12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Like Mother, like Son, April 2, 2001
However Robin's book is set at a much-faster pace than his mom's books. It has everything in it, romance, true love, intrigue, despair, hope, humor and happiness. It is a great read ~~ you won't be able to put it down right away! It seems to be a hefty book but it's not. If it starts out slow, don't give up. The best is yet to come.
When I started this book, I had the impression that it was going to be a dark, gloomy book ~~ but that impression changed half way through it. David had just lost his wife Rachel to cancer and unable to cope with anything, he starts working on his family gardens. Sent to America on a marketing job for a few days, David realizes that he couldn't face Scotland without Rachel and applies for a gardening job. Then he becomes involved with a family that he works for.
This novel is a progression of a man's journey through grief only to find hope and love again. It is an emotional book and one that you can't put down easily. You just keep turning the page, promising yourself that this page is going to be it for the night ~~ only to turn the page again. You find yourself rooting for the characters ~~ and by the end of the book, you feel as if the sunshine has come upon you as well as David.
Take it and read it ~~ don't be discouraged by the different writing style ~~ there will never be another Rosamunde Pilcher ~~ but Robin is unique and creative in his own way. His mom should be proud of him.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Simple and Lovely, February 3, 2002
This review is from: An Ocean Apart: A Novel (Mass Market Paperback)
This book was a joy to read. I found it heartwarming, simple and sweet, and although other readers objected to what they thought was a simplistic and cliched plot, I did not.
The story concerns upper-class Scotsman David Inchelvie, who has lost his beloved wife Rachel to cancer. The untimely death of his life's partner has thrown David into a deep and dangerous depression, and forced his elderly father, Lord Inchelvie, to go back to work at the family's renowned distillery. For David, wallowing in his own grief, has brought his children back to his parents' estate, literally dropped them into his parents' care, and taken to the garden, where he is knee-deep in mud all day long. Yes, of course the mud is a metaphor for David's state of mind, and of course it is obvious. But it works.
Although the estate has a perfectly good gardener, David is only sane when he can dig, weed, plant, and work with his hands, as hard as any laborer. Only when he is thoroughly exhausted can he get through his days. His parents are worried sick, and his children need him, but he cannot pull himself out of the mire, literally or figuratively.
But things at the brewery are in sorry shape, as the unscrupulous general manager, who now has the sharp and heretofore cutting-edge boss's son out of the way, is planning nefarious deeds. Duncan Caple is not worried about the old man, as the Lord is easy to fool. But he wants David far away as he schemes to sell out the family's old and elegant business. Therefore, he sends David to America on a largely phony business pretext, and David, barely able to pull himself together, reluctantly agrees.
America is where David starts to notice the sun again. In a lovely village on Cape Cod, he passes himself off as a day laborer, and gets a job with Jasmine, whose philandering husband is off doing what he does best. David finds a small cottage, a horribly smelly dog, an unpretentious seaside village quite unlike what he is used to in Scotland, and a small boy who needs a father figure. And so the plot winds along to its inevitable conclusion, predictable, but wonderful.
What saves this book from banality is Pilcher's utterly ingenuous style, his obvious sincerity, his total honesty and the fact that he cares for his characters very much. In addition, he is a good writer who keeps the plot moving along with good descriptions, interesting plot twists, and a story that holds one's interest.
Is the son as good as the mother? Probably not, but in my view, this first novel holds great promise, and I am anxious to begin his just-released new book!
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