My rating: 3 of 5 stars
From the New York Times bestselling author of Bittersweet comes a novel of suspense and passion about a terrible mistake made sixty years ago that threatens to change a modern family forever.
Twenty-five-year-old Cassie Danvers is holed up in her family’s crumbling mansion in rural St. Jude, Ohio, mourning the loss of the woman who raised her—her grandmother, June. But a knock on the door forces her out of isolation. Cassie has been named the sole heir to legendary matinee idol Jack Montgomery’s vast fortune. How did Jack Montgomery know her name? Could he have crossed paths with her grandmother all those years ago? What other shocking secrets could June’s once-stately mansion hold?
Soon Jack’s famous daughters come knocking, determined to wrestle Cassie away from the inheritance they feel is their due. Together, they all come to discover the true reasons for June’s silence about that long-ago summer, when Hollywood came to town, and June and Jack’s lives were forever altered by murder, blackmail, and betrayal. As this page-turner shifts deftly between the past and present, Cassie and her guests will be forced to reexamine their legacies, their definition of family, and what it truly means to love someone, steadfastly, across the ages.
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I was instantly taken with the blurb and couldn't wait to read this book. I have a big weakness for books with stories were the character in the future is trying to solve some great mystery from the past. Sometimes I love both stories equal, and sometimes I find one slightly better than the other.
When it came to this book I have to admit that I found Cassie's story a bit more interesting than her grandmother June's. I think that's because the characters; Cassie, Tate, Elda Nick, and Hank is way more interesting to read about than June, Lindie, and Jack. I'm not saying that the 1955s story was bad. It's more that I found myself not always that interested in what was going one between June and Jack. One would think that Jack and June would have had a lot of chemistry, she is a beautiful young woman, engaged and Jack, the handsome Hollywood star. But, I just didn't feel it. I felt that Lindie was pushing them together and that was actually a bit annoying.
However, the story in 2015 is really interesting. I loved the interactions between Cassie, Tate, Elda Nick and Hank and Cassie's quest to find out more about Jack and June. And, Cassie and Nick was without doubt much more interesting to read about than Jack and June.
In the end, I have to say that the book was good, despite my lack of passion for the 1955s story. I loved the old house that Cassie had inherited, the feeling that it was alive. Some people made a bigger impression on me than other did and I liked that the story took turns that I didn't expect. Especially towards the end of the book.
Thanks to Crown Publishing and TLC Blog Tours for providing me with a free copy for an honest review!
Thanks to Crown Publishing and TLC Blog Tours for providing me with a free copy for an honest review!
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About Miranda Beverly-Whittemore
MIRANDA BEVERLY-WHITTEMORE is the author of three other novels: New York Times bestseller Bittersweet; Set Me Free, which won the Janet Heidinger Kafka Prize, given annually for the best book of fiction by an American woman; and The Effects of Light. A recipient of the Crazyhorse Prize in Fiction, she lives and writes in Brooklyn.
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Miranda Beverly-Whittemore’s TLC Book Tours TOUR STOPS
Monday, May 23rd: All Roads Lead to the Kitchen
Tuesday, May 24th: A Bookish Way of Life
Wednesday, May 25th: A Literary Vacation
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Monday, May 30th: Buried Under Books
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Tuesday, May 31st: Books a la Mode – author guest post
Wednesday, June 1st: Musings of a Bookish Kitty
Thursday, June 2nd: Luxury Reading
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Monday, June 6th: Kahakai Kitchen
Monday, June 6th: Must Read Faster
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Wednesday, June 8th: Fictionophile
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Friday, June 10th: A Bookaholic Swede
Monday, June 13th: Bewitched Bookworms
Tuesday, June 14th: Reading Reality
Wednesday, June 15th: Kritter’s Ramblings
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