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jlynknight's review against another edition
2.0
Tried but didn’t finish… few chapters in and I can’t get into the story
quietjenn's review against another edition
3.0
It's probably not the greatest sign that I can barely remember much about this book only a week later, eh? But maybe that's exactly what you want from a vacation read. I know I enjoyed it and will eventually get around to reading some of Moyes more acclaimed books.
sarahinreaderland's review
3.0
Merham is a seaside town in the South of the UK inhabited by what I would describe as fuddy duddy old ladies and their families who are unwilling to move with the times and are obsessed with keeping their town the same as it’s always been. A group of hippies move into a house in the town and aren’t received well by the locals. Apart from two young girls who are intrigued by the group and spend time at Arcadia house with them, much to the annoyance of their family. Decades later, Arcadia house is being transformed into a high end hotel which isn’t received well by the locals and stirs up events from the past that nobody wants to be shared.
Foreign Fruit is the seventh Jojo Moyes book that I have read so I kind of knew what to expect. An easy going, chick lit with some twists and turns that I can pretty much breeze through and just enjoy the storyline without having to think too much. This book didn’t disappoint and gave me just that. It was what I needed from a book and is often what I like in an audio book. I don’t handle listening to books that require LOTS of concentration too well so this was perfect for me.
On the character front, I have to say, Daisy annoyed me. I found her to be whiney and dependent, even towards the end of the book when she changed her tune a little. I wanted to shake her and tell her to pull herself together. I think my favourite character was Camille. She didn’t play a huge role in the book but she was so laid back and so accepting of what life has dealt her that I loved her and loved the sections with her in them.
Foreign Fruit is structured in that marvellous way (what I think is marvellous anyway) where part 1 is one storyline, part 2 is something completely different and then the stories and character all come together in the end. I like to guess what’s coming and see if I can get it right. I’ll admit, I wasn’t great at predicting this one to start off with which is a good thing. I had to get a good few chapters into part 2 before I started putting the pieces together.
In summary, I enjoyed listening to this book. As I mentioned, it was just what I was looking for when I chose it and it delivered what I needed. If I compare it to other books and how they have impacted me, I can’t justify giving it a super high rating, but I will give it a well deserved and easy breezy 3 out of 5 stars.
If you’re looking for something to read on a relaxing weekend away or a Sunday afternoon, this is a really good book for you!
Foreign Fruit is the seventh Jojo Moyes book that I have read so I kind of knew what to expect. An easy going, chick lit with some twists and turns that I can pretty much breeze through and just enjoy the storyline without having to think too much. This book didn’t disappoint and gave me just that. It was what I needed from a book and is often what I like in an audio book. I don’t handle listening to books that require LOTS of concentration too well so this was perfect for me.
On the character front, I have to say, Daisy annoyed me. I found her to be whiney and dependent, even towards the end of the book when she changed her tune a little. I wanted to shake her and tell her to pull herself together. I think my favourite character was Camille. She didn’t play a huge role in the book but she was so laid back and so accepting of what life has dealt her that I loved her and loved the sections with her in them.
Foreign Fruit is structured in that marvellous way (what I think is marvellous anyway) where part 1 is one storyline, part 2 is something completely different and then the stories and character all come together in the end. I like to guess what’s coming and see if I can get it right. I’ll admit, I wasn’t great at predicting this one to start off with which is a good thing. I had to get a good few chapters into part 2 before I started putting the pieces together.
In summary, I enjoyed listening to this book. As I mentioned, it was just what I was looking for when I chose it and it delivered what I needed. If I compare it to other books and how they have impacted me, I can’t justify giving it a super high rating, but I will give it a well deserved and easy breezy 3 out of 5 stars.
If you’re looking for something to read on a relaxing weekend away or a Sunday afternoon, this is a really good book for you!
fat_girl_fiction's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ncrabb's review against another edition
4.0
This is the second novel by a talented British author, and it’s even better than the first. First of all, this is not a book about disability. I don’t normally read those books, preferring to traverse less familiar journeys, but that’s just me. A highly successful blind woman is a character here, and she is admirably developed and described by Moyes. So much did I like her, flaws and all, that I couldn’t help but wonder whether Moyes had firsthand experience with a blind friend or relative. There are some aspects of her life that gave me pause. She is described as holding onto her dog’s harness with one hand and walking with a sighted person with the other. Maybe that’s common in the UK, but I don’t think most U.S. guide dog users would follow that practice. Still, despite those few glaring things, the descriptions of the woman are excellent and portray a successful career woman and mother. Even when the woman’s job prospects are explored here, Moyes admirably leads you to believe that her limited employability has nothing to do with her blindness and everything to do with the assumptions of others. Moyes references shoe boxes with braille labels that help the woman determine the right shoes to match specific outfits and a host of other things that the average author writing about blindness would either get laughably wrong or not bother with at all--potentially a problem either way.
As the book opens, we are treated to a close-up view of a small British seaside community in the 1950s. Merham is a rather staid community that resists progress and does not easily adapt to change. When a group of rather unconventional residents move into a lovely old home built in the 1930s, the community is scandalized. The exception to the town’s pervading opinion is held by two young women—Celia Holden and Lottie Swift. The girls are utterly taken by the avant-garde nature of the new residents—a group of free love types who pre-date the hippy crowd by more than a decade. Celia’s mother, disturbed by the attachment the girls are forming to the new residents, bustles Celia off to London to work. A few weeks later, she comes home with a fiancé in tow. But it is young Lottie, unknown to her father and abandoned by her mother during and after World War II, who captures the heart and soul of Celia’s fiancé, Guy. But events have taken on such a life of their own that Lottie and Guy will never be together despite ardent admissions of love on both their parts.
A half century later, we meet 28-year-old Daisy Parsons. You’ll like her instantly and for lots of good reasons. Daisy is the victim of what is essentially a sexual hit-and-run. The guy moved into her life, impregnated her, and hit the road once the child arrives with its late-night noises and 24/7 commitment. Daisy has to begin again, and she pulls herself together and vows to complete a redecorating job for someone who bought the stately old house in Merham and plans to turn it into an up-scale hotel. As she moves into the community and takes on the redesign of the house, Daisy uncovers a half-century-old mural that ultimately leads to revelations of its own. One of those who is most unhappy about the newly revealed mural is Lottie Bernard who a half century earlier was Lottie Swift.
As for the blind woman in the story, she is an integral part of it. Lottie is her mom, and she’s married to the guy who helps restore the old painting. I found the dynamics between Lottie and her daughter, Camille, most fascinating. I was enthralled with every character here. Parts of this book were emotionally bruising in some ways. So capable is Moyes of helping you see into the highly developed lives of these characters that you can’t help but be emotionally involved with them.
This is a book of love lost and won, of tragedy and triumph, of heart-rending endings and soul-inspiring beginnings. Perhaps one of the best ways to describe this book is sweeping. It captures you and carries you through turbulent, sometimes-broken lives from the 1950s to the 21st century. Such a vast horizon would be far more jarring and difficult in the hands of a lesser author, but Moyes carries it off breathtakingly well.
As the book opens, we are treated to a close-up view of a small British seaside community in the 1950s. Merham is a rather staid community that resists progress and does not easily adapt to change. When a group of rather unconventional residents move into a lovely old home built in the 1930s, the community is scandalized. The exception to the town’s pervading opinion is held by two young women—Celia Holden and Lottie Swift. The girls are utterly taken by the avant-garde nature of the new residents—a group of free love types who pre-date the hippy crowd by more than a decade. Celia’s mother, disturbed by the attachment the girls are forming to the new residents, bustles Celia off to London to work. A few weeks later, she comes home with a fiancé in tow. But it is young Lottie, unknown to her father and abandoned by her mother during and after World War II, who captures the heart and soul of Celia’s fiancé, Guy. But events have taken on such a life of their own that Lottie and Guy will never be together despite ardent admissions of love on both their parts.
A half century later, we meet 28-year-old Daisy Parsons. You’ll like her instantly and for lots of good reasons. Daisy is the victim of what is essentially a sexual hit-and-run. The guy moved into her life, impregnated her, and hit the road once the child arrives with its late-night noises and 24/7 commitment. Daisy has to begin again, and she pulls herself together and vows to complete a redecorating job for someone who bought the stately old house in Merham and plans to turn it into an up-scale hotel. As she moves into the community and takes on the redesign of the house, Daisy uncovers a half-century-old mural that ultimately leads to revelations of its own. One of those who is most unhappy about the newly revealed mural is Lottie Bernard who a half century earlier was Lottie Swift.
As for the blind woman in the story, she is an integral part of it. Lottie is her mom, and she’s married to the guy who helps restore the old painting. I found the dynamics between Lottie and her daughter, Camille, most fascinating. I was enthralled with every character here. Parts of this book were emotionally bruising in some ways. So capable is Moyes of helping you see into the highly developed lives of these characters that you can’t help but be emotionally involved with them.
This is a book of love lost and won, of tragedy and triumph, of heart-rending endings and soul-inspiring beginnings. Perhaps one of the best ways to describe this book is sweeping. It captures you and carries you through turbulent, sometimes-broken lives from the 1950s to the 21st century. Such a vast horizon would be far more jarring and difficult in the hands of a lesser author, but Moyes carries it off breathtakingly well.
alanaes's review against another edition
3.0
On such a JoJo Moyes kick right now. This one reads like lighter, fluffier, more romantic [a:Jane Gardam|20838|Jane Gardam|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1264017642p2/20838.jpg] (who is one of my favorites). Perfect beach read.
I liked the 1950s sections much better than the contemporary sections. Looking forward to reading more of [a:Jojo Moyes|281810|Jojo Moyes|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1400624880p2/281810.jpg]'s historical-ish fiction. Also, I wish the US publisher had kept the original title, Foreign Fruit, or kept something with the "Fruit" theme for the title, at least...makes more sense for the story.
I liked the 1950s sections much better than the contemporary sections. Looking forward to reading more of [a:Jojo Moyes|281810|Jojo Moyes|https://d.gr-assets.com/authors/1400624880p2/281810.jpg]'s historical-ish fiction. Also, I wish the US publisher had kept the original title, Foreign Fruit, or kept something with the "Fruit" theme for the title, at least...makes more sense for the story.
erinlee83's review against another edition
3.0
This was an enjoyable read. I like JoJo Moyes, although none of the books I have read by her have compared to Me Before You which I adored. The first few chapters felt a little slow and just wasn't drawing me in. Once I really grasped who was who I really got into the story. I felt for some of the characters and the predicaments they found themselves in. In part 2 you appear to get a whole new group of characters which takes place in the same location which were also interesting and drew me in. I found the lack of communication between characters to be frustrating, but probably a pretty accurate description of how people can keep information to themselves, wouldn't we all be better if we just communicated more openly and easily?! The end was a little confusing and a few things weren't wrapped up as neatly as I'd hoped. Overall, a good read.
arthurgdean's review against another edition
4.0
Recensione: http://thereadingpal.blogspot.it/2017/05/recensione-99-la-casa-delle-onde.html
"Mi dispiace" borbottò, con un sorriso contrito. " Non sai
quanto, Daisy. Ma non posso baciare e respirare contemporaneamente."
Allora, i romance (a parte alcuni lgbt+) non sono esattamente il mio genere. Devono avere qualcosa "in più". Questo romanzo mi è piaciuto abbastanza, ma non tanto da farmi venire voglia di leggere qualcos'altro scritto da Jojo Moyes. Quindi probabilmente questo rimarrà il primo e ultimo libro che vedrete qui sul blog scritto da questa autrice.
Parliamo quindi della storia, che si divide in tre parti. Nella prima seguiamo Lottie, una giovane ragazza che si è trovata ad essere ospitata da un'altra famiglia, benestante, i cui membri si dividono tra quelli a lei affezionati e quelli che preferirebbero non averla tra i piedi. Attratta dagli abitanti di Villa Arcadia, fa amicizia con loro fino al disastro.
Nella seconda seguiamo Daisy, ormai anni dopo le vicende accadute a Lottie, che arriva a Mehram per ristrutturare Villa Arcadia e farci un Hotel. Le sue vicende personali le impediscono di andare avanti e fare quello che desidera.
Nella terza parte si troverà un finale per entrmabe.
Per quanto mi riguarda, ho trovato molto più piacevole seguire Lottie invece che Daisy. Perché? Be', Lottie è una persona piuttosto forte, che ha fatto le cose che doveva fare e ha cercato di lasciarsi il passato alle spalle. E' diventata più forte con il passare del tempo e non si è fatta abbattere.
Daisy, al contrario, fin da subito è piagnucolosa e debole e migliora davvero poco con l'avanzare delle pagine. Seriamente. Ogni due per tre sta a piangersi addosso. perché le cose non vanno come vuole lei e Daniel non la calcola, si deve prendere cura della bimba da sola e non ce la fa, non è più bella come prima, i muratori non la rispettano, Jones non le presta attenzione... E ma cavoli, un po' di spina dorsale! Un personaggio davvero irritante.
Tra quelli che non sono i protagonisti, il personaggio che più mi ha interessata è stata Adeline. e' particolare, non si lascia abbattere anche se la sua vita non è rose e fiori, anzi sta accanto a Lottie anche nel momento del bisogno.
Anche Jones non è male, sicuramente meglio di Daniel. Se il primo lavora,si da da fare, cerca di passare oltre i disastri della sua vita, il secondo è un poveraccio, depresso e narcisista, un bambino nel corpo di un adulto che non riesce a prendersi le sue responsabilità e addirittura scappa da esse e lascia Daisy da sola con la loro bambina. Anche lui è un personaggio che mi ha fatto storcere il naso e per tutto il tempo ho pensato "muori, ti prego. Vai via."
Anche i luoghi sono molto diversi. Villa Arcadia è completamente estranea alla moribonda Mehram: è come se quella casa moderna, vitale, stesse combattendo una lunghissima battaglia contro la cittadina anziana e bigotta che non la lascia respirare. Ne ha viste, di cose, quella casa, e pian piano le riporta alla luce, inesorabilmente.
Lo stile di scrittura non mi ha entusiasmato, ma neanche annoiato come succede con certi libri. Sono rimasta indifferente.
Insomma, è stata una lettura carina, che si è salvata grazie a Lottie, ma nulla di che. Mi aspettavo molto di più visto che quasi tutti parlano molto bene di Jojo Moyes.
"Mi dispiace" borbottò, con un sorriso contrito. " Non sai
quanto, Daisy. Ma non posso baciare e respirare contemporaneamente."
Allora, i romance (a parte alcuni lgbt+) non sono esattamente il mio genere. Devono avere qualcosa "in più". Questo romanzo mi è piaciuto abbastanza, ma non tanto da farmi venire voglia di leggere qualcos'altro scritto da Jojo Moyes. Quindi probabilmente questo rimarrà il primo e ultimo libro che vedrete qui sul blog scritto da questa autrice.
Parliamo quindi della storia, che si divide in tre parti. Nella prima seguiamo Lottie, una giovane ragazza che si è trovata ad essere ospitata da un'altra famiglia, benestante, i cui membri si dividono tra quelli a lei affezionati e quelli che preferirebbero non averla tra i piedi. Attratta dagli abitanti di Villa Arcadia, fa amicizia con loro fino al disastro.
Nella seconda seguiamo Daisy, ormai anni dopo le vicende accadute a Lottie, che arriva a Mehram per ristrutturare Villa Arcadia e farci un Hotel. Le sue vicende personali le impediscono di andare avanti e fare quello che desidera.
Nella terza parte si troverà un finale per entrmabe.
Per quanto mi riguarda, ho trovato molto più piacevole seguire Lottie invece che Daisy. Perché? Be', Lottie è una persona piuttosto forte, che ha fatto le cose che doveva fare e ha cercato di lasciarsi il passato alle spalle. E' diventata più forte con il passare del tempo e non si è fatta abbattere.
Daisy, al contrario, fin da subito è piagnucolosa e debole e migliora davvero poco con l'avanzare delle pagine. Seriamente. Ogni due per tre sta a piangersi addosso. perché le cose non vanno come vuole lei e Daniel non la calcola, si deve prendere cura della bimba da sola e non ce la fa, non è più bella come prima, i muratori non la rispettano, Jones non le presta attenzione... E ma cavoli, un po' di spina dorsale! Un personaggio davvero irritante.
Tra quelli che non sono i protagonisti, il personaggio che più mi ha interessata è stata Adeline. e' particolare, non si lascia abbattere anche se la sua vita non è rose e fiori, anzi sta accanto a Lottie anche nel momento del bisogno.
Anche Jones non è male, sicuramente meglio di Daniel. Se il primo lavora,si da da fare, cerca di passare oltre i disastri della sua vita, il secondo è un poveraccio, depresso e narcisista, un bambino nel corpo di un adulto che non riesce a prendersi le sue responsabilità e addirittura scappa da esse e lascia Daisy da sola con la loro bambina. Anche lui è un personaggio che mi ha fatto storcere il naso e per tutto il tempo ho pensato "muori, ti prego. Vai via."
Anche i luoghi sono molto diversi. Villa Arcadia è completamente estranea alla moribonda Mehram: è come se quella casa moderna, vitale, stesse combattendo una lunghissima battaglia contro la cittadina anziana e bigotta che non la lascia respirare. Ne ha viste, di cose, quella casa, e pian piano le riporta alla luce, inesorabilmente.
Lo stile di scrittura non mi ha entusiasmato, ma neanche annoiato come succede con certi libri. Sono rimasta indifferente.
Insomma, è stata una lettura carina, che si è salvata grazie a Lottie, ma nulla di che. Mi aspettavo molto di più visto che quasi tutti parlano molto bene di Jojo Moyes.