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3.61 AVERAGE
3.61 AVERAGE
I am still an audiobook neophyte, but I loved this audiobook. It made an eight hour drive fly by. Not an easy read/listen though - it touches on a lot of different tough subject - middle age, divorce, depression, social drinking versus alcoholism, special needs kids - just to name a few. But amidst some of these tough subject there were several places I laughed out loud because character portraits reminded me of many of the characters in the New England town of my youth and that recognition only improved a wonderful story. The actress, Mary Beth Hurt did an amazing job reading the book - her gravely voice added a different layer to the text then I think I it would have had, if I had read it. Definitely worth the time!
Darkly funny and entertaining, this novel also takes some unexpected twists and turns. Not a serious piece of literature, but an enjoyable read that comes off as part character study, part mystery novel.
Funny and caustic with good pacing. The narrator and her point of view are well honed.
"Stolen pleasures are always more thrilling than those come by honestly."
This story is told from the POV of Hildy—a 60+ real estate broker who drinks way too much, has little tolerance for AA platitudes, and gets quite irritable when access to her “three drinks short of comfortable” is blocked. Sometimes her irritation comes across as funny in a snarky way. Other times, it’s quite unpleasant. Either way I thought Mary Beth Hurt’s interpretation of Hildy’s voice was perfect and I had several lol moments. A good listen!
This story is told from the POV of Hildy—a 60+ real estate broker who drinks way too much, has little tolerance for AA platitudes, and gets quite irritable when access to her “three drinks short of comfortable” is blocked. Sometimes her irritation comes across as funny in a snarky way. Other times, it’s quite unpleasant. Either way I thought Mary Beth Hurt’s interpretation of Hildy’s voice was perfect and I had several lol moments. A good listen!
Leary's got a good voice and her protagonist is an interesting challenge--interesting and funny, not particularly nice, skilled at maintaining a certain illusion (though that skill diminishes as she loses control of her alcoholism and the author loses control of her story), and a smart and acerbic observer of the small New England town she knows very well. Feels as if Leary forgets how to move a story along midway through; there are long tiresome stretches in which Hildy tells us what someone else told her, which is only tangentially related to Hildy's own story. As Hildy falls apart, so does the narrative--it's as if someone is going to be guilty of something, but Leary keeps changing her mind about who and what that will be. Then there's a nice tidy resolution, because that's totally how alcoholism works, in which all the little pieces fall into place. Good writing, weak plotting.
Depending on your relationship to "your"'alcoholic, I expect many people's reactions to Hildy ranged from sympathy to antipathy almost as fluidly as Hildy's behavior ranged from acceptable to manipulative bitch. Hildy was certainly the product of her upbringing, and I felt a certain level of sympathy for that, but ultimately she was selfish and did quite a bit of damage. Her motivations were never altruistic. Whether you believe alcoholism is a disease or a character flaw or mental illness, there's no question that the actions (and inactions) that come with it have long term effects.
Rebecca was also selfish and also mentally ill, and we've all known people like her, as well.
I rooted for Frankie, and Hildy's kids, and for Peter to get his head out of his ass.
Sadly, because this story hits close to home, I couldn't enjoy the "magic" as much as I wanted to.
In its favor is that I never guessed any of the book's twists, so there's that! I'm glad we got a happy ending.
Rebecca was also selfish and also mentally ill, and we've all known people like her, as well.
I rooted for Frankie, and Hildy's kids, and for Peter to get his head out of his ass.
Sadly, because this story hits close to home, I couldn't enjoy the "magic" as much as I wanted to.
In its favor is that I never guessed any of the book's twists, so there's that! I'm glad we got a happy ending.
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don't really know what to say about this one except it was decent. Hildy was simultaneously annoying and endearing, and I felt for her. I rooted for her. I was happy Leary gave her a nice ending. Other than that...yeah. It was decent.
