This novel is difficult to follow with shifting story lines and times. Maya and her husband, Stephen, have two children, Ellie and Ben. Maya and her husband are both professors at Columbia, and seem to value their academic careers and credentials more than their children. Ellie struggles with addiction issues, and Ben tries to find where he belongs in the midst of the confusion of his dysfunctional family. At the heart of the novel is a tragedy involving Ellie, which is slow to be revealed. The ending is quite odd and there never seems to be a resolution for anyone in this troubled family.
Hold Still by Lynn Steger Strong is a difficult novel to enjoy. Maya Taylor is at her wit's end with her daughter, Ellie (who is twenty). Ellie's life is out of control with bad choices. Maya sends her daughter to Florida to be a nanny to a friend. Unfortunately, it turns out to be a bad decision. An incident fractures apart both families and sends Ellie spiraling further out of control. Can Maya save her daughter?
Hold Still is told from Maya and Ellie's point-of-views (goes back and forth). In addition, it jumps around to different times (back and forth) to tell the story. These two things lead to a very confusing book (and it did not need to be) that I had a hard time finishing. The majority of the book leads up to the "incident" and then what happened afterward. The incident is easy to figure out (Florida, sun, sand, ocean), but the writer leaves the reader in the dark. I found that I did not like the characters at all which then leads to not caring what happens to them (thus unenjoyable read). The ending was odd (I actually wrote down weird). This is a story that is just told. It is lacking in emotions and depth (I just did not feel it). I give Hold Still 1 out of 5 stars.
I received a complimentary copy of Hold Still from NetGalley (and the publisher) in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel.
Hold Still is told from Maya and Ellie's point-of-views (goes back and forth). In addition, it jumps around to different times (back and forth) to tell the story. These two things lead to a very confusing book (and it did not need to be) that I had a hard time finishing. The majority of the book leads up to the "incident" and then what happened afterward. The incident is easy to figure out (Florida, sun, sand, ocean), but the writer leaves the reader in the dark. I found that I did not like the characters at all which then leads to not caring what happens to them (thus unenjoyable read). The ending was odd (I actually wrote down weird). This is a story that is just told. It is lacking in emotions and depth (I just did not feel it). I give Hold Still 1 out of 5 stars.
I received a complimentary copy of Hold Still from NetGalley (and the publisher) in exchange for an honest evaluation of the novel.
