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3.77 AVERAGE
3.77 AVERAGE
It isn’t often that three stories are so seamlessly woven together, but The Forgotten Room manages to do it. Opening in 1944 with Dr. Kate Schuyler taking care of an injured Captain Ravenel, the two seem instantly drawn to each other. In 1920, Lucy Young is working as a secretary for Philip Ravenel - but has an ulterior motive. In 1893, Olive is working as a maid for the wealthy Pratt family, and trying to prove they are at fault for her father’s death. While these three stories are seemingly unrelated, as the novel unfolds, the connections become clear. The reader is transported to New York of the Gilded Age and the Roaring Twenties. More prominent, though, is the power of love and choices. How does one choice change the course of a life? Is love enough? I absolutely loved this book and was taken in from the first pages.
I found myself a bit confused with the switching of the timelines. I don't typically have this sort of problem when books are going back and forth, so I'm not sure what the issue was with this particular book. I did enjoy the story and I thought it was a good summer book.
Generally, a good book. A sweet love story spanning generations, and war time. What I didn't like about it though was that the relationships between the three generations was hard to keep track of and there were so many characters. I'm sure this was the result of a book with 3 authors. A good read if you like historical fiction though!
I really enjoyed this book. About a third of the way through I thought I had figured some things out so as the story continued, especially towards the end I found myself frustrated that I had figured things out but didn't know the 'why' yet. But then within the last 6 chapters everything came together in ways that I did NOT expect. All in all, it was a good book and would probably read/listen to again.
I would have preferred that if the authors are going to have some obvious signs of what they wanted to audience to think then they should have laid clues out more in the book that things weren't what they seemed so readers wouldn't be frustrated. But I still recommend it.
I would have preferred that if the authors are going to have some obvious signs of what they wanted to audience to think then they should have laid clues out more in the book that things weren't what they seemed so readers wouldn't be frustrated. But I still recommend it.
Entertaining and some very beautiful writing. I wish some of the secondary characters had been filled out more.
Weak character, weak story, weak writing. At first I thought I would at least be able to say that this might be an okay "beach read". No. The time I spent reading this book is time I'll never get back. What a waste!
Interesting storytelling style (3 authors, each writing a separate but marginally connected story) and an intriguing mystery. For lovers of love stories and historical fiction.
After Along the Infinite Sea, I went into this book with lower expectations because I didn't want to risk being let down. This book did not disappoint. It was BEAUTIFUL. The level of thought that had to go into this story to make it happen is incredible. I'm not familiar with the other two authors, but I'm going to have to check out their work. It was captivating, heartbreaking, and inspiring all at once.
This was a 4.5/5, but I rounded up to a 5. I love the way these 3 women had overlapping stories, and while much of it was predictable, there were some great twists that came up. Olive and Lucy were much more likable for me at the beginning and I found myself just wanted to get through Kate’s chapters to get back to them. But at the end, it was Kate’s story I loved the most — probably because I’m a sucker for a good old happily ever after.
Many thanks to Penguin Group Berkley, NAL/Signet Romance, DAW, via Netgalley, for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
3.5
I was super excited to have been approved to read The Forgotten Room because I've read books by Lauren Willig and Karen White before, and they were fantastic.
However, although I did enjoy reading The Forgotten Room, it did fall a little flat for me. I loved the idea of three storylines from three very different time periods in history... but I got confused all too easily about which of the women was whom (grandmother, mom, daughter). The relationships were also rather confusing to me, as was the continuation of the same family names throughout the 3 alternating storylines.
I don't really know why I got so confused reading this book in particular - I think in part it's due to the fact that the three protagonists are very similar in many ways. Additionally, it was not made clear to the reader what the relationships were between the women until about 75 or 80% through the book (I'm estimating since I did read this awhile ago and don't exactly remember).
I would recommend it, but hesitantly - not because of shoddy writing or anything like that, but because I simply had difficulty keeping the story straight as well as the point of the book (which still somewhat eludes me, to be honest - it seemed like an awful lot of work to go to, in order to reach the ending that was reached). I would be much more comfortable recommending that people read books by each individual author, especially if you've not read books by them before. I am going to be looking up Beatriz Williams, since she's the only one of the three whom I have not heard of prior to this book.
3.5
I was super excited to have been approved to read The Forgotten Room because I've read books by Lauren Willig and Karen White before, and they were fantastic.
However, although I did enjoy reading The Forgotten Room, it did fall a little flat for me. I loved the idea of three storylines from three very different time periods in history... but I got confused all too easily about which of the women was whom (grandmother, mom, daughter). The relationships were also rather confusing to me, as was the continuation of the same family names throughout the 3 alternating storylines.
I don't really know why I got so confused reading this book in particular - I think in part it's due to the fact that the three protagonists are very similar in many ways. Additionally, it was not made clear to the reader what the relationships were between the women until about 75 or 80% through the book (I'm estimating since I did read this awhile ago and don't exactly remember).
I would recommend it, but hesitantly - not because of shoddy writing or anything like that, but because I simply had difficulty keeping the story straight as well as the point of the book (which still somewhat eludes me, to be honest - it seemed like an awful lot of work to go to, in order to reach the ending that was reached). I would be much more comfortable recommending that people read books by each individual author, especially if you've not read books by them before. I am going to be looking up Beatriz Williams, since she's the only one of the three whom I have not heard of prior to this book.