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44th out of 317 books
—
512 voters
The Three Miss Margarets (Miss Margarets #1)
by
Louise Shaffer (Goodreads Author)
Miss Peggy, Dr. Maggie, and Miss Li’l Bit, friends and confidantes for nearly a lifetime, find it funny and bewildering that they have become icons in Charles Valley, Georgia. Little does the rest of the town know that beneath the irreproachable façades of its three doyennes lies an explosive decades-old secret that is about to be revealed.
Thirty-odd years ago the three Mi...more
Thirty-odd years ago the three Mi...more
Paperback, 336 pages
Published
August 3rd 2004
by Ballantine Books
(first published 2003)
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I just picked this up at the library on a whim...the kids were done and ready to go and I still had not picked out a book...so I ran to an aile and just picked one...and this was it...isn't it funny I didn't even notice the author's last name until I was almost done with the book....weird...anyway....it was an okay read. It had some swearing in it...and just one scene I skipped through. It's about three women all named Margaret..Peggy, Lil Bit and Maggie. They are all around 10 years apart in ag...more
This is a good book for a book club selection. The book begins with the three Miss Margaret's, three elderly women who have been friends since childhood. They are all named Margaret, but are known as Maggie, Lil' Bit and Peggy. As young adults, they make a decision regarding an incident that affects the rest of their lives. The book makes you really evaluate how that decision and its consequences affect the ones they love. It's a case ultimately of whether the means justifies the end. The story...more
This book started a little slower than I like but the characters were
interesting enough for me to want to continue. Very good character
development. I wanted to be friends with almost all of them. The
'troubled' young white trash character was not likeable at all; in fact
I didn't care what happened with her. She is supposed to be an integral
part of the story, and perhaps she is, but I didn't like her; she added
nothing to the story. The author tries to build up a big 'reveal or
revelation' but it wa...more
interesting enough for me to want to continue. Very good character
development. I wanted to be friends with almost all of them. The
'troubled' young white trash character was not likeable at all; in fact
I didn't care what happened with her. She is supposed to be an integral
part of the story, and perhaps she is, but I didn't like her; she added
nothing to the story. The author tries to build up a big 'reveal or
revelation' but it wa...more
As trite as it sounds, this book merits negative stars. I stumbled upon a copy of this book at Salvation Army, and being a fan of the sub-genre that is Southern Chick Lit., I forked over my dollar and brought it home in my stack. So started the beginning of the end.
Unfortunately, this book forces me to focus not on the novel, as I would like, but on the author, whose underhanded distaste of the South and its people is apparent. When someone literally knows nothing about the author--not even her...more
Unfortunately, this book forces me to focus not on the novel, as I would like, but on the author, whose underhanded distaste of the South and its people is apparent. When someone literally knows nothing about the author--not even her...more
I actually listened to this book read by Linda Stephens. She was excellent as a reader and I will definitely listen to books read by her again.
The book was a study of characters. The three Miss Margarets have colluded in the misdirection of a crime which occurred years before. Now, it's all about to come out.
Takes a bit to follow the characters at first but well worth it.
The book was a study of characters. The three Miss Margarets have colluded in the misdirection of a crime which occurred years before. Now, it's all about to come out.
Takes a bit to follow the characters at first but well worth it.
i'm halfway through this book and i'm hooked, i didn't want to go to work today because i wanted to finish it. i think i'll be finishing this tonight before i go to bed. the interweaving stories from different characters and from past and present is a nice way of telling the story.
Superb beginning to end! Ahhhh....nothing like a decades old secret between three extremely close friends to make you grab a book off the shelf and rush home to start reading. Not only is there this underlying theme that remains unrevealed nearly forever, but there is this awesomely wonderful friendship that links the 'three Miss Margarets' together. Add a newcomer to town digging around for information, and just plain great writing on every level...well, get this book and you'll be hooked. Hard...more
I really enjoyed this book, until, literally, the very last page. I thought the ending was crap, but the rest of it was great and interesting.
Basically, and I mean really basically, it's about three old women who had a big scary secret, and also the story of a young woman who had a horrible childhood and acted like it as an adult. The whole story is about the big secret the Three Margaret's know, and the families who had to do with the secret, which also tells the entire life stories of everyon...more
Basically, and I mean really basically, it's about three old women who had a big scary secret, and also the story of a young woman who had a horrible childhood and acted like it as an adult. The whole story is about the big secret the Three Margaret's know, and the families who had to do with the secret, which also tells the entire life stories of everyon...more
Three elderly white Georgia women, all named Margaret, share a deep friendship and a dark secret in this winning debut by actress and television writer Shaffer. For reasons not entirely clear even to her, Laurel Selene McCready has inherited her mother's grudge against "the three Miss Margarets," upstanding icons in rural Charles Valley. Returning home drunk late one night, she spies the three ladies congregating unaccountably in a deserted cabin. The body of Vashti Johnson, a renowned African-A...more
A wonderfully written tale of three very different Southern women bound together, first by their friendship, and second by their orchestration and subsequent cover-up of an illegal incident. The incident has far reaching consequences on the lives of the innocent as well as the guilty in Charles Valley, Georgia. Shaffer does not use the stereotypical image of Steel Magnolias in her invention of Dr. Maggie, Miss Peggy, and Lil' Bit. Instead, she constructs three very real, likable, if not perfect,...more
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I wanted to read this because I enjoyed Shaffer's other book, Serendipity....but I think it was better. The story is about three southern ladies named Margaret and the things they have done over the years to achieve certain ends in their small Georgia community. It had many elements of a great book and teetered on the edge several times, but all in all it was just good. I didn't love the ending and some of the characters just weren't likeable enough to hold the story together.
wonderful, wow
I love the way it was written with the flashbacks, lots of suspense, great characters, soooooo sad.
I don't know how to pronounce Vashti and i have to say i didn't really like her at all, her actual story was probably the only part of the book that made me want to put it down long enought to grab a snack. The ladies individual secrets were real shockers to me and very well written. big thumbs up this one will stay with me for a long time.
I love the way it was written with the flashbacks, lots of suspense, great characters, soooooo sad.
I don't know how to pronounce Vashti and i have to say i didn't really like her at all, her actual story was probably the only part of the book that made me want to put it down long enought to grab a snack. The ladies individual secrets were real shockers to me and very well written. big thumbs up this one will stay with me for a long time.
This book was a fun pick up and read in a weekend type of book. I would have given it 4 stars, but it was rough around the edges. A bit too much immorality, drinking, etc. It was an easy light read about 3 female friends spanning 3 generations. They had a secret to keep for many years, which is finally revealed inthe end. I think I was in the mood for an easy book I didn't have to think about, but reader beware it was trashy.
2.5 stars. I almost quit reading this a few times near the beginning, but then I got drawn in to the story enough that I was very interested to find out the end and uncover all the secrets. It did get a little confusing at times with all the switching back and forth between the three different women and the past and present. There was also quite a bit of language. It was okay, but definitely not a favorite.
I'm always surprised by the books my book club picks. They seem to end up as real treasures. I read it in 4 days and must say it held my interest with suspense from chapter to chapter. The story is about 3 women, named Margaret in a Georgia town and how their lives intertwined from after WW II to the present and the secrets they kept that affected others in the town. It was a good read and I lost myself in the book each time I picked it up.
I absolutely adored this book, and I'm not ashamed to say I read it twice in the space of three weeks... Another Book Club book, it was one I thoroughly enjoyed.. A great story with colorful characters, a terrific plot and satisfying conclusion.
I have NEVER BEFORE read a book over again in such a small space of time...and I could re-read it again now... I felt so sad when I finished it, felt like I was leaving old friends..In fact I wanted to be friends with the three Miss Margarets and sit on t...more
I have NEVER BEFORE read a book over again in such a small space of time...and I could re-read it again now... I felt so sad when I finished it, felt like I was leaving old friends..In fact I wanted to be friends with the three Miss Margarets and sit on t...more
definitely a 3.5... She is a great story teller, and it's a winding story that makes you think about choices we make, and the ripple effects that occur because of that one choice. Tough issues: racism, rape, murder, injustice in the south... but it is also filled with hope of the human spirit, and the courage involved in doing the right thing, even when it doesn't seem right...
Despite my efforts at recordkeeping, this was an accidental re-read. I checked out CD's from the library, and by the time I realize that I had already read it, I was engrossed in it again. It contains many of my favorite elements for a good read: portraits of southern ladies, historical setting, and mystery. It kept my interest even though I knew how it would end.
So, technically this book isn't "read" since I didn't finish it--the language was horrible, the storyline dull, and the development uncomfortable and slow. I checked this book out thinking it was by Mary Ann Shaffer (I should have looked more closely!) who wrote another book I wanted to read but the library didn't have. Unfortunately, it was not a pleasant book to dive into.
A remarkable story about 3 women whose lives intersect a whole community, and how several seemingly small decisions can change countless lives for years to come. It was somewhat difficult to keep all the characters and their stories straight, but as the book continued, several pieces to the puzzle fell into place that helped all the side-stories make sense. The ending was abrupt, and not what I expected.
Miss Peggy, Dr. Maggie, and Miss Li’l Bit, friends and confidantes for nearly a lifetime are icons in their Southern town. Little does the town know their decades old secret. I would have given this book 5 stars but there is a bit of language in it I wasn't comfortable with. It is however a great story and very well written.
Jan 04, 2012
CYNTHIA
added it
"oh what tangled webs we weave, when first we practice to deceive". No truer words were ever spoken. These three, amazing, women hold a life long secret that threatens to destroy them. Joining them on their journey to reveal what they know they must, was an exciting, interesting ride.
Loved, loved, loved this book and this book series. Nothing too deep but stories that contained a little bit of everything from very special friendships, life's triumphs and disappointments, bravery, sadness, just a good look at surviving life's struggles. I highly recommend!
I really like this book. I found it tucked away in my book shelf and pulled it out wondering why I had never read it. Still don't know but it was a good read. I'll look for other books by Louise Schaffer. It's set in the south and the 3 Miss Margarets are certainly interesting characters.
Small town drama managed by Maggie, Peggy and Lil' Bit. Laurel decides to get the truth about her murdering/murdered father. And it all seems to take place in a town very similar to Pine Mountain and Callaway Gardens. Interesting, well written read.
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A stroy about 3 women named Margaret living in a small southern town who take matters into their own hands. A fun read. Nothing sensational. I read the book because the author, Louise Shaffer, was a classmate and friend of mine in high school.
I enjoyed this story very much. It had a nice surprise ending. It was pretty good with relationships and the price we pay for each of them. The story is well told, with enough characters to make it most enjoyable.
Three elderly southern women named Peggy aged about 10 years apart have kept a secret for years and this book tells each of their stories. It is a bit of a mystery; race plays a part. It is rather sad in a way.
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Louise is a believer in there’s always a second chance. An actress since she was fifteen, she found herself unemployed when she was in her mid-forties. The reason was…well, she was in her mid-forties. Not a good thing if you’re an actress – aging and eating are taboo. Louise has done both. Also, she was pretty clear about the fact that she was never going to have “knee surgery.” That’s what happen...more
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05 ott. 22:07