Helpful Score: 1
What saved this novel for me was the sense of place, conveyed by above-average writing. The story wasn't particularly atmospheric, but instead gave a pretty accurate picture of what life was like in a small, isolated farm town. Residents knew one other well enough to help out in a time of need, whether they liked the person or not.
Although Lawson wanted her readers to feel the heart-wrenching tragedy of the Morrison family for themselves, I never did. Nor did I feel much for the Pye family, who gave new meaning to dysfunctional. I wasn't moved by the brothers' struggles and abandoned dreams.
Mostly what pulled me from the story was the main character's dramatic way of phrasing things, always alluding to some nebulous future (the present). For someone so concerned with sinking her own emotions, Kate surfaced hers pretty clearly in her thoughts. Undertones of judgment crept into everything she felt and that put me off of her as a character. She became completely unrelatable to me when I learned more of her relationship with her current boyfriend. I'm not sure a relationship like theirs even exists (dating a year and he knows nothing, whatsoever, about her family).
The plot stayed just interesting enough to keep me reading; but its strength lies in the picture it paints in one's head.
Although Lawson wanted her readers to feel the heart-wrenching tragedy of the Morrison family for themselves, I never did. Nor did I feel much for the Pye family, who gave new meaning to dysfunctional. I wasn't moved by the brothers' struggles and abandoned dreams.
Mostly what pulled me from the story was the main character's dramatic way of phrasing things, always alluding to some nebulous future (the present). For someone so concerned with sinking her own emotions, Kate surfaced hers pretty clearly in her thoughts. Undertones of judgment crept into everything she felt and that put me off of her as a character. She became completely unrelatable to me when I learned more of her relationship with her current boyfriend. I'm not sure a relationship like theirs even exists (dating a year and he knows nothing, whatsoever, about her family).
The plot stayed just interesting enough to keep me reading; but its strength lies in the picture it paints in one's head.
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