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66th out of 105 books
—
455 voters
The Winters in Bloom
by
Lisa Tucker (Goodreads Author)
In bestselling author Lisa Tucker’s latest, a family discovers that it’s only when the walls between the present and past crumble that the future can bloom.
Together for over a decade, Kyra and David Winter are happier than they ever thought they could be. They have a comfortable home, stable careers, and a young son, Michael, who they love more than anything. Yet becaus...more
Together for over a decade, Kyra and David Winter are happier than they ever thought they could be. They have a comfortable home, stable careers, and a young son, Michael, who they love more than anything. Yet becaus...more
Hardcover, 288 pages
Published
September 13th 2011
by Atria Books
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When I picked up The Winters in Bloom by Lisa Tucker I was definitely in the mood for some family drama reading. I got chills with the opening section and felt immediately connected to this small, 5-year old child named Michael. Then, he was whisked away and the story began to unfold.
The Winters in Bloom is a novel that explores not only the disappearance of Michael, but the past histories of his parents. Both are overly cautious for reasons of their own. For David Winter, it was tragedy of one...more
The Winters in Bloom is a novel that explores not only the disappearance of Michael, but the past histories of his parents. Both are overly cautious for reasons of their own. For David Winter, it was tragedy of one...more
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Reviewed by Lisa
Book provided by Publicist
Kyra and David Winter seem to have the perfect life. A strong marriage, great careers and a beautiful son named Michael. On an ordinary summer day their perfect life begins to crumble when Michael disappears from their backyard. They each suspect the past they have been running from for so long has finally caught up to them. Krya and David begin to realize that in order for them to move forward, they must revisit the past they have hidden from each other...more
Book provided by Publicist
Kyra and David Winter seem to have the perfect life. A strong marriage, great careers and a beautiful son named Michael. On an ordinary summer day their perfect life begins to crumble when Michael disappears from their backyard. They each suspect the past they have been running from for so long has finally caught up to them. Krya and David begin to realize that in order for them to move forward, they must revisit the past they have hidden from each other...more
I’ve always hear there are 3 sides to any problem a couple has - her side, his side and the truth.
In the case of THE WINTERS IN BLOOM, the secrets each bring to their marriage creates a most unusual and very sheltered world where the truth is hard to find.
David and Kyra Winters appear to be the ideal family with a bright young son, careers they enjoy, and a stable home life. However, both parents are extremely overprotective of their son, Michael, fearing something will happen to him. Then the u...more
In the case of THE WINTERS IN BLOOM, the secrets each bring to their marriage creates a most unusual and very sheltered world where the truth is hard to find.
David and Kyra Winters appear to be the ideal family with a bright young son, careers they enjoy, and a stable home life. However, both parents are extremely overprotective of their son, Michael, fearing something will happen to him. Then the u...more
Kyra and David Winter are your prime example of parents that are smotherers. They are overly protective, even taking their little boy out of school and homeschooling him. So when little Michael disappears out of their backyard, they are more than just a little shocked.
But both David and Kyra have secrets from their past that they believe have come back to haunt them. Could the kidnapper be David’s ex wife? Or one of Kyra’s long lost family members?
I’ve waited almost a week after finishing this b...more
But both David and Kyra have secrets from their past that they believe have come back to haunt them. Could the kidnapper be David’s ex wife? Or one of Kyra’s long lost family members?
I’ve waited almost a week after finishing this b...more
Doubt is a powerful emotion especially when it spills over into a child’s world. Children are very perceptive and can easily pick up on a parent’s thinking whether it is verbally expressed or not. I doubt he can climb that tree, so we mustn’t let him try. Doubt is pervasive whether we want it to be or not.
Five-year-old Michael lives in an environment of doubt. Although his parents, David and Kyra Winter, believe they are doing everything possible to raise a happy healthy child, what they are act...more
Five-year-old Michael lives in an environment of doubt. Although his parents, David and Kyra Winter, believe they are doing everything possible to raise a happy healthy child, what they are act...more
Kyra and David Winters are cautious parents to 6-year old Michael. Some might say overly cautious. Their lives soon come under scrutiny after Michael disappears from their backyard, threatening to change their lives forever.
An excellent narrative on why families should be as honest as possible with one another. The secrets that both David and Kyra hold inside threaten to break their marriage and their family. At times far-fetched and at others, spot on, this novel made me really think about how...more
An excellent narrative on why families should be as honest as possible with one another. The secrets that both David and Kyra hold inside threaten to break their marriage and their family. At times far-fetched and at others, spot on, this novel made me really think about how...more
Where’s my Mommy?
Winters in Bloom is an intergenerational book centered on the loss or lack or just bad parenting. Mostly it’s moms who are derided but dads don’t come out too great either. Two small girls, Amy and Kyra, watch as their mom packs up the car and leaves her daughters weeping and alone on the front doorstep. They never recover. Though they have a father and stepmother they always feel the only one they can count on is one another. Amy tries to be perfect, perfect grades, behavior, l...more
Winters in Bloom is an intergenerational book centered on the loss or lack or just bad parenting. Mostly it’s moms who are derided but dads don’t come out too great either. Two small girls, Amy and Kyra, watch as their mom packs up the car and leaves her daughters weeping and alone on the front doorstep. They never recover. Though they have a father and stepmother they always feel the only one they can count on is one another. Amy tries to be perfect, perfect grades, behavior, l...more
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When I started reading my e-galley of The Winters in Bloom, I noticed first the page at the beginning where the publisher was talking about how much she loved this book and how it was the best one of the year. Her praise was so high that I kind of rolled my eyes, thinking that she loves it because it will make her money. I am happy to report that the book really was that good. From the absolutely incredible first chapter, I was totally involved in the story.
My one previous experience with Lisa T...more
My one previous experience with Lisa T...more
I really loved this book once I sat myself down and just started reading.
The first chapter is absolutely amazing and really sets the rest of the book up. It's told from Michael’s point of view, in 3rd person, and really shows his life so far. He lives a life filled with worries and doubts and not the life a 5 year old should be having. His parents' over-protectiveness has started seeping into his own thoughts, but underneath that, there is a small glimpse of that little five year old spirit.
The...more
The first chapter is absolutely amazing and really sets the rest of the book up. It's told from Michael’s point of view, in 3rd person, and really shows his life so far. He lives a life filled with worries and doubts and not the life a 5 year old should be having. His parents' over-protectiveness has started seeping into his own thoughts, but underneath that, there is a small glimpse of that little five year old spirit.
The...more
I thoroughly enjoyed The Winters in Bloom by Lisa Tucker. The book centers around a single day in the life of the Winter family. Both David and Kyra are plauged by troubled family pasts, and they are terrified that something will happen to their precious five year old, Michael. When Michael is taken from their backyard while both David and Kyra are inside, their worst fears become their reality and they must face the family members and the pasts that have made them who they are today in an attem...more
Winters in Bloom is a stark, realistic view of modern families. It brings up often hidden issues such as post partum depression, anxiety, parental neglect, and drug addiction. The author, Lisa Tucker, shows how these issues affect the individuals inflicted with them as well as how the family members are affected. Perhaps most powerfully, it shows how the family members can be permanently disturbed and end up passing on their troubles to their own children.
This book is deep and dark, with nothing...more
This book is deep and dark, with nothing...more
Kyra and David Winters love their son Michael more than anything in the world. They had not planned on having children and could hardly believe how lucky they were. They were happy! Surely something was bound to happen. In their eyes, the world was a dangerous place and above all they had to protect Michael. When Michael was only two he had become very sick and was taken to the hospital. Ever since, Kyra was quick to pull out the thermometer any time Michael seemed a little off and although Mich...more
The Winters, David and Kyra, are happy being married to each other and parenting their gifted son, Michael. Their happiness is not without undercurrents, as they each have reason to fear that sudden, devastating loss may enter their lives. In some people, emotional scars are readily apparent. However, there are other people whose inner wounds continue to fester and never heal over. They may appear functional, but the turmoil inside increases in pitch until it escapes, leaving havoc in its wake....more
The Winters in Bloom follows Kyra and David Winter over the course of the day their 5 year old son Michael is kidnapped. The Winters have been so extremely careful and protective of their son because they each know from past experiences that very terrible things can happen and they want to try to prevent such things from happening to their son - yet he is kidnapped from their own backyard. During the day while the police try to find Michael, David and Kyra each remember their own painful pasts t...more
I'm not a fan of any story that features kidnapping--heaven knows, there's enough of that in the world that I don't need it to spice up my fictional reading. I thought perhaps this story would have it as a redeeming feature but that isn't the case. This is a sad, dark story that takes place in "opposite land"--people are cautious when they shouldn't be and trusting when they should be calling the police. The ending didn't fit and there were too many leaps of suspended reality for me to accept. I...more
David and Kyra are over protective and have even taken Michael out of school because of it. They have finally let him go outside by himself for half an hour to play each day, but Michael has no idea what to do with himself. Then a stranger shows up and starts talking to him. She convinces Michael to leave with her and that begins the Winters nightmare. While talking with the police, Kyra and David eventually tell about the things that happened in their lives to make them the way they are. David...more
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The Winters in Bloom is an introspective novel about forgiveness. Not just forgiving people for their transgressions against us, but forgiving ourselves for mistakes made long ago. The Winters in Bloom is somewhat of a dark novel. The subject matter is heartbreaking, there is no way around that. I did like that portions of the book is set in Kansas City, on a day (Home opener of the Chief's) that I want to be in Kansas City more than any other day, it was...more
The Winters in Bloom is an introspective novel about forgiveness. Not just forgiving people for their transgressions against us, but forgiving ourselves for mistakes made long ago. The Winters in Bloom is somewhat of a dark novel. The subject matter is heartbreaking, there is no way around that. I did like that portions of the book is set in Kansas City, on a day (Home opener of the Chief's) that I want to be in Kansas City more than any other day, it was...more
THE WINTERS IN BLOOM by Lisa Tucker
Kyra and David Winter are the epitome of “helicopter” parents. They keep their young son Michael on a very short leash with many restrictions. They even home school him after imagined issues with schools.
Despite all their overprotective measures, little Michael is snatched from his own backyard the first time they decide he can play outside for a limited amount of time. Instead of calling the police, the Winters start their own investigation. They both have ser...more
Kyra and David Winter are the epitome of “helicopter” parents. They keep their young son Michael on a very short leash with many restrictions. They even home school him after imagined issues with schools.
Despite all their overprotective measures, little Michael is snatched from his own backyard the first time they decide he can play outside for a limited amount of time. Instead of calling the police, the Winters start their own investigation. They both have ser...more
The Short of It:
I opened the book and fell right in.
The Rest of It:
Kyra and David are happily married, have a nice home and have stable careers. They live with their son Michael and things could not be more perfect. But in the back of their minds, because of decisions they made in the past, they expect tragedy at every turn and it hits when Michael suddenly vanishes from their backyard.
This is really an amazing book. I know it’s gotten some mixed reviews but if you enjoy dysfunction, let me tell...more
I opened the book and fell right in.
The Rest of It:
Kyra and David are happily married, have a nice home and have stable careers. They live with their son Michael and things could not be more perfect. But in the back of their minds, because of decisions they made in the past, they expect tragedy at every turn and it hits when Michael suddenly vanishes from their backyard.
This is really an amazing book. I know it’s gotten some mixed reviews but if you enjoy dysfunction, let me tell...more
1 like · like · see review
This is a page turner and a compelling story, but I couldn't relate to any of the characters. I read it in one sitting because I wanted to know how it all turned out. Although you do get some closure, the ending is very abrupt and not very satisfying.
(view spoiler)...more
(view spoiler)...more
Unhappy, dysfunctional families have been fodder for fiction forever, from Euripedes to Shakespeare, Tolstoy to Conroy. In this era of pop psychology, rehab and self-help, the genre has expanded to embrace the legions of the “recovering” from the damages inflicted by abuse, absent parents, trauma and codependency. These survivors spend untold energies trying to build a healthier, happier, more “normal” life, complete with the house, the job and the children. Their grasp on this perfect world is...more
I liked it ... so much, that it moved me and brought up some of my own issues. It was very well written, and very insightful. The ending felt a little like wishful thinking, though.
But it definitely started me thinking ... what is it about serious modern novels? Do novel-writing schools now all teach that the story must be told in hopscotch format? Or is it publishers who require that consecutive chapters of story be shuffled like a poker deck? If they're afraid that modern audiences don't have...more
But it definitely started me thinking ... what is it about serious modern novels? Do novel-writing schools now all teach that the story must be told in hopscotch format? Or is it publishers who require that consecutive chapters of story be shuffled like a poker deck? If they're afraid that modern audiences don't have...more
This book had me wrapped up in the characters from the very beginning. When David and Kyra's son, Michael disappears, both contemplate who from their past could have done this to them. They have taken every precaution to keep their little boy safe, only to have him taken in the blink of an eye.
Kyra has been struggling with her problems since her mother walked out on the family when she was a young girl. Kyra became closer to her sister Amy, but somehow failed to realize that the day her mother l...more
Kyra has been struggling with her problems since her mother walked out on the family when she was a young girl. Kyra became closer to her sister Amy, but somehow failed to realize that the day her mother l...more
The premise seems a bit of a stretch -- two people, David and Kyra, who have experienced great loss, the depth of loss both kept secret from each other -- fall in love, marry, and have a child who (because of their pasts) they over-overprotect. Then, in a moment of freedom (with a wink to Free Range Kids) the boy, Michael, is taken. I was interested to find out the full back stories of the parents and the identity and motivation of the kidnapper. All in all it was tied together well, and perhaps...more
Two neurotic parents = one neurotic little 5 year old boy, who you feel extremely sorry for right off the bat. His parents have placed such anxiety and worry on the little guy, that you want to slap them yet feel sorry for them at the same time.
His parents, David and Kyra, are carrying lots of old baggage from their pre-marriage lives and relationships. They've not exactly been open with each other, and each one has kept things of their pasts hidden from the other. When their overprotected son...more
His parents, David and Kyra, are carrying lots of old baggage from their pre-marriage lives and relationships. They've not exactly been open with each other, and each one has kept things of their pasts hidden from the other. When their overprotected son...more
Aug 18, 2011
Sarah (Workaday Reads)
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
read-in-2011
Kyra and David Winter are both super cautious people because of their painful pasts. Both fear they don't deserve the happiness they currently have and that it will not last. Their worse fears are confirmed when their five year old son Michael disappears from their yard in the middle of the afternoon. Both parents are convinced the kidnapper is someone from their past, and now they must surrender their fears and confess what,a nd who, they are each hiding.
This is a powerful and emotional book. I...more
This is a powerful and emotional book. I...more
When I started this book it just seemed like a run of the mill kidnapping story where the overprotective parents turn their back for one second and the kid goes missing. As we get further into the story, the main characters back-stories begin to be peeled back layer by layer. David has an ex-wife who may or may not be responsible for their own sons death and Kyra has an estranged sister who wants to punish her for something we don't learn about until the last few chapters.
It's not until the back...more
It's not until the back...more
The Winters in Bloom *** Lisa Tucker… was a little too dramatic at times, but it held my attention. There are interesting twists and turns in the plot, even if it was too drawn out. Most readers liked it more than I did.
Mason Canyon wrote:
“David and Kyra Winters appear to be the ideal family with a bright young son, careers they enjoy, and a stable home life. However, both parents are extremely overprotective of their son, Michael, fearing something will happen to him. Then the unthinkable happe...more
Mason Canyon wrote:
“David and Kyra Winters appear to be the ideal family with a bright young son, careers they enjoy, and a stable home life. However, both parents are extremely overprotective of their son, Michael, fearing something will happen to him. Then the unthinkable happe...more
I had never read anything by Lisa Tucker before and I picked out this book in the library on impulse. I have a huge stack of books at home to read, so why pick this one? I was glad I did. It is a perfect book for summer: a quick engrossing read. Michael and Kyra are the most over protective parents imaginable and apparently they have never fully shared with each other why. The first time they give their son any freedom, he is abducted. The depth of their secrets are exposed, but in the end it se...more
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lisa's NYT article on writing WINTERS and her brain aneurysm | 1 | 12 | Aug 24, 2011 05:31am |
![The Winters in Bloom [With Earbuds] (Audiobook)](http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1348006458s/14585985.jpg)
Lisa Tucker is the author of six novels: The Winters in Bloom, coming this September; The Song Reader, Shout Down the Moon, Once Upon a Day, The Cure for Modern Life, and The Promised World.
Her books have been published in twelve countries and selected for Borders Original Voices, Book of the Month Club, the Literary Guild, Doubleday Book Club, People magazine Critic’s Choice, Redbook Book Club, A...more
More about Lisa Tucker...
Her books have been published in twelve countries and selected for Borders Original Voices, Book of the Month Club, the Literary Guild, Doubleday Book Club, People magazine Critic’s Choice, Redbook Book Club, A...more
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