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3.84 AVERAGE
3.84 AVERAGE
3 1/2 stars
So yesterday I gave you a review of a wonderful and magical novel of women’s fiction, The Lost Queen of Crocker County. Today, however, we have a typical melodramatic representation of women’s fiction. You might wonder why I chose to read it. Well, the only Sarah Morgan novel I’ve read so far was delightful and humorous. The blurb says: witty. A review said: funny. I thought: yes!
While How to Keep a Secret is well-written, I never felt that I was reading something fresh or new. Lauren’s husband dies. She finds out that he’s kept secrets. Not only is she a widow, she has no money and must return to her childhood home, where her sister and mother are also going through life-crises.
Perhaps part of the problem is that I detested Lauren, who, despite there being three generations of women and multiple povs, is supposed to be the heroine. She came across as controlling, whiny, and self-absorbed. As the novel moved on, it frequently seemed as if the loss of her husband of 16 years was an after-thought. Sixteen years is an awful lot of time to spend with someone and then just sweep them away. The fact that she didn’t know their situation wasn’t his fault alone. Or shouldn’t have been, certainly not in 21st century marriages.
The use of four povs also wasn’t an asset because I never felt like we really came to know Jenna, Nancy, and Mack as well as we should (or as I would have liked), not to mention the fact that Jenna’s story was not wrapped up and we never saw what happened at Mack’s school again. Thus a very ambitious story became a package with ribbon left untied.
I did like the sister’s friendship and closeness and wondered if this should have been focused on a bit more. I also liked the fact that Mack and Nancy became close, showing that, despite generations, there doesn’t have to be a gap or misunderstandings.
There were two romances in the novel. One felt right, the other way, way off–unfortunately to explain why would spoil the novel.
In the end, while I came to like the story and most of the characters (never came around to liking Lauren), I think that if the blurb hadn’t led me to believe that I was going to be reading something witty, I might have appreciated it slightly more, or not. In general and on a good day, I feel “meh” about melodrama.
Should you read this novel? Let’s just say that the average review on Goodreads is just a bit over 4.5 stars out of 5, so it’s pretty generally loved. Just because I wasn’t feeling it doesn’t mean that you may not.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
So yesterday I gave you a review of a wonderful and magical novel of women’s fiction, The Lost Queen of Crocker County. Today, however, we have a typical melodramatic representation of women’s fiction. You might wonder why I chose to read it. Well, the only Sarah Morgan novel I’ve read so far was delightful and humorous. The blurb says: witty. A review said: funny. I thought: yes!
While How to Keep a Secret is well-written, I never felt that I was reading something fresh or new. Lauren’s husband dies. She finds out that he’s kept secrets. Not only is she a widow, she has no money and must return to her childhood home, where her sister and mother are also going through life-crises.
Perhaps part of the problem is that I detested Lauren, who, despite there being three generations of women and multiple povs, is supposed to be the heroine. She came across as controlling, whiny, and self-absorbed. As the novel moved on, it frequently seemed as if the loss of her husband of 16 years was an after-thought. Sixteen years is an awful lot of time to spend with someone and then just sweep them away. The fact that she didn’t know their situation wasn’t his fault alone. Or shouldn’t have been, certainly not in 21st century marriages.
The use of four povs also wasn’t an asset because I never felt like we really came to know Jenna, Nancy, and Mack as well as we should (or as I would have liked), not to mention the fact that Jenna’s story was not wrapped up and we never saw what happened at Mack’s school again. Thus a very ambitious story became a package with ribbon left untied.
I did like the sister’s friendship and closeness and wondered if this should have been focused on a bit more. I also liked the fact that Mack and Nancy became close, showing that, despite generations, there doesn’t have to be a gap or misunderstandings.
There were two romances in the novel. One felt right, the other way, way off–unfortunately to explain why would spoil the novel.
In the end, while I came to like the story and most of the characters (never came around to liking Lauren), I think that if the blurb hadn’t led me to believe that I was going to be reading something witty, I might have appreciated it slightly more, or not. In general and on a good day, I feel “meh” about melodrama.
Should you read this novel? Let’s just say that the average review on Goodreads is just a bit over 4.5 stars out of 5, so it’s pretty generally loved. Just because I wasn’t feeling it doesn’t mean that you may not.
I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
A fluff story with the wrong title. I think a better title might be: How to Stop Keeping Secrets, or something along those lines.
I really liked this book. The characters where likeable. The plot line interested me. There was romance and pain. The only reason I am giving this place be four stars instead of five stars is because the character jenna seemed to get lost to me.
This was the kind of book that's like a cozy blanket ❤ Family drama, sisterhood, romance...a perfect, feel-good novel! I loved all the characters, especially Mack. I feel like Sarah Morgan wrote her better than a lot of authors write teens. I loved the setting and I've already been browsing summer rentals on Martha's Vineyard (browsing is free
lighthearted
slow-paced
I love Sarah Morgan's straight-up romances, but I'm finding her women's fiction tricker to love. To me, this had too much going on, with too many plots, too many PoVs and everyone was too unlikeable in the beginning. By the end they had mostly pulled it around, but it all felt a bit rushed and unresolved, probably because there was too much going on. Each of these stories on their own could have been an interesting read, but because there were three of them (well four if you include the daughter) I never felt like you got to know the women beyond their one principle character trait. I did like the setting, but for the rest, not so much. Never mind.
***Copy from NetGalley in return for an honest review*****
***Copy from NetGalley in return for an honest review*****
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I loved this book and especially the characters. I wish it was a series. An easy 4.5 stars.
I found Sarah's work because we have the same name, but I love it because her characters are all so fully realized, with such heartfelt sympathy and understanding and insight. I am not a fan of a lot of the genre labels for female authors, so it's only grudgingly that I say that this is a move away from "romance" to "chick lit" for her. It's a lovely story, full of twists and turns, about people you feel like you could know, or be. Like all of her other work, I'm looking forward to rereading it again soon!