The sense of place is beautifully written, Cape Cod, the ponds, the wildlife, nature... but it's not enough to make this book a good read.
Too many characters, too much flitting back & forth in time (every section like this lasted a couple of pages that was all then you're back in another time). Then one long chunk that oddly went on too long to set up the great awfulness that has caused all the trouble in this book.
No one was worth caring about not even the main character (despite everything that happened to her), apart from the older sister Anna who is refreshingly herself, and Jonas who doesn't get nearly enough space in the book and was the reason I thought I'd love this book. He's kept far too much in the background, I suppose like a siren call but really the author squandered what might have been a USP for this book. The husband Peter was nauseatingly a stereotype of Hugh Grant - an American's idea of what a posh Brit is like - and actually rude & dismissive. Why stay married to this man? The sex scenes were well described.
The ending was a terrible zero. I get that it was supposed to be mysterious & ambivalent it just felt like an under-cooked roast chicken.
A very episodic read, emotionally & intellectually unsatisfying it was a jumble of good ideas badly executed.
And then there's all the gushing blurbs from authors who are clearly pals - this author is well connected.
Not worth the money, could have been so much better.
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Customer reviews
📖: Every summer Elle and her family stay at their cabin in the woods in Cape Cod. After developing a childhood friendship with a boy named Jonas, the strong feelings between the pair never develop romantically. Elle, now in her 50s, enters into a summer fling with her first love, jeopardising her family unit and making her question her marriage.💭: Initially I thought this book would solely focus on Elle's inner turmoil, the choice between her devoted husband and the man she has loved since she was a child; which didn't appeal to me. The very short snappy sentences irritated me and the constant switching of timelines and numerous characters confused me a little and I found it hard to get into. That was until I got passed the first section and into the secrets of Elle's past. This book is not lighthearted as I first thought. The topics are disturbing, the characters are unlikeable and the ending unclear.
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Top reviews from United Kingdom
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Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 24 August 2021
📖: Every summer Elle and her family stay at their cabin in the woods in Cape Cod. After developing a childhood friendship with a boy named Jonas, the strong feelings between the pair never develop romantically. Elle, now in her 50s, enters into a summer fling with her first love, jeopardising her family unit and making her question her marriage.
💭: Initially I thought this book would solely focus on Elle's inner turmoil, the choice between her devoted husband and the man she has loved since she was a child; which didn't appeal to me. The very short snappy sentences irritated me and the constant switching of timelines and numerous characters confused me a little and I found it hard to get into. That was until I got passed the first section and into the secrets of Elle's past. This book is not lighthearted as I first thought. The topics are disturbing, the characters are unlikeable and the ending unclear.
💭: Initially I thought this book would solely focus on Elle's inner turmoil, the choice between her devoted husband and the man she has loved since she was a child; which didn't appeal to me. The very short snappy sentences irritated me and the constant switching of timelines and numerous characters confused me a little and I found it hard to get into. That was until I got passed the first section and into the secrets of Elle's past. This book is not lighthearted as I first thought. The topics are disturbing, the characters are unlikeable and the ending unclear.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 7 September 2021
