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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Painful and Thoughtful Look into Divorce..., April 21, 2002
This review is from: Promises (Paperback)
This is only my second book by this talented author and again I am impressed by her ability to keep me turning the pages furiously. This story delves into the painful world of divorce after 20 years and how life does indeed go on and how sometimes people are regretful but hate and anger cloud their judgement. The most touching moment in the book that really got to me was how in the end sometimes you get exactly what you thought you wanted and then find out its nothing like you thought and all you want now is to stop time, but you can't. Life can be cruel, but its only as bad as you make it. And sometimes people can't admit their wrongs and can't deal with their mistakes and find other ways of dealing with them... ~Margaret Crane is envied by alot of people. She has a comfortable and nice home with three wonderful children and a loving husband that works too much. Everything seems perfect...too perfect it seems as she wonders why her husband can't seem to get any time off of work anymore and works so late she barely sees him anymore. He seems distracted and distant. As time goes by, her husband Adam seems worried about his job and is on trips all the time, leaving Margaret alone to think...to think alot about the woman she met by accident named Randi, the woman that Adam seemed rattled by seeing after 20 years. The Other Woman. Margaret ignores the warning signs of her failing marriage and fails to acknowledge it until her daughter sees Adam with Randi at a resteraunt and her entire life falls apart in an instant as he confesses. But Margaret is willing to give it another try and Adam also tries, but they both soon realize things are never going to be the same...Adam loves Randi.
Margaret must learn to live without him and get on with life. How can she? How can he forget 20 years of their lives together? Adam also realizes sometimes, getting what you wished for isn't what it's all cracked up to be. And its hard to admit to a mistake, making it more difficult is seeing your ex finally getting on with her life without you in it...yet he cannot live like this. Promises...words spoken so long ago now finally make sense to him. Tracy Talley~@
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Belva Plain does it again!, September 26, 2001
This review is from: Promises (Paperback)
I actually think this book deserves 4 and 1/2 stars. I really enjoy Belva Plain's books and this one was really well written and very interesting, you keep turning the pages to find out what happens next. Margaret is a realistic and sympathetic character and it is interesting to see her progress and get stronger through the divorce process. Adam is the perfect example of "Be careful what you wish for, because you might just get it!". I believe that the author demonstrates a realistic view of divorce, "step" situations and what it does to the children and the family and how each person's feelings are raw with emotion. I definately recommend this book, it will make you think.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Is the grass really greener?, June 17, 2010
Adam has a fling with Randi back in college days. He was being pressured by family and friends to marry Margaret. He meets up with Randi and believes he is in love. She seems to want him to break it off with Margaret but of course he doesn't. He acts as though he feels like he must marry Margaret because it is what his family and friends want. Yet later on in the book he claims to have fallen in love with Margaret.
Randi tells Adam that she is pregnant but that she is going to get rid of the baby because she is going to marry someone else. It seems like she is letting Adam go since he won't break off the relationship with Margaret. However I was a bit put off by her wanting to get rid of the baby especially if she loves Adam. We are not privy to Randi's thoughts though.
Years later Margaret and Adam run into Randi in New York. Randi tries to start things then when Adam searches her out. She knew he would. He is fascinated with her. She moves to Adam's home town which seems suspicious given that she never wanted to move there when they were messing around during their college days.
Adam and Randi start an affair and it seems to last a couple of years and then Margaret finds out about it. So Adam and Margaret split up and Adam has the nerve to tell his children that it has nothing to do with them. It has everything to do with them. This will affect the rest of their lives! He tells them they can count on him. But later he finds it is very difficult to maintain two households on his income and his family starts getting the short end of the stick. Only two of his children visit him the oldest doesn't want anything to do with them. She was on to him when she caught Adam and Randi out having lunch together.
Adam gets downsized at work and one could see the parallels between his job and his marriage. He had started slacking off with his work because he was spending so much time with "free spirit" Randi (coming in late and basically not carrying his wait at work). He wasn't putting much effort into his relationship with his wife when he started getting together with Randi. It was like his employer was him telling his wife he was moving on.
He buys jewelry for Randi, helps to take on her mortgage, and they go on a trip while his family is struggling to eat, run around in a beat up car that is falling apart, having to sale the family home, and being unable to do other things.
Randi doesn't seem to sympathetic for some reason she thought he was a big shot. That he had more money or something. Then she decides that he would have more money if that "bloodsucker" ex of his would keep her hands out of his pockets. The children hear her say these things and she doesn't seem to care. She knew Adam had kids and responsibilities when she hooked up with him.
He finally opens his eyes up about Randi when she lets some things slip. He couldn't seem to handle the things that he did. He gave up his children his home life for her and he was sorry. He felt contempt for himself as well as for Randi. He felt that Margaret had moved on and he didn't seem to know how to get back what he threw away for what he believed was love. So he did something that seems very weak and just finished it.
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