Customer Reviews

Her Father's House

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

This is the first book I have read by Ms. Plain. I will surely be reading more of her books if they are anything like this one. I'm very glad I did not read the reviews before I read the book. The reviews were actually a summary of the book. I don't like to know each turn of event and how the book ends before I have a chance to read it. The actions of Jim never crossed my mind before they happened. I never dreamed he would risk his life's work to do what he did to save his daughter.

How far a mother would go to protect her child is never a question, but how far a father would go is something to write about. I loved that "Jim" sacrificed everything he worked for to keep his daughter from being corrupted and neglected. And his reward was finding true love. This book, though not the most exciting book I've ever read, is definately worth the time it took to read.

You can count on a Belva Plain novel to tell a good story, and this book is no exception. The main character is Donald Wolfe, a young man who lives prudently and plans his life carefully. His world is turned upside-down when he meets the enchanting Lillian. They marry, and Donald finds out that Lillian is not all she appeared to be when they were dating. Donald begins to wonder if he has made a terrible mistake in his marriage, when Lillian announces that she is pregnant. Their child, Bettina, is enchanting, and Donald feels more and more drawn to her despite the fact that his marriage to her mother has fallen apart. Events occur which cause Donald to make a decision which will effect the rest of his, Lillian's and Bettina's lives. He becomes a fugitive, afraid that someday, somewhere, he will be confronted with his crime. Plain develops characters which the reader can really care about, and writes an interesting story of redemption and forgiveness.

I bought this as a stocking stuffer for my Mom. She loved the book and read it in a few days. I had previously listened to it on audio disc and I loved it. Belva Plain develops her characters so well, you can really relate to their emotions. I love that they are complex and you see them from all sides.

This is about a lawyer who married badly, got divorced in two years while the wife was pregnant. The mother was never home and often had adulterous affairs. The husband kidnapped the daughter when she was two and took on a new identity, moved to Georgia and lived with a woman on her farm he had met on a plane once that invited him to come by if he was ever in town. His daughter eventually found out about her old identity. I liked this book and would recommend it.

We read this in a book club. After reading the first few pages, I didn't think I was going to like this book at all. How pleasnatly surprised I was after a few more pages - I became engrossed in the story and didn't want to put the book down.

I started this book thinking it was going to be boring. It starts out kind of slow, but then it really gets you hooked. I loved this book.

I normally love Belva Plain's writing. Once I start one of her books I find it hard to put down and am usually sorry when I am finished. I read about 1/3 of this book and decided it wasn't worth finishing. It was just too silly and unbelievable for me. Come on Belva you can do better.

I got this book as a gift and from reading the back, it seemed interesting enough. Finishing this book was a struggle. The story started out alright, but took many unlikely and unrealistic turns. Some aspects seemed completely inaccurate.
Also, the writing in this book reminded me of my high school English class. Belva Plain tries to be deep, but her metaphors seem forced and ridiculous. Apparently some of her other work is very good (this is the only book of her's that I've read), so I don't know what happened here. I wouldn't recommend this book if you're looking for even a somewhat serious read.

I usually like Belva Plain but found the glaring historical inaccuracies distracting. Rap music the early seventies? Widespread artificial insemination in the mid 70's?

I kept double checking to see if I had skipped ahead several years in the storyline. But no, Bettina/Laura was still a baby...

Shouldn't the editors have picked up on these errors, or were they just too young to remember the real 60's and 70's?