Mini reviews - They Were Sisters by Dorothy Whipple, Christmas Camp by Karen Schaler, and Her Other Secret by Helenkay Dimon

They Were Sisters is my first read by Dorothy Whipple, although I have several of her books because they come so highly recommended.

Just as it sounds, They Were Sisters is the story of three sisters, how their lives are shaped by the choices they make (particularly the choice of a spouse), and how the eldest is always the stabilizing force.

I don't know what I expected from a book by Dorothy Whipple but I confess I was a little surprised to find that the book was a bit of a soap opera and yet, in spite of the ups and downs of the characters, there was also something immensely soothing about the fact that Lucy's steadiness, her husband's sense of humor and the fact that they're so perfect for each other, and their idyllic cottage on a larger estate serves as a wonderful anchor for not only the characters but the story itself.

I also found it quite interesting that the males in the family are barely even mentioned. It's a story about women and the men in their immediate circle but Whipple isn't diverted by the larger family unit so much as they are satellites that orbit the women; the women are always at the forefront. In fact, you get the impression that travel was such a hardship at the time it was written that you could say goodbye to a brother who went off to seek his fortune and never see him again, at all, so why mention them once they're out of the picture?

Highly recommended - A fascinating story of the lives of three sisters, how their choices in marriage and childbearing affect their lives in both the short and long term, and the sister who is always there for the other two women and their offspring, whenever they need her. Loved it!

Christmas Camp by Karen Schaler is the story of a woman who has zipped up the proverbial ladder at an advertising agency and now, still young, has got a shot at becoming a partner in the Boston firm. But, she has competition and the one thing her boss has noted that she lacks is Christmas spirit. In order to secure the important account that will clinch her partnership, Haley needs that Christmas spirit. Otherwise, her boss says, it's very unlikely that whatever ad campaign she comes up with will succeed with the company she's targeting.

The fellow she's competing with has buckets of Christmas spirit and Haley tries, but she's just too bent on business. Christmas doesn't even interest her. The boss is firm. She needs to develop some Christmas spirit and he's going to make sure of it by sending her to Christmas Camp, where she'll do normal, Christmasy things and learn about the real joy of the season. Haley is horrified but she wants that partnership, so off she goes. What she finds is a lovely house run by a widower and his handsome son Jeff, who also happens to live in Boston and who is trying to convince his father to sell the house and move near him.

Haley and Jeff get off to a rocky start but there's clearly a spark between Haley and Jeff and they have a good bit in common. Will Haley be able to stick out the entire week of camp or will she get ants in her pants and hustle back to Boston? Will she discover the joy of Christmas? And, if she does, will she come up with the perfect advertising campaign and win the job she desires?

Recommended when you're looking for a fun, romantic, seasonal read - Christmas Camp reads like a Hallmark movie and-- what do you know? --it actually is one. In fact, the movie apparently came first and then Schaler, a screenwriter, was hired to write the book. I was disappointed that I couldn't find the movie for streaming. I liked the book and I'm pretty sure I remember getting a little teary at one point. I'll keep my eye out for the movie and hope I get lucky, next Christmas season.

Her Other Secret by Helenkay Dimon was an unsolicited gift from Avon Books and it sounded intriguing, so I gave it a shot when nothing else was appealing to me. Tessa and Hansen live on Whitaker Island, an island off the coast of Washington (the state) where people go to get a fresh start or just hide out for a time. Tessa has fled a scandal; Hansen won't talk about why he's there.

Tessa and Hansen are on the beach when a mysterious stranger emerges from the water and walks into the woods . . . fully clothed. Tessa suspects something fishy is going on. And, when the man turns up dead and Hansen admits he knows him, Hansen becomes a suspect. What happened to drive Hansen to the island? Why was someone Hansen knows nearby? Who murdered the stranger? And, why can't Hansen and Tessa stay away from each other?

Well, huh, not sure what to say about his one. It didn't work for me but I don't even remember why, so I'm hesitant to give it even a verbal rating. I do remember that I found it overly wordy and confusing. In fact, I was very surprised to find that the author has so many books under her belt. Beyond that, I'm not sure what I disliked about it. I've got the follow-up book (again, sent unsolicited) and I'll give it a shot but I'm not going to stick it out if it doesn't work. However, I think the author deserves a second chance.


©2020 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.

A few mini reviews - Behind the Scenes at the Museum by K. Atkinson, Well Wished by F. Billingsley and French Leave by Anna Gavalda

All three of the following books are from my personal library.

Kate Atkinson's Behind the Scenes at the Museum tells the story of Ruby Lennox's life from the moment of conception to a time well into her adulthood. But, it's not just about Ruby. Behind the Scenes at the Museum is a family saga that leaps back and forth in time, dashing back to examine how Ruby's family has been fractured by wandering souls and forward to show how the wounds caused by loss and unexplained disappearances, misplaced blame and emotional pain reverberated through several generations.

Behind the Scenes at the Museum is yet another book that does the leapfrogging in time thing, although it's quite different from the historical/contemporary blend with two main characters that's become so common.  Instead, Atkinson leaps from one decade or even century to another and none of the stories are told in a strict timeline sense.  Near the end of the book you find out even the narrator, Ruby, has blocked a critical incident from her memory because it was so painful.

It's tedious wading through detail about one generation of the Lennox family, only to be thrown to another time period and have to reorient yourself to another -- so many characters!  There were several times that I considered closing the book for good because the jumps between time periods were exhausting. And, yet the characterization in Behind the Scenes at the Museum is stunning. When you get to the point that the dots connect, the family members who drifted away are finally explained, the psychic wounds that caused some to be unhappy described you can't help but walk away from the ending thinking Kate Atkinson is one hell of a writer.  

I did, however, get the sense that Atkinson was trying a bit too hard to say, "Look, look how brilliant I am!"  She probably wasn't, but you know how some books come across that way.

Well Wished by Franny Billingsley is a children's fantasy (middle reader).  Nuria lives with her grandfather, whom she calls "the Avy". They live near a beautiful little village with a magical well.  But, wishes made at the village well have to be carefully worded or they can go terribly wrong.  One wish has already caused all but two of the children in the village to disappear.  The Avy has tried to wish the children back and he has forbidden Nuria to ever make a wish.  

Nuria quickly becomes friends with Catty Winter, a child who has been called back by the well.  But, Catty is stuck in a wheelchair after a lengthy illness left her without the use of her legs.  When Catty convinces Nuria to join in on a wish to return her to full health, the wish goes terribly wrong -- and the rules of the well are strict.  A wish can be recanted within a month.  But, if two parties make a wish together, both must agree to undo the wish; and Catty seems unlikely to change her mind.  

The description of Well Wished is a lot more simplistic than the plot. The well itself is a trickster and a series of wishes to undo wishes has created a tangled mess but Nuria is a clever child.  In fact, she's such a witty, inventive child that just reading the dialogue in Well Wished is a delight.  The way everything works out in the end is so brilliant but twisty that at least one adult reviewer at Goodreads said she was confused and couldn't fathom how a child could possibly understand the story.  I can see how someone would have difficulty following the concept.  You have to let go a little and think like a child.  If anything, I think children are more likely to understand the concept in Well Wished than adults.  Well Wished is the third book I've read by Franny Billingsley and it is a wonder.  I've also read and loved Chime and The Folk Keeper.  

French Leave by Anna Gavalda is a short book by the author of one of my long-time favorite short story collections, I Wish Someone Were Waiting for Me Somewhere.  

From Google Books:

Siblings Simon, Garance and Lola flee a dull family wedding to visit brother Vincent, who is working as a guide at a chateau in the heart of the charming Tours countryside.  

Sounds great, but unfortunately the bulk of French Leave describes the drive to the wedding and the escape portion of the book is deeply disappointing.  After some jumpy but very entertaining set-up with great interaction and Garance's reflection on a wild and crazy youth, not much actually happens when the siblings finally gather.  When Simon, Garance and Lola first encounter Vincent, though, it's pretty funny and I think the fact that not much happens is probably the point of French Leave.  Garance has happy memories but she and her siblings are simply not the same people they used to be; adulthood has changed them too much and even happy-go-lucky Garance, the narrator, realizes it's time for her to move on.

Well Wished is my favorite of these three books and the one I'd most highly recommend.  Fantasy is a genre I seldom read because the elaborate worlds and names in many fantasies overwhelm me but so far I have loved everything I've read by Franny Billingsley, although it takes a while before the pictures she paints become clear.  

Behind the Scenes at the Museum has such depth of character and setting that it can become tiresome but in the end it's quite an amazing read so I also recommend it but I'd save it for a time when you're feeling patient and willing to wade through a lot of detail.  Between the characterization and the bouncing back and forth in time, it's a frustrating book but when the pieces start to fall together it's pretty spectacular to look back and realize just what the author has accomplished.

French Leave is okay; I recommend it, but hesitantly.  Too much build-up that leads to nothing, in my humble opinion, although I don't regret the time spent reading.  I liked the first 2/3 or so.  It's unfortunate that the story petered out once the siblings gathered together.  Even if the point is that they've changed, the last portion is such a huge let-down that it colors the entire reading experience.

Wish me luck.  I'm going to do my level best to finish catching up on reviews, this week.  My goal will be to keep things short and incisive.  I am laughing at myself, already. 

©2013 Nancy Horner. All rights reserved. If you are reading this post at a site other than Bookfoolery  or its RSS feed, you are reading a stolen feed. Email bookfoolery@gmail.com for written permission to reproduce text or photos.