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A review by bethreadsandnaps
The Northern Reach by W. S. Winslow
3.25
I loved the writing in this novel. Set in Maine, it did give off good Maine vibes. :)
There is a daunting family tree at the beginning of the novel. Each short story/chapter zooms in on a part of the family tree. I could keep the first few parts of the tree distinct and loved the tiny connections I could find.
Then we zoomed to a completely different branch of the tree, and I got a bit disoriented and confused. I think the author gave the reader too much credit in being able to get the whole picture of this complex family tree. I set this down a few times, and when I came back I was lost. This isn't like a Follett novel where it's extremely long, and you spend a long time which each branch. No, this is a pretty short novel with most chapters being a medium length chapter you'd find in a different novel. So, I spent time scrambling around trying to catch up where I was when I picked it back up, and then when I got the part down, we moved to a different part of the tree. Sometimes it was a part with reappearing characters (thank you!), but sometimes it was a whole different generation we hadn't met yet with 4 kids, their spouses, etc.
I think I would have appreciated this novel more if the author could have spent more time on each branch with less branches explored.
There is a daunting family tree at the beginning of the novel. Each short story/chapter zooms in on a part of the family tree. I could keep the first few parts of the tree distinct and loved the tiny connections I could find.
Then we zoomed to a completely different branch of the tree, and I got a bit disoriented and confused. I think the author gave the reader too much credit in being able to get the whole picture of this complex family tree. I set this down a few times, and when I came back I was lost. This isn't like a Follett novel where it's extremely long, and you spend a long time which each branch. No, this is a pretty short novel with most chapters being a medium length chapter you'd find in a different novel. So, I spent time scrambling around trying to catch up where I was when I picked it back up, and then when I got the part down, we moved to a different part of the tree. Sometimes it was a part with reappearing characters (thank you!), but sometimes it was a whole different generation we hadn't met yet with 4 kids, their spouses, etc.
I think I would have appreciated this novel more if the author could have spent more time on each branch with less branches explored.