I started reading this novel for my IRL book club with some trepidation as I was SO disappointed in the Dutch House. This my 3rd novel by Patchett (alI started reading this novel for my IRL book club with some trepidation as I was SO disappointed in the Dutch House. This my 3rd novel by Patchett (also read the terrific Bel Canto) and the one I have liked the best thus far. I was so satisfied (like after a great meal with wine and friends) when I closed the book although I wanted to stay with the Nelsons on their farm. I can't best the comment in the book jacket a meditation on youthful love, married love, & the lives of our parents before they were our parents. Both hopeful and elegiac, it explores what it means to be happy ... Wilder's play Our Town is a large character as well as Lara & Joe and their 3 daughters, along with characters of the past Ripley, Peter and Sebastion Duke and Pallace. Chekov's The Cherry Orchard takes a turn as well. The story flows back & forth effortlessly between contemporary time and when Lara, an aspiring actress, spent the summer at Tom Lake doing summer stock theater. I try to stay away from unfolding the story (its part of the joy of reading or listening to the story, doesn't it?) so I'll leave it by just saying it was a beautifully told story and that I was as eager to hear the next chapter as Lara's daughters were. BTW I loved that Lara's daughters were named after such influential women in Lara's life....more
3.5 stars. I liked this better than I thought I would. This novel was written in 1982 by the husband-and-wife team duly named Judith Michael. Twin sis3.5 stars. I liked this better than I thought I would. This novel was written in 1982 by the husband-and-wife team duly named Judith Michael. Twin sisters raised all over the world with their diplomat father and dutiful wife. Their parents' lifestyle left little time for them, and they became incredibly close, relying on each other for love and help through the ups and downs of childhood. After an escapade that could have had a horrible outcome, they are sent to boarding school in Switzerland. After graduation they head in different directions, one to the Sorbonne, and the other to Bryn Mawr which sends them on a trajectory to opposite lives. 12 years later, they meet up on a trip to China and decide to switch lives for a week and so the deception begins. Somewhat unbelievable that they are able to step into each other's lives without people thinking something is awry. But the biggest drawback for me, was the too convenient way the authors paved the way for a happy ending for one of them. ...more
A quick contemporary romance read; not my usual fare but I do throw in occasionally when I need a "palate cleanser" or an easy read. This reminded me A quick contemporary romance read; not my usual fare but I do throw in occasionally when I need a "palate cleanser" or an easy read. This reminded me of some of Nicholas Sparks' novels.
It is a story of loss, grief, betrayal and second chances. How do we open ourselves up to life and love after enduring the unendurable? Familiar family dynamic issues between siblings, parents & children and adult spouses. All spun up in a story that is enfolded in love.
Annie & Gabrielle, two sisters who took very different paths in life find themselves in close proximity again when Annie returns to the New England island where she was raised after the death of her daughter and the collapse of her marriage, and where Gabrielle never left. Annie is hiding away from her demons. Gabrielle's teenage daughter is painted as a typical rebellious teen who is running with the wrong crowd in her need for acceptance, love, and escape from her parent's life.
Thomas Devlin and his son Ned carry emotional and in Thomas' case, physical scars dealing with their own loss about 12 years ago that led to their own flight away from their previous lives in Boston to a much more isolated life on the island. Both guys will loom large in the lives of Annie & Gabrielle.
Both Annie and Gabrielle make decisions that will forever change their lives and those that love them.
I don't care for explicit sex scenes but fortunately in this novel those are few and I could overlook them....more
A soap opera, and I couldn't really connect with any of the characters except the marvelous Livvie. The storyline moves back & forth from present day A soap opera, and I couldn't really connect with any of the characters except the marvelous Livvie. The storyline moves back & forth from present day (1999) and the MC's difficult childhood in the 1960's. Most of the characters are one dimensional or fulfill a stereotype with a well-worn trope of a woman who finally comes into her own. I wanted an easy, comforting beach read with the wonderful low country atmosphere and lovable characters. I didn't get any of that in this novel. So disappointing.
There was one line that did make me smile & think "oh, that's so Southern!" It's bad manners to get drunk and throw up and good manners are the moisturizer of life. ...more
Oh my, I almost didn't read this after the prologue and chap 1. I hated the emotional abusive husband and USAF jet pilot, and a few scenes were quite Oh my, I almost didn't read this after the prologue and chap 1. I hated the emotional abusive husband and USAF jet pilot, and a few scenes were quite crude. As so many gave 4 & 5 star reviews and I did want to know how the author was going to handle "the return", I finished it. In reality I skimmed quite a bit of it.
Kate & Patrick were childhood sweethearts, and Kate worshipped the ground Patrick walked on, (already a negative in my book). She tries to be the perfect housewife & mother, despite her best attempts Patrick is always putting her down and is quite controlling. Patrick is sent off to the Vietnam war with visions of wartime glory, such an (egotistical jerk). His plane is shot down and he is classified as MIA. The story then moves into familiar territory as Kate moves forward with her life. Over the next almost 20 years we follow Kate as she pulls herself together with the help of a stalwart friend and makes a success of her life.
Just as things are humming along pretty well, Patrick re-enters her life. This last quarter of the book was the most interesting, although did not feel authentic throughout. That is what made me move this from one star to two....more
My turn on the hotline was fairly quiet and I was able to quickly read this lovely debut (2009) novel of food and relationships. 4 stars for the enjoyMy turn on the hotline was fairly quiet and I was able to quickly read this lovely debut (2009) novel of food and relationships. 4 stars for the enjoyment it brought me. It falls in line with a number of similarly styled novels such as Garden Spells, Water for Chocolate & Chocolat, but without as much magical realism infused throughout. The drop of magic comes from Lillian's uncanny ability to read people and know what kind of food lessons will meet their needs, which also reminded me of the bookseller in The Little Paris Bookshop.
Lillian offers small cooking classes at her restaurant & this offering brings a mix of people who have been motivated to take the class for disparate reasons, as different as the people themselves. After the set-up, each chapter then is about each student and the essential ingredients that make them who they are . At 255pp, the book is not long enough to fully flesh out each character but enough to make you care about them and wish them well.
There is some delicious writing which had me roll the phrases around and savor them just as Lillian wants you to savor the ingredients in cooking. There is definitely a focus on the food and it even tempted this non-cook in considering (fleetingly) making the effort to learn.
If you love food and light easy reading with interesting people this may be the book for you. ...more
I have to think on this before writing a full review. I loved some of the writing in the prologue and hoped that it would continue throughout the bookI have to think on this before writing a full review. I loved some of the writing in the prologue and hoped that it would continue throughout the book. There were glimpses and the ending paragraph, but I wanted more of her descriptive and reflective prose. The overall story was good, I liked the setting, I was very interested in what was going on with the MC's mother, I even was okay with how everything concluded, but one of the pieces was distasteful to me and kept me from being all in. Like I said I'll think on this to see if I can capture my feelings about the novel....more
Had to pick a 2018 book for a challenge and I saw this debut had a medical setting, which throws me back to my old life which I usually enjoy. Martin Had to pick a 2018 book for a challenge and I saw this debut had a medical setting, which throws me back to my old life which I usually enjoy. Martin is an ED physician, so I was very hopeful that I wouldn't get worked up over how wrong the author got it. I was not disappointed. I could live vicariously & happily with Emma & Zadie as they navigated through the chaos that can be part of one's life in a health care profession. Yet this is a story of friendship through the good , the bad and betrayals. It kept me interested, although I started to guess the big "secret" that Emma was keeping from Zadie from their days as 3rd year medical students. A year they both want to forget as it haunts them in different ways. Emma & Zadie are now well-respected physicians in their fields, Emma a trauma surgeon & Zadie a pediatric cardiologist. She is "the queen of hearts". Someone who was the focus of a lot of the melodrama of that time pops back into their lives, which threatens their years long friendship. It wasn't all drama though, I chuckled many times too.
The story is told through both of the main characters' voices and bounces back & forth from 1999- the fateful year, and the present day. Usually that doesn't bother me, but for some reason I felt this structure sometimes interrupted the flow of the story. I suppose it built some tension. I also did not like Zadie's youngest child Delaney, she was annoying and the way she spoke seemed inappropriate for her age no matter how precocious she may have meant to be.
Lastly, my library has this marked as a romance. It's not. Zadie's romantic relationship in 1999, is key to the story but again it is about the friendship between Zadie & Emma....more
This was my f2f book club's selection and I have to admit I wasn't very excited about it. Boy, was I wrong! I will be pretty short with my review becaThis was my f2f book club's selection and I have to admit I wasn't very excited about it. Boy, was I wrong! I will be pretty short with my review because you can find some terrific reviews already done by our Goodreads community.
It's a wonderful story full of real characters, people & family dynamics you would recognize. And there were not just little fires there were some pretty big ones too! The secrets we keep and the consequences of those secrets drive the story as well as the questions as to what makes a family? The traditional model living in a utopian-like suburb, a single-parent household, the older couple adopting a child, surrogate or the people we choose to be family because of some connectedness....?
It was a quicker read than I anticipated which I can only say was due to the lovely writing and flow of the narrative. The secrets are revealed like the proverbial onion, one layer at a time. And unlike so many novels everything is not resolved and tied up in a bow at the end. Leaves you wanting more....more
The back book blurb states that this is an contemporary homage to Jane Austen. No surprise it doesn't hold a candle to the incomparable Austen, no chaThe back book blurb states that this is an contemporary homage to Jane Austen. No surprise it doesn't hold a candle to the incomparable Austen, no charm, wit, biting sarcasm or satiric take on the manners of the day. There are two scenes that are ripped right out of Sense & sensibility between Miranda & Kit which I could visualize the original easily with Maryanne & Mr. Wickham.
Putting the comparison aside, it stands on its own as an interesting easy read of family dynamics and a cast of characters, some lovable, some not. Unexpectedly Betty is sued for divorce and as proceedings ensue, she has no money of her own. Her two middle-age daughters are dealing with their own stressors but decide to pool resources and accept accommodations (a beach cottage) from cousin Lou. Thus starts the ball rolling on how each copes with this change in lifestyle, deal with new people entering their lives and juggling the relationships of new and old. ...more