Customer Reviews

Promises promises

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I'm finding myself getting more and more into the books I read by Patricia Scanlan. This book is based in the early - mid sixties, but to me read more like it was the forties, about the women in an extended family, Miriam, Ellen, Emma, and Sheila. The focus of the story changes a lot from one character to the other, but each is interesting enough to carry the story in my opinion.

Sheila is the matriarch, and the stubborn, bossy mother who likes to have her say in the family and what goes on.

Miriam married the younger son in the family; she's a mother by nature as well as a push over.

Emma married the older brother and is also a judges daughter from the big city, she's a spoiled brat and n o one will change that.

Ellen is the boys' only sister, she is Miriam's best friend and a little bit of a free spirit.

Over the years the girls cause drama and have children of their own...it's a very fun story to read!

I read this book several years ago and thought much was left unfinished. I recently read Mirror, Mirror, where the story is brought full circle and it was delightful to see what happened to all the characters. I would love to see Stephanie, Julie Ann and Rebecca in a new volume to see where life takes them

Lousy! Was promising at the beginning with stories about Miriam and Emma. The plot becomes stagnant as it dwells on the Ellen/Chris/Suzy love triangle. The author fails to convince me that Chris is "the love of Ellen's life", more like the lust of her life, afterall, Chris was not the one who introduced orgasm to Ellen and during their courtship, if one can call that courtship at all with Chris described to be one who couldn't careless about Ellen and always fails to keep his promises to call/see Ellen. There was nothing romantic or larger than life in their relationship for it to be termed"the love of her life". The story indeed becomes boring and lifeless soon after Chris broke up with Ellen after knowing the latter's pregnancy, which is only about 1/4 through the novel. It was a drag and an effort to read after that! I've read that Scanlan is compared to Maeve Binchy, no way! At least not as far as this novel is concerned. I haven't read her other books and doubt if I would.