What They Say....In the wake of a tragedy that tore her life down to the foundations, Dr. Alison McAdams has lost her way. So when she’s summoned to Napa to care for her ailing father, she’s not sure she has anything to offer him—or anyone else.
What Ali finds in Northern California wine country is a gift—an opportunity to rest, and distance from her painful memories. Most unexpectedly, she finds people who aren’t afraid of her grief or desperate for her to hurry up and move on.
As Ali becomes part of her father’s community, makes new friends of her own, and hears the stories of a generation who survived the Second World War, she begins to find hope again. In a quest to discover the truth about another woman’s lost love, she sets off on a journey across oceans and deep into history. And in making sense of that long-ago tragedy, Ali is able to put together the broken pieces of her heart and make new choices that are right for her.
What I Say....I LOVED this book! Really, really loved. I've read a few chick lit books lately that have been so formulaic that it could bring you to tears. This book was totally unique and engaging.
The story starts out with a hook you don't often see. Ali's fiancee has committed suicide, and a year later she is still trying to make sense of it, while working as a dentist in his father's Scottsdale practice (it was cool to see the Arizona setting - we don't get a lot of books set here!)
A nasty note about her crappy parking at the mall jolts her out of going through the motions of her life. Ali decides to go to Napa to visit her father, who she has a distant relationship with.
Falling into the florist job, having her father's house to stay in, meeting handsome Craig, these were all the makings of great chick lit, but bringing in Edie's story made it feel unique.
The story of Edie's great love, set in Germany during WWII, was the most interesting part of the book. I loved the diary entries, and the way the story flowed. I loved that it didn't make her a suddenly soft person when she told her story. Some things that happen in our lives shape us, and Edie allowed that wall around her heart to grow strong, at age 95, that wasn't going to change.
But her story helped to crumble the wall around Ali's heart that had been growing stronger each day.
My one complaint is that I wish we found out a little more about why Andrew killed himself, and in a way that guaranteed that Ali would be the one to find him. But I think there is never a good enough answer to why, and millions of people live with this horrible unanswered question.
A great read, and I'll be looking for more by this author.
Current Goodreads rating 4.04
I received a copy of this book from Booksparks in exchange for an honest review - the only kind I give!
I received a copy of this book from Booksparks in exchange for an honest review - the only kind I give!
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