this would be an exciting adventure, but for Nicholas, it’s anything but. The past few years have been hell, and the thought of being confined on a cruise ship in close quarters with his annoying younger sister, Mad, while being tasked with looking after his twelve-year-old autistic brother, Jacob, is bad enough, but to be under the constant eagle eye of his mother while suffering through codeine withdrawal is way more than Nicholas can handle.

This cruise is supposed to bring their fractured family closer together but Nicholas is plagued by painful family secrets as he desperately downs discarded glasses of half-drunk booze in an effort to numb his pain. He and Mad are constantly at each other’s throats and to make matters worse, there’s no escaping the nightmares that have haunted Nicholas since his father’s death or the feelings of guilt over that fateful night at his friend Lucas’s house. The truth of it is that Nicholas is a hot, bed-wetting mess – until he meets the very pretty Jillian. Suddenly, the cruise – and his life – find new purpose…

The King of Escape is a solemn reminder that life for kids can sometimes be hell. More importantly, it underscores the fact that parents, and their actions, have a profound impact on a child’s well-being into adulthood. Nicholas’ family is the classic example of a functioning dysfunctional family. In addition to his youngest brother being autistic and having special needs, Nicholas’ father suffers from depression and mental illness, eventually giving up his job in order to start his own business which eventually fails. All this led to stress and unhappiness in the family dynamic, which Nicholas and his siblings endure on a daily basis. When Nicholas’ father finally moves out, and Nicholas moves in with his friend, Lucas, the family unit disintegrates and Nicholas’ life begins its downward spiral.

While the issues covered in the novel are specific to Nicholas and his family life, there is a universality to his story, and even if you have not experienced these issues directly, his character is conveyed with great empathy. The narrative is laced with all the angst, anger and desperation of a seventeen-year-old kid trying to come to terms with a parent’s unspeakable choices while searching to find some semblance of hope in his own screwed-up life. The only real constant is Nicholas’ brother, Jacob. Through his close relationship with Jacob, and Jacob’s inability to pass judgment, we are able to feel Nicholas’ pain as he struggles to find meaning in his life.

Mathis’s dialogue is age-appropriate and raw, without being sappy or overemotional, and brings home the plight of kids living with, or suffering from, mental illness, addiction and a dysfunctional family dynamic. For those seeking the panacea of hope, there is a positive message amid the seeming chaos. A powerful and well-written work of young adult fiction, The King of Escape tackles some very tough topics, but also touches on universal themes about the difficulty of childhood.