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jen_jacob's review against another edition
5.0
I loved Ellis Island and this is no exception, although I was disappointed by her choice at the end. It was also somewhat of a cliff hanger, so now I have to wait for the next title to come out to find out what happens, which I have, being the impatient person that I am. I hope that the third book in the series explains her choices because I'm pretty mad at Ellie right now!!!
lish90's review against another edition
2.0
This book was a big disappointment especially after reading the fantastic Ellis Island.
I almost wish I hadn't continued on with this series.
The continuity issues bothered me a lot, as I had read the first book in the series right before reading this one, so the story was fresh in my mind.
And the character of Ellie bothered me a lot, she was a completely different person from the first book, she was vain, shallow and rude.
Also I didn't buy into her grief after how horrible she was to her husband at the beginning of the book.
I have the third book in the series borrowed out from the library, but I'm holding off on reading it after the disappointment of this one.
I almost wish I hadn't continued on with this series.
The continuity issues bothered me a lot, as I had read the first book in the series right before reading this one, so the story was fresh in my mind.
And the character of Ellie bothered me a lot, she was a completely different person from the first book, she was vain, shallow and rude.
Also I didn't buy into her grief after how horrible she was to her husband at the beginning of the book.
I have the third book in the series borrowed out from the library, but I'm holding off on reading it after the disappointment of this one.
brendas's review against another edition
3.0
Book started well but I was very disappointed with the ending.
germainek's review against another edition
1.0
The star is a mistake. After three chapters I quit reading! Ellie is one if the most unlikeable characters I have come across.
elliemcc11's review against another edition
3.0
This is the second novel in the Ellis Island trilogy and again I really enjoyed the developing story. I shall definitely be reading the final novel in the trilogy.
In the second book it opens describing her struggles to conceive and this desire for children is at the heart of the second novel. She seems happy enough at home in Ireland but it's clear she still yearns for the luxuries life in America offered, and she keeps a flat above the secretarial school, which is nicely furnished and has a level of luxury she became used to. Paud has died when the story starts, and John unfortunately also dies which prompts her flight to New York. Ellie is grieving and wants a change. New York has changed. The crash of the Stock Markets has left people homeless and suffering from poverty. She rescued her money from the banks before the crash and whilst initially residing in a level of luxury, she becomes uncomfortable.
A chance meeting with a poverty stricken family and she knows she wants to dedicate her money and time to improving people's lives. She buys dilapidated houses which she employs unemployed men to make good, and in doing so they live there rent free. Eventually there are three houses she owns. There are various twists in the story – for example the men being uncomfortable with her “owning” them – and the return of Charles – but I particularly liked the formation of the Women's Co-operative. Very forward thinking.
Her desire for a child is met by the abandonment of a baby which is adopts as her own. At the end of the story we see her, after returning to Ireland to settle her business, setting off for pastures new. Reading ahead it appears she heads for the glamour of Hollywood...
Spoiler
We left Ellie in Ireland at the end of the last book. She'd returned home when her father had died and had dedicated herself to setting up her varied businesses. She'd struggled to get used to the hardships that life in rural Ireland offered (compared to cosmopolitan, thriving, New York) but had managed to persuade her husband John to rebuild their old home, to build a new rural shop, and she'd investigated her money and skills in the town to own and manage a secretarial training school and hairdressers.In the second book it opens describing her struggles to conceive and this desire for children is at the heart of the second novel. She seems happy enough at home in Ireland but it's clear she still yearns for the luxuries life in America offered, and she keeps a flat above the secretarial school, which is nicely furnished and has a level of luxury she became used to. Paud has died when the story starts, and John unfortunately also dies which prompts her flight to New York. Ellie is grieving and wants a change. New York has changed. The crash of the Stock Markets has left people homeless and suffering from poverty. She rescued her money from the banks before the crash and whilst initially residing in a level of luxury, she becomes uncomfortable.
A chance meeting with a poverty stricken family and she knows she wants to dedicate her money and time to improving people's lives. She buys dilapidated houses which she employs unemployed men to make good, and in doing so they live there rent free. Eventually there are three houses she owns. There are various twists in the story – for example the men being uncomfortable with her “owning” them – and the return of Charles – but I particularly liked the formation of the Women's Co-operative. Very forward thinking.
Her desire for a child is met by the abandonment of a baby which is adopts as her own. At the end of the story we see her, after returning to Ireland to settle her business, setting off for pastures new. Reading ahead it appears she heads for the glamour of Hollywood...
girlgotnoidentity's review against another edition
2.0
This novel is the second installment of Kate Kerrigan’s Ellis Island. In here, Ellie, in her early thirties, becomes a widow when her husband, John dies of a sudden heart attack. Left with only the pain of her husband’s passing, she decided to leave the small town of Kilmoy, Ireland to go back to New York City- the state she once belongs to.
To be honest, I have no idea that this novel is a part of a series when I bought it. I am the kind of reader who buys books on impulse. It has been my tradition that once in a while I will buy novels and titles that did not and will never make it to the New York Times bestselling list because when perceive in totality, they are actually the best and holds the greatest things within the readers’ hearts. Although they do not have the recognition of great book reviewers around the world, I have in me the faith that great works of literature are hard to find. And I think it is great taking some risks at a certain moment in our lives. Enough with my tradition and stuff, I would start my review with the City of Hope by saying that this novel gives me hope. I don’t want to sound cliché in here, but it is really true. I’m glad that I have found this gem of literature in one of my book quests.
City of Hope’s storyline is good. Not the best, but it is good. What I admire and love most about this novel is its setting. I am very verbal about how much I love a certain story when it is set in the earlier time or era, and the City of Hope is no exception. I love how it showcases the early New York City and at the same time some part and time in Ireland. Recently, I just read Nicola Yoon’s The Sun is Also a Star, and as for the people who haven’t read it just yet, it is also set in New York City however in the present time. I like how my imagination kind of wonder from the two novels with the same settings, and although I love Nicola Yoon’s setting, I like the earlier picture of New York in the City of Hope. Even though, given that New York City is already developed as a city compares to other cities and states in the world, I can still picture out the simplicity of things back then. That is why I always consider myself as a fan of novels set in an earlier time because it brings me to a different perspective and at the same time let me live in a different time.
I totally enjoy my reading process of this novel. It has been a light read and in some way kind of inspires me to continue living the way Ellie handles her life in the story. I’m truly grateful to Kate Kerrigan and to all the authors in the world who write and offer literature that inspires their readers during and after they read their work. With all this being said, I‘d like to recommend this book to my Goodreads friends and to everyone who will/currently reading this book review to give this book/series a try. It is a journey filled with both pain and joy, of depression and moving forward, of ups and downs, and everything in between the beauty of life itself.
To be honest, I have no idea that this novel is a part of a series when I bought it. I am the kind of reader who buys books on impulse. It has been my tradition that once in a while I will buy novels and titles that did not and will never make it to the New York Times bestselling list because when perceive in totality, they are actually the best and holds the greatest things within the readers’ hearts. Although they do not have the recognition of great book reviewers around the world, I have in me the faith that great works of literature are hard to find. And I think it is great taking some risks at a certain moment in our lives. Enough with my tradition and stuff, I would start my review with the City of Hope by saying that this novel gives me hope. I don’t want to sound cliché in here, but it is really true. I’m glad that I have found this gem of literature in one of my book quests.
City of Hope’s storyline is good. Not the best, but it is good. What I admire and love most about this novel is its setting. I am very verbal about how much I love a certain story when it is set in the earlier time or era, and the City of Hope is no exception. I love how it showcases the early New York City and at the same time some part and time in Ireland. Recently, I just read Nicola Yoon’s The Sun is Also a Star, and as for the people who haven’t read it just yet, it is also set in New York City however in the present time. I like how my imagination kind of wonder from the two novels with the same settings, and although I love Nicola Yoon’s setting, I like the earlier picture of New York in the City of Hope. Even though, given that New York City is already developed as a city compares to other cities and states in the world, I can still picture out the simplicity of things back then. That is why I always consider myself as a fan of novels set in an earlier time because it brings me to a different perspective and at the same time let me live in a different time.
I totally enjoy my reading process of this novel. It has been a light read and in some way kind of inspires me to continue living the way Ellie handles her life in the story. I’m truly grateful to Kate Kerrigan and to all the authors in the world who write and offer literature that inspires their readers during and after they read their work. With all this being said, I‘d like to recommend this book to my Goodreads friends and to everyone who will/currently reading this book review to give this book/series a try. It is a journey filled with both pain and joy, of depression and moving forward, of ups and downs, and everything in between the beauty of life itself.
saycheeze37's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed Ellie's first story more, but this had its own merits. I felt it dragged in a few places, but I enjoyed that Ellie didn't settle.
serenaac's review against another edition
4.0
City of Hope by Kate Kerrigan is the second novel in the life of Ellie Hogan (if you haven’t read Ellis Island, this review could contain spoilers), a young Irish woman who has traveled to New York City to help save her first love’s mobility and returned home to find her family torn by tragedy. Beginning in the 1930s, Ellie has settled back into her Irish life without electricity and indoor plumbing, embarking on unconventional business ventures for a woman. While her family may stand back and allow her to continue with her ambitions, the resentment and angst these businesses bring into their lives simmers beneath the surface. Ellie is far from the conventional house wife and mother of Ireland, and she knows that she’s the star of her own small town’s gossip, but as long as her life is calm at home, that is all that matters to her.
Read the full review: http://savvyverseandwit.com/2013/08/city-of-hope-by-kate-kerrigan.html
Read the full review: http://savvyverseandwit.com/2013/08/city-of-hope-by-kate-kerrigan.html
beckylej's review against another edition
5.0
The story picks up in 1934, Ellie has expanded beyond her country store and now owns a typing school and salon. Because the couple has never been able to have kids Ellie has thrown herself into work, and while John isn't necessarily happy about it, he is supportive and understanding of her needs. But when John suddenly dies, Ellie finds herself fleeing back to New York. Things have changed since she left and the Depression has left the city a shadow of what it once was. Here, Ellie finds a new purpose in helping those who have suffered the most.
John freaking dies?! Agh!
Now that I've got that out, I'm all good. You'll notice that I elected to read both ELLIS ISLAND and CITY OF HOPE for review today; it actually isn't really necessary to read Ellis Island in order to jump into City at all, though I do recommend it, simply because I love Ellie and her story.
So Ellie returns to New York City, in a rush, and finds that her salvation isn't quite as she remembered it. And while she's doing well thanks to her business savvy in Ireland, many of those around her are not. She immediately looks up some old friends and finds that Mrs. Flannery has lost her husband as well and is living in not so great conditions while working full time at a laundry. The many homeless throughout the city gives Ellie an idea, however, one that she quickly recruits Mrs. Flannery for as well.
CITY OF HOPE has an all new cast of characters, which once again illustrates Kerrigan's strength in building real and believable people to fill out her story. Again, Ellie comes across as admirable and adaptable, but again throwing herself into another project to avoid facing her husband's death.
I also thought that Kerrigan did a great job capturing the spirit of the time and place: New York just after Roosevelt has come into office. The desperation and strength that those who suffered most must have felt - something that's represented best through the male characters in the book. And Ireland in the 1930s, too. The place that Ellie longed to escape so badly offered her the success she needed to be able to tackle her projects in New York City.
The end by no means wraps up Ellie's story, there's a whole new book for that! If you're in the UK, you get an earlier stab at it than we will since LAND OF DREAMS is out now in hardcover (due out in paperback this fall - I'm jealous! I really would have jumped immediately into book three after turning the final page of CITY OF HOPE had that been an option for me!
John freaking dies?! Agh!
Now that I've got that out, I'm all good. You'll notice that I elected to read both ELLIS ISLAND and CITY OF HOPE for review today; it actually isn't really necessary to read Ellis Island in order to jump into City at all, though I do recommend it, simply because I love Ellie and her story.
So Ellie returns to New York City, in a rush, and finds that her salvation isn't quite as she remembered it. And while she's doing well thanks to her business savvy in Ireland, many of those around her are not. She immediately looks up some old friends and finds that Mrs. Flannery has lost her husband as well and is living in not so great conditions while working full time at a laundry. The many homeless throughout the city gives Ellie an idea, however, one that she quickly recruits Mrs. Flannery for as well.
CITY OF HOPE has an all new cast of characters, which once again illustrates Kerrigan's strength in building real and believable people to fill out her story. Again, Ellie comes across as admirable and adaptable, but again throwing herself into another project to avoid facing her husband's death.
I also thought that Kerrigan did a great job capturing the spirit of the time and place: New York just after Roosevelt has come into office. The desperation and strength that those who suffered most must have felt - something that's represented best through the male characters in the book. And Ireland in the 1930s, too. The place that Ellie longed to escape so badly offered her the success she needed to be able to tackle her projects in New York City.
The end by no means wraps up Ellie's story, there's a whole new book for that! If you're in the UK, you get an earlier stab at it than we will since LAND OF DREAMS is out now in hardcover (due out in paperback this fall - I'm jealous! I really would have jumped immediately into book three after turning the final page of CITY OF HOPE had that been an option for me!