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abanta23 's review for:
Friends and Strangers
by J. Courtney Sullivan
The author raised many hot topics - motherhood, friendships, privilege, wealth, class, adulting, relationships - and I was excited at first but it felt like too much was attempted. There wasn't enough depth in the topics to make the story work cohesively.
By the end I could not stand Elisabeth and did not care what happened to her at all. The interaction with George at the end was too small to show a change in her, or that she really learned something from the mess she made.
After all the idolizing of President Washington how could the author drop the chance for Sam to have a true moment with her and for Sam to be a part of Washington's downfall?
Elisabeth should have had a real moment and change when her dad reminded her that he bought the apartment that subsequently allowed her to buy the suburban house. She could have started her change here and really done something with that but it fell flat among the other threads the author was squeezing in. So many times Elisabeth did not acknowledge her privilege and it works in many ways but I thought Sam would be the trigger for her.
Smaller plot threads that were left hanging too much for me:
I thought Elisabeth's IVF experience would have made her struggle with Isabella's egg donation plan and we would see some character building but instead she simply talked her out of it.
I still don't understand why Clive wanted to be married immediately. Age? I thought it would come back to Laura and he needed to be married for some related reason, devious or honest, but another curve half thrown in that really wasn't necessary.
By the end I could not stand Elisabeth and did not care what happened to her at all. The interaction with George at the end was too small to show a change in her, or that she really learned something from the mess she made.
After all the idolizing of President Washington how could the author drop the chance for Sam to have a true moment with her and for Sam to be a part of Washington's downfall?
Elisabeth should have had a real moment and change when her dad reminded her that he bought the apartment that subsequently allowed her to buy the suburban house. She could have started her change here and really done something with that but it fell flat among the other threads the author was squeezing in. So many times Elisabeth did not acknowledge her privilege and it works in many ways but I thought Sam would be the trigger for her.
Smaller plot threads that were left hanging too much for me:
I thought Elisabeth's IVF experience would have made her struggle with Isabella's egg donation plan and we would see some character building but instead she simply talked her out of it.
I still don't understand why Clive wanted to be married immediately. Age? I thought it would come back to Laura and he needed to be married for some related reason, devious or honest, but another curve half thrown in that really wasn't necessary.