Five Fortunes [Paperback]

Beth Gutcheon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 3, 1999

Witty, wise, and hope-filled, Five Fortunes is a large-hearted tale of five vivid and unforgettable women who know where they've been but have no idea where they're going. A lively octogenarian, a private investigator, a mother and daughter with an unresolved past, and a recently widowed politician's wife share little else except a thirst for new dreams, but after a week at the luxurious health spa known as "Fat Chance" their lives will be intertwined in ways they couldn't have imagined. At a place where doctors, lawyers, spoiled housewives, movie stars, and captains of industry are stripped of the social markers that keep them from really seeing one another, unexpected friendships emerge, reminding us of the close links between the rich and the poor, fortune and misfortune, and the magic of chance.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Friends, lovers, adulterers, a fortune-teller and even a murderer are objects of gently sardonic fun in Gutcheon's stylish new comedy (after Saying Grace) about five women who meet at The Cloisters, a posh $4000-a-week health spa in Arizona. Octogenarian Rae Strouse, a former fan-dancer and now a wealthy San Francisco matron, returns for her 22nd visit. A birthday gift for outsized (six feet and 180 lbs.) L.A. PI Carter Bond allows her a week in the hallowed hot tubs. Amy Burrows and her obese teenage daughter, Jill, come tangled in dirty laundry from their privileged Manhattan life, while anomalous, athletic Idahoan Laurie Lopez comes to grieve over the death of her husband, a politician and once a tennis star. "Fat Chance" is an apt nickname for this temple of rejuvenation: most of the guests haven't a prayer of living up to the example of their enthusiastic, neon-clad fitness instructors?one of whom is so thin "her body looked like a collection of bicycle parts." At the end of their frog march through the fat farm's regimen, the women meet in secret with a mysterious palm-reading masseuse, whose predictions will follow them long after they have completed their tour of duty at The Cloisters; by then, we are as caught up in this fast-paced story as these women are in each other's lives. UK, translation and serial rights: Wendy Weil.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

The importance of connections between women is highlighted in this story of friendship and support among a group of five women who first meet on a week-long retreat at a health spa in Arizona. As they help each other through the rigors of healthful living imposed on them by trainers and nutritionists, they develop strong mutual support on other levels as well. During the following year, these strong, independent, and ambitious women face enormous challenges that bring them even closer: private detective Carter quits smoking and takes on drug dealers in L.A.; the still vibrant Rae must face her husband's decline from Alzheimer's disease; Amy and her daughter, Jill, resolve old issues; and the recently widowed Laura declares her candidacy for the U.S. Senate. The friends discover that through finding ways to support one another, each is able to move toward healing and growth in her own life. Gutcheon is the author of four previous novels and the Academy Award^-nominated film script The Children of Theatre Street. Grace Fill --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks (March 3, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060929952
• ISBN-13: 978-0060929954
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,349,690 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars GREAT SUMMER READING!, June 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Five Fortunes (Paperback)

Loved the characters, loved the story line. LOVED IT! I finished the book over the weekend while the laundry piled up!!! Oh well! Treat yourself to some new friends ... Laurie, Rae, Jill, Amy and Carter. What a group! Rae is a wonderful older woman who I'd love for a mother-in-law! Jill and Amy have the usual mother/daughter relationship but you are able to watch it mature and grow. What every mother hopes for ... to be friends with her teen-age daughter. Carter is the immortal 'girl most likely to not ....' She turns out to be a real friend to Jill at the lowest point in her life. And Laurie ... who could not like Laurie. She just lost her husband, has 5 kids and is burned out. Wow! Does she come a long way! Take a chance and read this book ... it won't disappoint you!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining, but not Gutcheon's best, February 22, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Five Fortunes (Paperback)

This is definitely an entertaining read, but it's far from being Gutcheon's best. The characters are well-drawn, but their various situations don't always ring true; everything seems to be wrapped up a little too neatly in the end for all concerned. The story tends to meander from one incident to the next, leaving the book with a somewhat unfocused feeling. Still a good read, but I'd recommend starting with "Domestic Pleasures" or "The New Girls".

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully-crafted story, May 30, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Five Fortunes (Paperback)

My mom handed me this book and said, "Here, you have to read this." Skeptical, I opened the first page and couldn't put it down until the end. Gutcheon crafts a wonderful, thought-proviking story of 5 different women and the trials and tribulations of their lives.