It's over four years, now, since I first read a book by Sue Moorcroft: 'Uphill all the way'. I liked it very much indeed, and looked forward to reading more of her books. However I was less impressed by 'Starting Over', which I read a couple of years later, and her other books have not had a very high profile. I read Sue Moorcroft's blog and enjoy her writing advice, but by the time I looked for others of her published novels, they seemed to have gone out of print.
So I was delighted to discover three of them available inexpensively for the Kindle recently. I started reading 'Want to Know a Secret?' on a recent flight, and then found myself reading a bit more in every free moment I had.
This novel begins with what could have been rather a cliched scene: two large policeman are dominating Diane's kitchen, having just brought her some bad news. Her husband Gareth has been in an accident, although they think he will pull through. But the scene rapidly becomes almost surreal as Diane, in her shock, hears about an accident in circumstances which sound so unlikely that she wonders if it's a case of mistaken identity. Yet the man unconscious in hospital seems, beyond all reasonable doubt, to be indeed her husband.
When at last persuaded to go and visit Gareth, she meets some people who clearly know him well and who seem to know a great deal about her - but whom she has never even heard of. And their resulting conversations do nothing to clarify what is going on initially, although some shocking surprises gradually emerge.
Diane's situation feels almost like a terrible dream, at first. I felt drawn into the story quickly, and found myself empathising quite strongly with her confusion. She is evidently not deluded, or mentally unstable. She's a hard-working woman with a small clothes-making business who sometimes struggles to make ends meet. She is perhaps too trusting, almost naive at times, but she cares deeply for her family and is currently missing her daughter, who is working abroad for a charity.
The story gradually unfolds, and slowly things start to make sense. Issues of greed, depression, snobbery and selfishness arise, and I began to see how such a scenario could possibly happen. Diane is far from perfect. She's the daughter of over-protective, angry parents who pushed her into a marriage which made life often difficult for her. Yet she is immensely likeable, as are several of the other people whom she gets to know. Sue Moorcroft has a great gift for characterisation, and tells a good story. It's a pity - in my opinion - that her work is not more widely known, and that the printed versions of her books go out of print so quickly.
My only mild personal criticism of this book is that there are a couple of over-detailed intimate scenes. They don't quite descend into sordidity, but I felt they were unnecessary - and somehow, did not match well with the characters of the people involved. Perhaps this kind of scene was required by the publisher, but the book would have read rather better with just a hint - or, indeed, slightly more restraint from people who were normally generous and responsible.
Still, overall I enjoyed the book very much and would recommend it highly.
review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 24th October 2011
I had never heard of the American writer Deeanne Gist, but I'm always on the lookout for free downloads for my Kindle. The blurb about this book sounded interesting, so when it was available free recently, I collected it.
'Maid to Match' is light historical fiction which I enjoyed reading on my Kindle during a flight to the UK. The story is set in the USA in the 19th century, and features Tillie, head housemaid in a wealthy home. She - at the urging of her mother over many years - hopes in time to become personal maid to the lady of the household. Work is hard, but the prestige and pay seem enticing. If she is to take this role, she must shun all romance...
Then onto the scene arrives Mack, twin brother to Earl who is another of the servants in the household where Tillie works. Earl is rather a ladies' man but Mack is rougher, and at first clashes quite badly with Tillie - and others - until his humanitarian side is revealed. There's a plot involving an orphanage too, with a most unpleasant manager, and some quite shocking events. And there's the somewhat inevitable love story.
I thought that this book was interesting as social history; at the back the author explains that the setting is based on a real estate with some genuine historical characters, although the story itself - and the staff in the house - are all fictional. The writing is good, the characters believable, and the pace works well. It's listed as Christian fiction, but although there were a few references to church and God, it's so low-key (and in context for the period and location) that I would hardly have noticed.
All in all, this book made pleasant light reading that was ideal for a flight. Nothing special, but an enjoyable story.
Note that the Amazon link is to a printed version of this book as the Kindle version is no longer free.
Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 15th October 2011
I've read a few of Susan Lewis's books in the past couple of years or so. I love her writing - I was particularly taken with her autobiography, 'Just One More Day', which I read in January 2009. So I'm trying a few more, and have just finished 'Dance while you can'.
This book is the story of a forbidden, but passionate romance. Elizabeth, the junior matron at a boys' private school, is surprisingly attractive.. and becomes a little too friendly with one of the older boys. She is only four years older than he is, but relatives and colleagues disapprove strongly, and they are forced to part.
Alexander, the young man concerned, tries to forget his first love. He first tries at university, and then in London high society, with a string of other women. Elizabeth, too, tries to move on with her life. But neither can forget the other, and both wonder if, some day, they might meet again.
The writing in this novel is amazing, the pace fast, the scenarios - including some unlikely and obsessive crimes, with some shocking scenes - surprisingly believable. I found it difficult to put this book down once I had got a way into it. There are sections which alternate between Elizabeth and Alexander's viewpoints, both told in the first person, in a style almost reminiscent of Susan Howatch at times.
There was rather more bad language than I'm comfortable with in this book, but it's par for the course with women's fiction these days, and none of it was really inappropriate.
What badly let the book down, in my opinion, was two overly explicit and entirely unnecessary scenes of intimacy early in the book. They did not fit with the otherwise excellent style, and (thankfully) later bedroom scenes in the book were merely implied, or mentioned in passing.
Still, I would rate the book highly and recommend it to anyone who doesn't mind a couple of explicit passages.
Note that this book can often be found second-hand, and is also available in Kindle form on both sides of the Atlantic.
Review copyright Sue's Book Reviews, 3rd October 2011