More Than Words Can Say: A Novel [Paperback]

Robert Barclay (Author)

Book Description

Release date: December 20, 2011

“I normally do not read male authors but someone recommended [Barclay] and all I can say to her is thank you.”
—Fresh Fiction

With his powerfully emotional debut, If Wishes Were Horses, author Robert Barclay immediately joined the ranks of Nicholas Sparks, Richard Paul Evans, and Robert James Waller. His second novel of love and hope, More Than Words Can Say, only confirms his place among them. A profoundly moving multi-generational family story centered around a woman’s return to her late grandmother’s lake cottage and the long-buried secrets she uncovers there, More Than Words Can Say will linger long in the heart and memory.

Editorial Reviews

Review

[If Wishes Were Horses] will satisfy fans of sweet romances and tender family sagas… Mr. Barclay weaves a quiet tale about people with hearts of gold, each barely coping with inner demons or tragic circumstances, who learn that they need one another in order to find redemption. (NY Journal of Books )

“IF WISHES WERE HORSES is chock full of wonderful characters. The novel is a moving one, at turns poignant, sad, dramatic, amusing, and hopeful.” (Romance Reviews Today )

“If you like novelists like Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook, A Walk to Remember) or Nicholas Evans (The Horse Whisperer, The Storm Jumper) , Robert Barclay will be right up your alley” (Boulder Examiner )

“MORE THAN WORDS CAN SAY crosses genres and combines romance with mystery while managing to avoid becoming sappy or overly sentimental. The way Robert Barclay toggles between a summer at the beginning of the Second World War and a summer in the present is done masterfully.” (Book Reporter )

From the Back Cover

From the author of If Wishes Were Horses comes a novel of long-buried secrets and self-discovery, showing us that sometimes what goes unsaid is more powerful than words. . . .

Chelsea Enright never expected to inherit her grandmother's lakeside cottage deep in the Adirondacks—a serene getaway that had been mysteriously closed up decades ago. This is no simple bequest, however, because when Chelsea finds her grandmother's WWII diaries, she's stunned to discover that they hold secrets she never suspected . . . and they have the power to turn her own life upside down.

Even more surprising is the compelling presence of local doctor Brandon "Yale, and Chelsea soon finds her "short stay" has stretched into the entire summer. She cannot put this cottage and her family's past behind her easily—and the more she learns about the woman her grandmother truly was, the more Chelsea's own life begins to change . . . and nothing will ever be the same again.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks; Original edition (December 20, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062041193
• ISBN-13: 978-0062041197
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (64 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #680,646 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing writing style and story December 27, 2011

By Erin Konrad

Format:Paperback

I have to say I was super disappointed with this book. I always open a book with an open mind, and I'm always searching for something fantastic. This book was not. I know it has some editing to be done still, but overall, I was not crazy about the storyline or the writing style.

The story was set up like it was going to involve some mysterious, dark secret. The plot ends up being rather mundane...maybe this would have worked as an 'immoral' story several decades ago. Compared to the types of behavior we see exhibited on tv, movies, and in books, this story is completely anti-climatic.

As for the writing style, every paragraph ends with an ellipsis. Every character is introduced through a list of their traits ("He was an attractive man in his early sixties with a full head of gray hair," "She was a tall and attractive woman of 33") etc. All of the characters are stereotypes and their thoughts often read like a soap opera.

This book was predictable and offered characters and scenes that have been written about for hundreds of years. I didn't fall in love with any of the characters--actually, in the end, I didn't care about any of them one way or another.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Overdone and Unbelievable February 15, 2012

By Meijer Bjorn VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

My wife likes fiction and this is her review:

I was very excited to read this book, I love books that combine the past and present into a wonderful story line. Unfortunately, the book was a disappointment. The characters were not engaging in the least and very unbelievable. The conversations the characters would have are even more strange, the dialogue felt forced and often times like it was written for a bad sitcom based in the 1950's. I also did not enjoy the endless description, the description of everyone's outfit in each scene, the furniture in every room of every house, the look in someones eyes or face or mouth during a scene, very over done and obnoxious.

The story line was interesting and without the other issues I could have liked this book, but, if they took out the things I did not like, the book would only be about 50 pages long!

Overall, I wish I could take back the time I spent reading this book.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars And We Have a Keeper... November 6, 2011

By Tracy F. VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

Few books make it to my keeper shelf, but Robert Barclay's "More Than Words Can Say" earns its place. Part book, part cookbook the story focuses on two generations, a grandmother and granddaughter and their trials with love and heartbreak.

Chelsea Enright is saddened when her grandmother dies, but surprised to learn she's inheriting her grandmother's prized cottage in New York's Adirondacks. As far as Chelsea knows, no one, including her grandmother Brooke, has set foot in the cottage on Lake Evergreen since WWII. No one knows why Brooke never returned to a place she loved, but Chelsea learns it is in great shape, fully updated with modern appliances and it's now Chelsea's. She's doubly surprised to learn that her grandmother left a box hidden in the floorboards that explains the events leading up to her decision to leave the cottage and never return.

For Chelsea, the trip to the cottage is meant to be a quick one to uncover the truth before selling the property. She never expects to meet a man, fall in love and suddenly face a choice that will change her future forever.

I know many people have mixed feelings on Nicholas Sparks' books, but I happen to love them. They're sweet and powerfully emotion, but "More Than Words Can Say" offers depth too. The story does flip flop between present day and Brooke's life in WWII. The balance is perfect and gives plenty of insight into the choices she makes, whether or not the reader agrees.

Balanced with the story are recipes Brooke creates on her limited budget while rations made it hard to do the simple things in life. I have to say, I'm not convinced that some of the ingredients, especially those in the MacArthuroni and Cheese, such as crimini and shiitake mushrooms, would have been readily available, but I'm not a history buff so my gut instinct may be very wrong. In the stories I've heard from my late grandmother, many of the dishes she cooked during the war revolved around items readily available at her farm -- eggs, milk, homemade cottage cheese, apples, vegetables grown in the garden and chicken. Chicken pot pies, chicken and biscuits or ham in scalloped potatoes (mentioned in the book) were very common.

Regardless, the recipes sound simply delightful and the book drew tears. All in all, while lounging in bed this morning and finishing every page under the warmth of my covers, "More Than Words Can Say" definitely started my day off right and made me reminisce about my grandparents and my parents' lives in those very difficult times.