Why I have this book: I read the first two books in the series... and I'm hooked. (All three are on my Kindle.)
I read the first two books again just before reading Paige. I loved the first two... this one had more of that LDS cheesiness than the others did. Maybe because the main character of this one is actually LDS, so there was more of that angle going on. Maybe it's just the author. I don't know.
1) I'm not sure why Paige always refers to herself and other LDS Church members as "Mormons." Yes, I know that's the nickname of our religion, but "LDS" is more accurate and what we've been asked to use. Using "Mormon" seems to date the book (even though it's set in present time), because it's just not used so much anymore.
2) More contrived "villians", in the form of the ex-husband and his wife. They are just over-the-top, with the making out and the mean step-mother routine and just how ridiculous they act. I think that storyline would be more believable if they were just normal people who made a bad decision and maybe still feel and act awkward... but not so pathetic to the extreme.
3) The editing... sometimes I don't know if it's just the Kindle editions that have some of the editing issues, so I can overlook most little things. There were just a couple here... but at one point - just one sentence - the book shifts from "first person" to "third person." I'm not sure how the editor didn't catch that.
4) Maybe it wouldn't be so redundant if I didn't read all three books back to back, but reading the overlapping conversations in each book got kind of old. The good thing about this is that you could probably read the books in any order and they would make sense... although I don't know how they will tie up the end if there's not a little "ever after" in the fourth book. Maybe they aren't planning to tie things up completely. (Actually, mostly it's Daisy's story that seems open-ended at this point.)
What I did enjoy about this book was getting to know Paige better. Hearing her story from her side made her a completely different person than she seemed to be from the other two points of view. My characterization of her changed quite a bit... she was more intelligent, more down to earth, less "Molly Mormon" than I had assumed. I really could feel her emotions - both happy and sad.
I wish the author would have explored Paige's relationship with her ward family better. It seemed somewhat pushed to the side, and implied there was nobody there who cared about her. I'm not sure why the book club ladies were the only friends she had. She seemed committed to her faith, and at the same time, didn't seem very confident with it. Only the surface of that was skimmed, in my opinion, and it could have gone much deeper. But maybe all of that stayed out of the story for a reason. It just doesn't seem to jive with how big a part of life it usually is, especially when Paige made significant decisions because of her faith. There also wasn't much about her extended family. I would think that a newly single mom moving to a new state would have a little more connection with her parents and siblings. I'm not sure why she was so alone in the world... there was never any mention of a conflict with her family.
Anyway, not my favorite of the three, but still an enjoyable read. I look forward to the fourth book in the series, which will be out in a few months.
Clean.
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Oh hey, great review! I had many of the same thoughts you did. But, I'll comment on your different bullet points in the same order you wrote them.
ReplyDelete1. I had the same thought about her use of the term "Mormon", but then I wondered, even though the book is sold at DB and other LDS bookstores, if the series is meant for those of non-LDS faiths as well. It seems to me that may the reason the author describes some basics of our religion. I know, a lot of times she was explaining the LDS religion to the other characters in the story, but it still felt that maybe she was speaking to her readers as well. Then, I got to thinking about www.mormon.org. If we have been asked to refer to our church by the proper name, then why does the Church have that web site. I think they KNOW that people searching for information about our search would type Mormon in to their search engine, so why not use that to their advantage?
2. I agree that "what's his name" and Carol were over the top. But, I also feel like that is a reality for a lot of divorced couples with children. Sad, but true, even though it does seem to be stereotypical. It made it easier for me to loathe them even more, which I'm sure is what she was going for.
3. It's not just the Kindle. I caught the editing issues as well. Especially in one of the last chapters when she switched from 3rd to 1st person. I had to read it 3 or 4 times. Nevermind the fact that it was already 2:00 a.m.
4. Amen to the redundancy issue! I found myself bored with that and skimming over those parts. I too am curious how they will wrap up, or if they will wrap up with all the characters. I doubt it will happen since they are supposedly stand alone novels.
Overall, I have enjoyed all 3 books. I like that these women are all dealing with their significant real-life problems and that they have each other despite their varying backgrounds. Love truly knows no bounds! I think that the author chose not to focus so much on Pagie's religion, but rather on how the women served each other. If you look back at Olivia and Daisy, they each had religion in their lives to varying degrees. I felt the theme was not necessarily to show the extent of religion in their lives and its effect on their daily lives, but to highlight the friendships they formed and how those friendships grew amid their trials.
Good point on the religious aspect. I guess it was hard to fit with knowing that usually being LDS is much bigger than a Sunday religion. Then again, I'm sure it's all different when you're outside of Utah and not necessarily neighbors with your church family. Good stuff to think about.
ReplyDeleteI wonder how many mainstream readers have found these books?