Scan barcode
meme_too2's review against another edition
3.0
I had mixed feelings about this book. Lucy has been living with a guy in Asia, but comes home when her mother breaks her arm. She takes up with an old boyfriend through the rest of the book, until her boyfriend flies out to join her. There are no "scenes" in the book, but you just don't know who she's going to end up with and it's hard to place your loyalties. As well, the distrust within the family was sad, and frankly puzzling, until the very end, when you are really in for a shock.
I did, however, love the glass blowing scene, the stained glass descriptions, and the found letters that unfold an interesting and endearing story, even to filling in the empty holes in an old lady's life.
I did, however, love the glass blowing scene, the stained glass descriptions, and the found letters that unfold an interesting and endearing story, even to filling in the empty holes in an old lady's life.
rala8381's review against another edition
2.0
It didn't get interesting until about 2/3 of the way through and by then I really didn't even care anymore.
jmj697mn's review against another edition
3.0
It was.......just ok. I love the Memory Keeper's Daughter, but felt that this one was not nearly as interesting.
reads4relaxation's review against another edition
informative
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
jamlreader's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
onlybookishinthebuilding's review against another edition
2.0
Another mystery which was not altogether unexpected but another book I devoured in a matter of days. I could really relate to Lucy's displacement with her family and sometimes feeling like an outsider, especially as the rest of her family stayed in the same place whilst she moved away. It was an interesting novel full of family dynamics, the need to move on but being tied to the past in a way that can't quite be explained. Whilst I did find the book to be a quick read I just couldn't get invested in most of the characters and did find Lucy a little self indulgent at times.
24marsha's review against another edition
3.0
Debated over rating by what I feel about this book now or on how I might like it at a different time but I decided to go with my feelings now. I had a hard time getting into the story and I kept getting lost in the details and layers. Oddly it is exactly all the details and layers that I would love about it at a different time.
jacki_f's review against another edition
3.0
Kim Edward's first novel, The Memory Keeper's Daughter, was a high concept novel with an intriguing premise. Lake of Dreams is quite different. It starts very slowly and even when it finds its stride, it never becomes a book that I felt any affinity with.
Lucy is living in Japan with her boyfriend Yoshi. She is unsettled, unable to find a job and feeling homesick. She goes to visit her mother who lives in upstate New York - her first visit home in many years, having left soon after her father died in a boating accident. She discovers some long lost letters, which prompts her to investigate a previously unknown family member. This initiates a chain of events that will have a huge impact on her family.
The book is an easy read and feels well researched. Nevertheless I didn't care about any of the characters, didn't find the story terribly interesting and became totally fed up with the endless watery metaphors. Lucy makes a dislikable heroine who is possessive about her ancestors, judges her mother and complains about her boyfriend not ringing her (but doesn't return his calls when he does). The plot is also overly reliant on happy coincidences, timely revelations and the reader's willingness to overlook time compressions that defy the laws of physics.
There have been many recent - and better - books about women uncovering family secrets: Sarah's Key and The Distant Hours come to mind.
If you read the Kindle edition of this book, be aware that a family tree is included but it's at the very end.
Lucy is living in Japan with her boyfriend Yoshi. She is unsettled, unable to find a job and feeling homesick. She goes to visit her mother who lives in upstate New York - her first visit home in many years, having left soon after her father died in a boating accident. She discovers some long lost letters, which prompts her to investigate a previously unknown family member. This initiates a chain of events that will have a huge impact on her family.
The book is an easy read and feels well researched. Nevertheless I didn't care about any of the characters, didn't find the story terribly interesting and became totally fed up with the endless watery metaphors. Lucy makes a dislikable heroine who is possessive about her ancestors, judges her mother and complains about her boyfriend not ringing her (but doesn't return his calls when he does). The plot is also overly reliant on happy coincidences, timely revelations and the reader's willingness to overlook time compressions that defy the laws of physics.
There have been many recent - and better - books about women uncovering family secrets: Sarah's Key and The Distant Hours come to mind.
If you read the Kindle edition of this book, be aware that a family tree is included but it's at the very end.
odmay's review against another edition
3.0
Although a good read, this book did not live up to my expectations. The Memory Keeper's Daughter appeared to me to be far superior.
sducharme's review against another edition
3.0
This is a time I need a half star - would like to rank it higher because I liked the story and tension as we discover the family's past secrets, BUT I didn't like the main character, a whiney 30-something trying to find herself and acting kind of pushy throughout.