The Good Father [Paperback]

Diane Chamberlain (Author)

Book Description

Release date: April 24, 2012

A beloved daughter. A devastating choice. And now there's no going back.

Four years ago, nineteen-year-old Travis Brown made a choice: to raise his newborn daughter on his own. While most of his friends were out partying and meeting girls, Travis was at home, changing diapers and worrying about keeping food on the table. But he's never regretted his decision. Bella is the light of his life. The reason behind every move he makes. And so far, she is fed. Cared for. Safe.

But when Travis loses his construction job and his home, the security he's worked so hard to create for Bella begins to crumble….

Then a miracle. A job in Raleigh has the power to turn their fortunes around. It has to. But when Travis arrives in Raleigh, there is no job, only an offer to participate in a onetime criminal act that promises quick money and no repercussions.

With nowhere else to turn, Travis must make another choice for his daughter's sake.

Even if it means he might lose her.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A complex, heart-wrenching tale, Chamberlain's latest novel...offers a Jodi Picoult– like story line yanked from the most shocking of headlines. ...[The] frankness of each scene and character should grab readers and keep them eagerly turning pages right up to the startling climax."--Booklist on The Midwife's Confession

"Diane Chamberlain's characters are so realistic that you feel you know them in person, and when you get to the end of the book, you miss them."--New York Times bestselling author Tatiana de Rosnay

"Diane Chamberlain's The Midwife's Confession is a compelling tale of friendship and motherhood told with compassion and vivid honesty. Chamberlain takes the reader on a taut journey filled with secrets, heartbreak and the power of hope. Impossible to put down The Midwife's Confession will break your heart and then mend it tenderly back together."--New York Times bestselling author Heather Gudenkauf

"The Midwife's Confession is an engrossing tale, one that keeps you guessing to the end, with all its twists and turns. This is a novel you won't want to miss!"-Eileen Goudge, New York Times bestselling author of Once in a Blue Moon

"Chamberlain weaves an intensely engaging story of three people with a tragic past, complicated present, and unknown future who must struggle with trust, betrayal, and forgiveness." Booklist on The Lies We Told

About the Author

Diane Chamberlain is the bestselling author of twenty novels, including The Midwife's Confession and The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes. Diane lives in North Carolina and is currently at work on her next novel. Visit her Web site at www.dianechamberlain.com and her blog at www.dianechamberlain.com/blog and her Facebook page at www.facebook.com/Diane.Chamberlain.Readers.Page.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Mira; Original edition (April 24, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9780778313465
• ISBN-13: 978-0778313465
• ASIN: 0778313468
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (95 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #109,772 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

I grew up in Plainfield, New Jersey where, at the age of twelve, I wrote several dreadful novellas, read and admired only by my family. When college rolled around, I forgot about writing and received my bachelor's and master's degrees in Social Work from San Diego State University. I was a hospital social worker in San Diego, and later in Washington DC. I also had a private psychotherapy practice working mainly with teenagers. All the while, I was writing on the side. I viewed my writing as a hobby, but it quickly became a passion. I finally decided to take a class in 'writing the novel.' I was very shy about showing my work to the instructor, but when I finally did, he loved it! He encouraged me to aim for publication and I decided to go for it. A few years later, my first novel, PRIVATE RELATIONS, was published.

Since then, I've written about a book a year- twenty-one at last count. I now live in North Carolina, the beautiful state where many of my books are set and where I'm ten minutes from my grandbabies. I share my life with my soulmate, John, who's a photographer as well as my muse, and with my two shelties, Keeper and Jet.

Are you wondering what my books are about? One of my readers in Japan had this to say about my work: "You make me believe life is beautiful even if it is full of pain and rage." Her words touch me deeply. They hang on the wall above my computer and help me remember exactly what it is I'm trying to achieve in my stories. I hope you'll enjoy them.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#78 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Literary Fiction

#78 in Kindle eBooks > Literature & Fiction > Literary Fiction

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 31 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I've read every book by Diane Chamberlain but... April 24, 2012

By Joann L. Scanlon

Format:Paperback

Never in four hours. You know that expression I couldn't put it down? Well it's a very real here. I think I'm a such a practical person, I know there's other things in life than reading a book, things I really must get done. But I simply needed to know how it would end. I don't like reading reviews that tell the story but rather pique my interest. I know you don't know me, but I would be hard-pressed to find someone who wouldn't enjoy this book. The Good Father is Chamberlain's best in my opinion. Give it a try and don't blame me if dinner is late :-)

17 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The good father April 24, 2012

By sharn3960

Format:Kindle Edition

In one word, excellent. This is one of those books that I'd give 6 stars too if I could. This will be an all time favorite book of mine and I will recommend it every chance I get.

I don't want to say too much about the book because I don't want to give anything away for another reader so I'll keep it simple.

This book is about a single dad, Travis, who is doing his best to raise his 4yr old little girl, Bella, when tragedy strikes and his world slowly falls apart.

I sure hope Diane Chamberlain gets all the credit she's due with this one. I told my sister while I was reading that I can't wait to see how it ends and at the same time I didn't want it to end.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Get the tissues ready! April 24, 2012

By _Shoe_Girl_

Format:Paperback

Oh. My. God. Get the tissues ready. I am warning you right now, I do not have the words to properly describe how wonderful this book was, but I'll try my best. {VERY mild spoilers.}

So often fathers get the short end of the stick when it comes to reputation, even more so for teen fathers. The Good Father is the story of Travis Brown, who through unexpected events comes to be the sole parent of his baby girl, Bella. He is providing for and loving his daughter, and even if they aren't rich, they have each other and are happy. When Travis is faced with a tragedy, his circumstances drastically change and he is faced with something he never thought he would even have to consider, but what other choice does he have? He HAS to have money to provide for/care for Bella.

The Good Father is also Robin, and Erin's stories as well. Robin successfully put her baby girl out of her mind for the past four years, not too hard considering she had never even laid eyes on her. She is healthy, successfully running a B & B, and is engaged to be married to the {hopefully} future Mayor of Beufort. Life is good, or so she thinks. When a family member has a baby girl, it brings back thoughts of her own baby, and how/where she is today. She tries to push the thoughts away, but how long can she really do that?

Erin has suffered a loss that is every parents greatest fear. She isn't coping well, an is in fact just going through the day to day motions of living. That is, until she meets Travis and Bella.

My FULL REVIEW at: [...] shoe-girl. com

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars A bit contrived and predictable, but I'm still a fan. June 14, 2012

By Denise Crawford TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

This is the latest novel by Diane Chamberlain. The story is told in alternating viewpoints and moves back and forth in time but only spanning about 7 years. Travis Brown is a single father to Bella whose mother gave her up at birth. Robin and Travis were childhood sweethearts but she was young, had a heart condition and needed a transplant when she found out she was pregnant with Bella. Travis, down on his luck, and Bella meet a woman in a nearby coffee shop: Erin's daughter died in a freak accident on a beach pier and she can't move on as she drowns in grief. The characters become connected in a convoluted set of events that makes the reader say, "WHAT?!" The author serves up a tale that is supposed to make you sentimental and teary-eyed but really just irritated me. Let me decide how I feel, don't manipulate me. The characters were stereotypes of good and bad, their roles obvious, and the outcome known well before the middle of the book.

I needed a lot of suspension of disbelief as the characters interacted and became involved. I found myself shaking my head although the blurb describes "shocking headlines" and "startling climax." I didn't find the actions or the decisions believable. In fact, the more I read, the more I feared that one of my favorite authors had turned into Jodi Picoult (whose books I refuse to read anymore). Anyway, I was disappointed in this novel because I was so excited to read it since many of Diane's previous books have really struck a chord with me. Usually Diane is a master at writing about relationships and questioning the bonds that hold us close. I also like that there is usually some hidden secret or some sort of mystery involved. My favorite books of hers are com/The-Lies-Told-Diane-Chamberlain/dp/0778328538">The Lies We Told and The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes. I will likely remain a fan, but I hope she changes a few things about her books or I won't be able to read them anymore. Read more ›

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Chamberlain's best work yet April 24, 2012

By amy feld

Format:Paperback

Single dad, 23 year old Travis Brown, and his daughter Bella are homeless after their house burns to the ground. Then, hard economic times take away his livelihood. Now they're living in the back of his truck, using the restroom at a coffee shop to stay clean. They meet Erin at the coffee house, whose grieving over the death of her three-year-old daughter. Elsewhere, Robin, the mother Bellla has never met, is engaged to mayoral hopeful Dale, who comes from a long line of wealthy snobs. Robin tries to distance herself from the painful reasons she gave up custody of her little girl.

Through Travis, Robin, and Erin's POVs, we learn about their difficult pasts and when Erin, accompanied by Bella who she's babysitting, become separated from Travis after he's tricked by drug dealers who want him dead. Erin will do anything to keep Bella safe, but the only person who may be able to help is Robin, who knows nothing about her little girl, not even her name.

Chamberlain masterfully weaves the past and present experiences of the three narrators. The characters are well developed, complex people who are flawed, yet people we root for. I know a book is good when I get a feeling in the pit of my stomach as I near the end, not wanting the story to end.