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Game of Secrets
In 1957, Jane Weld was eleven years old when her father, Luce, disappeared. His skiff was found drifting near a marsh, empty except for his hunting coat and a box of shotgun shells. No one in their small New England town knew for sure what happened until, three years later, Luce’s skull rolled out of a gravel pit, a bullet hole in the temple. Rumors sprang up that he had been murdered by the jealous husband of his mistress, Ada Varick.
Now, half a century later, Jane is still searching for the truth of her father’s death, a mystery made more urgent by the unexpected romance that her willful daughter, Marne, has struck up with one of Ada’s sons. As the love affair intensifies, Jane and Ada meet for their weekly Friday game of Scrabble, a pastime that soon transforms into a cat-and-mouse game of words long left unspoken, and dark secrets best left untold.
From the Hardcover edition.
Now, half a century later, Jane is still searching for the truth of her father’s death, a mystery made more urgent by the unexpected romance that her willful daughter, Marne, has struck up with one of Ada’s sons. As the love affair intensifies, Jane and Ada meet for their weekly Friday game of Scrabble, a pastime that soon transforms into a cat-and-mouse game of words long left unspoken, and dark secrets best left untold.
From the Hardcover edition.
253 pages, Hardcover
First published July 5, 2011
24 people are currently reading
1737 people want to read
About the author
Dawn Tripp
9 books354 followersDawn Tripp is the nationally bestselling author of five novels. Her most recent, JACKIE, a fictionalized biography of Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, was longlisted for the Massachusetts Book Award and won the San Diego Writers Historical Fiction Award. She is also the author of GEORGIA, finalist for the New England Book Award and winner of the Mary Lynn Kotz Award for Art in Literature. Previous novels include GAME OF SECRETS, MOON TIDE, and THE SEASON OF OPEN WATER, which won the Massachusetts Book Award for fiction. Her poems and essays have appeared in the Virginia Quarterly Review, Harvard Review, AGNI, NPR, and Conjunctions. Her work has been translated into a dozen languages. She graduated from Harvard and lives in Massachusetts with her sons. She currently serves as chair of the board of the Boston Book Festival, and as a visiting writer at the Island School.
www.DawnTripp.com
www.DawnTripp.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 119 reviews
June 19, 2020
when you play the game of secrets, you win... or you die.
nahhh, nothing as dramatic as that, and not one single dragon.
this book is better than it looks, but not as good as i had hoped.
it has beautiful language but a really clunky plot.
it made my rhode islander's heart swell with its mentions of del's lemonade, lincoln dog park, newport jai alai, and coffee milk. but the relationships, both romantic and familial, left me without heartswells at all.
the family secrets were everywhere on the spectrum from "expected" to "bananas."
the scrabble subplot, which i had hoped would be an experience of buried secrets doled out within the context of an innocent game, turned out to be just a banal game, with occasional folksy metaphor, ruined by the secret that was on the "bananas" end. seriously - what was that?
there were either printing errors in mine that changed characters' names, or characters who appeared and disappeared into the various plots.
there was either a lot of character-misperception or really graceless blocking by the author in her attempt to mask the truths of the past, and the importance of the characters therein.
in short, there were problems.
it was perfectly readable, and some of the writing about the perilous relationship between mothers and daughters and the teenage sulk that never quite leaves was good, but there was never a good enough reason for these characters' rift, or marne's scorn towards her mother. there were moments of insight and beauty, but overall, the plot was being pulled in too many directions, and she lacked the connective thread that is what makes books like this work. there was never an "aha" gasp that brought all the stories up short to reveal their pattern. there were just words. on a flat board. branching off in too many directions.
come to my blog!
nahhh, nothing as dramatic as that, and not one single dragon.
this book is better than it looks, but not as good as i had hoped.
it has beautiful language but a really clunky plot.
it made my rhode islander's heart swell with its mentions of del's lemonade, lincoln dog park, newport jai alai, and coffee milk. but the relationships, both romantic and familial, left me without heartswells at all.
the family secrets were everywhere on the spectrum from "expected" to "bananas."
the scrabble subplot, which i had hoped would be an experience of buried secrets doled out within the context of an innocent game, turned out to be just a banal game, with occasional folksy metaphor, ruined by the secret that was on the "bananas" end. seriously - what was that?
there were either printing errors in mine that changed characters' names, or characters who appeared and disappeared into the various plots.
there was either a lot of character-misperception or really graceless blocking by the author in her attempt to mask the truths of the past, and the importance of the characters therein.
in short, there were problems.
it was perfectly readable, and some of the writing about the perilous relationship between mothers and daughters and the teenage sulk that never quite leaves was good, but there was never a good enough reason for these characters' rift, or marne's scorn towards her mother. there were moments of insight and beauty, but overall, the plot was being pulled in too many directions, and she lacked the connective thread that is what makes books like this work. there was never an "aha" gasp that brought all the stories up short to reveal their pattern. there were just words. on a flat board. branching off in too many directions.
come to my blog!
July 7, 2011
In Game of Secrets, the lives of two women, two families are tied forever by a unsolved crime and secrets of the past. In 1957, Luce Weld, father to (12) year old Jane disappeared. Luce was a womanizer who had been having an affair with Ada Varick. Ada was married to Silas at that time, but left her husband the year her son Ray was born. What exactly happened to Luce, is unknown, however in the 1960's a skull with bullet hole in it was found, and it townspeople suspected it could have been Luce.
Now in 2004, Jane still has never really gotten over the disappearance of her father. Her relationship with her own adult daughter, Marne, who has just returned back to New England from California, has suffered as well. Marne, soon begins a relationship with Asa's son Ray. Jane, now 60, and Asa, 80, meet for weekly Scrabble games. Initially, not much is discussed about the past, or the affair between Asa and Jane's father, but little by little a power play with words over a weekly board game brings the details of the past to the forefront.
This novel has it all, a mystery with an addictive plot and plot twists, complex characters, a scandalous affair, complete with details of clandestine meetings. Literary thriller fans will enjoy this creative work. I was hooked from the very beginning, and I was able to read this book in just one afternoon. It is certainly one of the best literary thrillers, that I've read in a while.
July 6, 2011
I loved this book. I know from this writer's past work that she has the ability to create vivid characters who are equally capable of love and violence. Game of Secrets is her best yet and it asks an important central question: How well do we ever really know anyone?
Set in a small New England town and based on a scrabble game between two old friends, Game of Secrets is about the unraveling of a mystery that deeply affected the lives of both women. But, as is often the case in small towns, the past is still very alive in the present so that mystery and the web of secrets around it has an impact on the modern day lives of their children. The ending manages to be both surprising and inevitable - and it will send readers scrambling back through the pages, wondering how they could have missed the clues.
A great choice for book clubs, with plenty to discuss.
Set in a small New England town and based on a scrabble game between two old friends, Game of Secrets is about the unraveling of a mystery that deeply affected the lives of both women. But, as is often the case in small towns, the past is still very alive in the present so that mystery and the web of secrets around it has an impact on the modern day lives of their children. The ending manages to be both surprising and inevitable - and it will send readers scrambling back through the pages, wondering how they could have missed the clues.
A great choice for book clubs, with plenty to discuss.
August 20, 2011
This is a truly outstanding book in many ways. Where this book particularly excels is in description. Everything about these people, the place they call home, the lives they have lived, is rendered in lush, exquisite detail. The characters are richly drawn and endlessly interesting. The ending falters a great deal. While poetic, there is not enough of a narrative arc for one of the main characters, Marne, and one of the story's biggest secrets is a bit... frustrating in how it is handled. It is a testament to the strength of the strong parts that this book can overcome these weaknesses.
December 22, 2014
I won this as part of Goodreads Firstreads Giveaway-thank you!
In 1968, Jane Weld was 12 years old her when her father, Luce, went missing. At the time he was having an affair with Alda Varick and her jealous husband was always considered a suspect. Now it is decades later and Jane's daughter, Marne, has struck up a relationship with one of Ada's sons. Jane herself meets once a week for a Scrabble game with Ada and during the game the two of them share detailed memories of the past. While Dawn Tripp's writing is very poetic, I felt disappointed that the Scrabble game itself didn't reveal the past's mysteries. I was expecting there to be hidden meaning in the words played or more detailed information shared between the two but I found that wasn't really the case. Ada may hold the answers but she isn't going to share them, not even when Jane asks her outright. The mystery of Luce is revealed in individual chapters about one of Ada's other sons. I was confused at the end of the book and needed to re-read and check some of the dates. Even when I "got it" I didn't really "get it." I still can't explain Ada and Jane's relationship, and it didn't leave me with a good feeling about the book. I am left with more questions than answers...
In 1968, Jane Weld was 12 years old her when her father, Luce, went missing. At the time he was having an affair with Alda Varick and her jealous husband was always considered a suspect. Now it is decades later and Jane's daughter, Marne, has struck up a relationship with one of Ada's sons. Jane herself meets once a week for a Scrabble game with Ada and during the game the two of them share detailed memories of the past. While Dawn Tripp's writing is very poetic, I felt disappointed that the Scrabble game itself didn't reveal the past's mysteries. I was expecting there to be hidden meaning in the words played or more detailed information shared between the two but I found that wasn't really the case. Ada may hold the answers but she isn't going to share them, not even when Jane asks her outright. The mystery of Luce is revealed in individual chapters about one of Ada's other sons. I was confused at the end of the book and needed to re-read and check some of the dates. Even when I "got it" I didn't really "get it." I still can't explain Ada and Jane's relationship, and it didn't leave me with a good feeling about the book. I am left with more questions than answers...
June 4, 2011
This haunting, exquisitely written novel is about the secrets we choose to tell and the ones we want to keep. I was mesmerized from page one. Over the course of a board game, two women reveal their paths--and each other. You quickly become deeply invested in both the characters and the plot, and it's no wonder that Tripp has the stellar literary reputation that she has.
July 24, 2011
maybe 3.5
i wanted to like it, 5 *s on amazon, but too hard to follow, too much subtlety. the scrabble references were great, but not enough to make me like the writing style or the characters
i wanted to like it, 5 *s on amazon, but too hard to follow, too much subtlety. the scrabble references were great, but not enough to make me like the writing style or the characters
August 18, 2011
Game of Secrets...I did enjoy the prose style. I thought the imagery in some of the passages was beautiful. I did find in parts of the book that the prose could get a little thick which slowed down the progression of the book. There were other places in the book where the prose was more clean and strait forward and then the pace of the story would speed up. I definitely felt the tenison in the story and I kept waiting for something tragic to happen in the present.(2004) As readers we already knew about Luce's death.
I didn't feel like I was reading a mystery. I felt like the author was slowly revealing the secrets of a small community but I din't know why it was so imperative that the secrets were revealed now. I couldn't sense a catalyst for this, not even for the sake of Marne's and Ray's relationship. Jane and Ada have beeen playing Scrabble for ages and Jane never questioned her father's lover, ever? Spoiler alert!
One more thing. I was confused a bit about the socio-economic status these characters hold. The men are fisherman,and hunters. The woman don't work. Jane's house had a privy out back when they first bought it and it had exposed pipes in the kitchen. Ada has a delapidated shack on her property that Huck hangs out in. She moves it to a piece of land she has. Ada seems insightful at times but talks like a sailor others,as does Marne. There is mention of big summer homes and summer visitors. I felt like the year-round residents of the area were poor yet the women read quite a bit. Self-educated?
And would Huck at fourteen really wax poetic the way he does in his mind when he thinks or sees Jane. I know it is the author's style of writing but for that character she could have been a more real with his thoughts.(He suffered abuse and was filled with anger as well).
I guess this book raised more questions for me than it answered.
PS The author was in my area doing a book signing and I missed her. I would have loved to ask her some of these questions myself. (Albiet tactfully)
I didn't feel like I was reading a mystery. I felt like the author was slowly revealing the secrets of a small community but I din't know why it was so imperative that the secrets were revealed now. I couldn't sense a catalyst for this, not even for the sake of Marne's and Ray's relationship. Jane and Ada have beeen playing Scrabble for ages and Jane never questioned her father's lover, ever? Spoiler alert!
One more thing. I was confused a bit about the socio-economic status these characters hold. The men are fisherman,and hunters. The woman don't work. Jane's house had a privy out back when they first bought it and it had exposed pipes in the kitchen. Ada has a delapidated shack on her property that Huck hangs out in. She moves it to a piece of land she has. Ada seems insightful at times but talks like a sailor others,as does Marne. There is mention of big summer homes and summer visitors. I felt like the year-round residents of the area were poor yet the women read quite a bit. Self-educated?
And would Huck at fourteen really wax poetic the way he does in his mind when he thinks or sees Jane. I know it is the author's style of writing but for that character she could have been a more real with his thoughts.(He suffered abuse and was filled with anger as well).
I guess this book raised more questions for me than it answered.
PS The author was in my area doing a book signing and I missed her. I would have loved to ask her some of these questions myself. (Albiet tactfully)
August 10, 2011
Set in a small New England town, GAME OF SECRETS is a novel told from multiple points of view in different time periods. Two aged women playing a game of Scrabble with a tangle of shared, unspoken, family tragedies, a pair of young lovers meeting in secret in an old barn, an unearthed skull with a bullet hole revealing a decades-old murder, and a guarded daughter trying to find where she fits into her town and her family provide the framework of the book. The stories weave together through time like the tiles of the game, surprising the reader how they fit together at every turn.
There are some books I love for the characters, the people who seem real enough to step off the page and into the room. There are other books I love for the author’s use of setting as a canvas that sets off the colors of the story like no other background could. Sometimes I love a book for plot and pacing that keeps me turning pages late into the night.
All of these elements are present in GAME OF SECRETS, but if I had to pick what I loved most about this book, it would be the prose. Dawn Tripp’s command of language takes a story that has all of the above elements used well, and further elevates it.
From gentle, sensitive Jane: “…even in dead winter, her favorite season, that certain honesty of winter, all things stripped back to being only what they are…”
From Jane’s turbulent, difficult daughter, Marne: “…I set the blade of my brother’s pocketknife in tight against the binding, I realized: Grafting someone else’s thoughts might just be the fastest way to cut yourself free of your own.”
From Jane’s father, the murdered man: “He could tell her that this dinge of a room where they meet, this brief occasional time, an hour or two at most, this stolen time, is where he lives.“
Every description, every use of figurative language, every theme supports the story around it including the character whose narrative encompasses it.
I found almost all of the characters endearing except one, and even that character had redeemable qualities. I cared most for Marne, even when she was judgmental of and impatient with her mother, because Marne always tried to understand more by pouring over her mother’s notes in an old library book. Marne tried to find the thread that connected her to her mother–a thread that Marne intuitively felt but had a hard time recognizing in her conscious mind.
If you enjoy layered books and elegant prose, I highly recommend GAME OF SECRETS. It will keep you thinking about its characters long after you’ve turned the last page.
There are some books I love for the characters, the people who seem real enough to step off the page and into the room. There are other books I love for the author’s use of setting as a canvas that sets off the colors of the story like no other background could. Sometimes I love a book for plot and pacing that keeps me turning pages late into the night.
All of these elements are present in GAME OF SECRETS, but if I had to pick what I loved most about this book, it would be the prose. Dawn Tripp’s command of language takes a story that has all of the above elements used well, and further elevates it.
From gentle, sensitive Jane: “…even in dead winter, her favorite season, that certain honesty of winter, all things stripped back to being only what they are…”
From Jane’s turbulent, difficult daughter, Marne: “…I set the blade of my brother’s pocketknife in tight against the binding, I realized: Grafting someone else’s thoughts might just be the fastest way to cut yourself free of your own.”
From Jane’s father, the murdered man: “He could tell her that this dinge of a room where they meet, this brief occasional time, an hour or two at most, this stolen time, is where he lives.“
Every description, every use of figurative language, every theme supports the story around it including the character whose narrative encompasses it.
I found almost all of the characters endearing except one, and even that character had redeemable qualities. I cared most for Marne, even when she was judgmental of and impatient with her mother, because Marne always tried to understand more by pouring over her mother’s notes in an old library book. Marne tried to find the thread that connected her to her mother–a thread that Marne intuitively felt but had a hard time recognizing in her conscious mind.
If you enjoy layered books and elegant prose, I highly recommend GAME OF SECRETS. It will keep you thinking about its characters long after you’ve turned the last page.
September 25, 2012
I won this as part of Goodreads Firstreads Giveaway.
Game of Secrets is the story of a family. Jane Weld was the daughter of Luce, a man who went missing many years before under mysterious circumstances. At the time of his death, Luce was having an affair with Ada Varick, and when Jane got older, Ada became her best friend. Now old ladies, they play Scrabble together in the park. When Jane's daughter Marne becomes sweet on Ada's son, the tension between the family appears to have dissipated a bit.
The teaser I read for this book was misleading. It was described as a murder mystery, that the skull of a man was found with a bullet hole in it and this brought up the possibility that Luce didn't die from drowning. But it has none of the page-turning excitement of a murder mystery because this is more of a social drama. The mystery of Luce's disappearance is kind of an afterthought.
The Scrabble scenes were confusing. When I was reading them, I was trying to figure out the words, to see if they were clues to the underlying mystery. But they weren't; the author described these long scenes are almost no purpose other than to show the Jane and Ada relationship. Over and over again.
I was very excited to get this book, but I couldn't bring myself to finish it. It sat on my nightstand day after day and got passed up by at least ten books before I decided to get rid of it. I just don't care enough to finish it.
Game of Secrets is the story of a family. Jane Weld was the daughter of Luce, a man who went missing many years before under mysterious circumstances. At the time of his death, Luce was having an affair with Ada Varick, and when Jane got older, Ada became her best friend. Now old ladies, they play Scrabble together in the park. When Jane's daughter Marne becomes sweet on Ada's son, the tension between the family appears to have dissipated a bit.
The teaser I read for this book was misleading. It was described as a murder mystery, that the skull of a man was found with a bullet hole in it and this brought up the possibility that Luce didn't die from drowning. But it has none of the page-turning excitement of a murder mystery because this is more of a social drama. The mystery of Luce's disappearance is kind of an afterthought.
The Scrabble scenes were confusing. When I was reading them, I was trying to figure out the words, to see if they were clues to the underlying mystery. But they weren't; the author described these long scenes are almost no purpose other than to show the Jane and Ada relationship. Over and over again.
I was very excited to get this book, but I couldn't bring myself to finish it. It sat on my nightstand day after day and got passed up by at least ten books before I decided to get rid of it. I just don't care enough to finish it.
August 31, 2011
There is a thin line between literature that is florid and pretentious, and literature that is lyrically beautiful. This novel is definitely the latter. A compelling story of many people, told on two separate but related timelines, this story of loss, love, and finding oneself is utterly satisfying in every regard. The author clearly loves her wordplay, though it does not bog down the story. The characters are flawed and real, the setting achingly realistic (as anyone who grew up in a small coastal town can attest to), and the story poignant and moving. I highly recommend this one!
I received this ARC through the Goodreads First Read giveaway.
I received this ARC through the Goodreads First Read giveaway.
December 30, 2011
Poetic writing and a plot that takes you to the event, the place and the time frames this is set in. Dawn Tripp's book excels in a way that writers today no longer are able to master---making you think as a reader.
October 27, 2011
Beautiful writing. Evocative in the way fragments of stories and time interface and finally amass into a whole.
April 3, 2016
Thoroughly enjoyable. Voices are clear and distinct, and you don't see a lot of it coming.
June 21, 2012
Game Of Secrets by Dawn Tripp
Published by Random House
Publication Date:
ISBN: 1400061881
ASIN: B004J4WL5K
Pages: 273
Review Copy from: Sparkpoint LLC
Edition: HC
My Rating: 2
Synopsis: In 1957, Jane Weld was eleven years old when her father Luce, a petty thief, disappeared. His skiff was found drifting near the marsh, empty except for his hunting coat and a box of shot-gun shells. No one in his small New England town knew for sure what happened until, three years later, his skull rolled out of a gravel bank by the river, a bullet hole in the temple. There were rumors he had been murdered by the jealous husband of his mistress, Ada Varick. Now, half a century later, Jane is still searching for the truth of her father's death, a mystery made more urgent by the unexpected romance that her willful daughter, Marne, has struck up with one of Ada's sons. As their love affair intensifies, Jane and Ada meet for a casual Friday board game that soon transforms into a cat-and-mouse game of words long left unspoken, dark secrets best left untold.
My Thoughts and Opinion: A murder in a small town in 1957 that was never solved until 2004. Two families connected and affected, due to this murder, and the effects of infidelity that was always thought was the reason behind the murder. But who did it? Two damaged families, for generations, connected through friendship and romantic interests, and bound together by lies, betrayal, mistrust, protection and the search of the truth.
For me, this is one of the hardest reviews I have had to write because of the following. After reading the synopsis, I started reading this book with a preconceived notion, expectation and presumption of what the premise was. I was wrong and because of my assumption, I was disappointed with the outcome. After I finished reading this book, I did read others' reviews, which the majority were 4 and 5 star ratings, to see if I was in the majority or minority of my rating. I was in the minority. I feel that it is not fair to the author and/or the book, because of my inference, that you make a decision to read and/or not read this book because of my opinion. However, since I do post a review of every book I read, I will share my thoughts.
It was very hard for me to relate to the characters. I thought that one character, Marne, granddaughter of the murder victim was not developed. It was conveyed that she had "come home" but I was unsure as to why. Plus she had a "chip on her shoulder" attitude and a very troubling relationship with her mother, Jane, daughter of the murder victim, Luce, but the reason for this was not explained. Another issue I had trouble believing was the friendship between Jane and her Scrabble opponent, Ada, who was her father's mistress and the person who broke up Jane's parents' marriage, which Jane had never truly accepted. One of my assumptions was that the words formed during these weekly Scrabble games produced would be hints as to who the murderer was. The author did describe each game, the words created and how many points the player achieved. However, I didn't feel that the words played had anything to do with the long ago murder of Jane's father but it was the conversations the 2 woman had during their weekly scheduled games. The book held my attention and was a fast read but I think it was due to the fact of trying to figure out who the killer was. I didn't feel that is was a page turning suspense but a page turner to just find out the truth. I want to stress that this is my opinion, and my opinion only. Not every book is for every reader. And according to the reviews, a lot of people disagree with me. Nonethe less, this is my personal viewpoint of this book.
(Challenges 2012: EBooks, Off The Shelf, FreeReads, Where Are You, A-z, 52 in 52, Outdo Yourself, 100+)
Published by Random House
Publication Date:
ISBN: 1400061881
ASIN: B004J4WL5K
Pages: 273
Review Copy from: Sparkpoint LLC
Edition: HC
My Rating: 2
Synopsis: In 1957, Jane Weld was eleven years old when her father Luce, a petty thief, disappeared. His skiff was found drifting near the marsh, empty except for his hunting coat and a box of shot-gun shells. No one in his small New England town knew for sure what happened until, three years later, his skull rolled out of a gravel bank by the river, a bullet hole in the temple. There were rumors he had been murdered by the jealous husband of his mistress, Ada Varick. Now, half a century later, Jane is still searching for the truth of her father's death, a mystery made more urgent by the unexpected romance that her willful daughter, Marne, has struck up with one of Ada's sons. As their love affair intensifies, Jane and Ada meet for a casual Friday board game that soon transforms into a cat-and-mouse game of words long left unspoken, dark secrets best left untold.
My Thoughts and Opinion: A murder in a small town in 1957 that was never solved until 2004. Two families connected and affected, due to this murder, and the effects of infidelity that was always thought was the reason behind the murder. But who did it? Two damaged families, for generations, connected through friendship and romantic interests, and bound together by lies, betrayal, mistrust, protection and the search of the truth.
For me, this is one of the hardest reviews I have had to write because of the following. After reading the synopsis, I started reading this book with a preconceived notion, expectation and presumption of what the premise was. I was wrong and because of my assumption, I was disappointed with the outcome. After I finished reading this book, I did read others' reviews, which the majority were 4 and 5 star ratings, to see if I was in the majority or minority of my rating. I was in the minority. I feel that it is not fair to the author and/or the book, because of my inference, that you make a decision to read and/or not read this book because of my opinion. However, since I do post a review of every book I read, I will share my thoughts.
It was very hard for me to relate to the characters. I thought that one character, Marne, granddaughter of the murder victim was not developed. It was conveyed that she had "come home" but I was unsure as to why. Plus she had a "chip on her shoulder" attitude and a very troubling relationship with her mother, Jane, daughter of the murder victim, Luce, but the reason for this was not explained. Another issue I had trouble believing was the friendship between Jane and her Scrabble opponent, Ada, who was her father's mistress and the person who broke up Jane's parents' marriage, which Jane had never truly accepted. One of my assumptions was that the words formed during these weekly Scrabble games produced would be hints as to who the murderer was. The author did describe each game, the words created and how many points the player achieved. However, I didn't feel that the words played had anything to do with the long ago murder of Jane's father but it was the conversations the 2 woman had during their weekly scheduled games. The book held my attention and was a fast read but I think it was due to the fact of trying to figure out who the killer was. I didn't feel that is was a page turning suspense but a page turner to just find out the truth. I want to stress that this is my opinion, and my opinion only. Not every book is for every reader. And according to the reviews, a lot of people disagree with me. Nonethe less, this is my personal viewpoint of this book.
(Challenges 2012: EBooks, Off The Shelf, FreeReads, Where Are You, A-z, 52 in 52, Outdo Yourself, 100+)
March 13, 2015
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13155316
This story spans generations, but the protagonist is in the present. Is it Marne, the bitter young woman who has come home for a while? Or her mother Jane? It seems that Jane figures most in the actions, so I'll call it for her.
Marne has returned home from California and doesn't know what her next move will be. She is irritated by her mother, as she has been for years, and is again finding herself attracted to her brother Alex's best friend Ray. Resistant to anything too intimate, Marne nevertheless decides to try him on.
Meanwhile, Jane has been playing chess with Ray's grandmother Ada. Ada may have the key to a mystery Jane has been mulling over since she was a child: what happened to her father. Ada's father Luce had been seeing Ada on the sly when one day he disappeared. As the chess games continue, Jane pumps Ada.
This isn't a straightforward mystery, in which the characters clearly state what they want or what they want to know. They may not know. There are a few odd bits that had me wondering about the timeline. For example, Marne mentions being a teen "thirty years ago" in one place, and then later notes that she is in her thirties. Also, Ray is Ada's son while Marne is Luce's grandson. Possible of course, just a little confusing.
I found it absorbing but wished it hadn't jumped around quite so much, from character to character. I wanted to spend a bit more time with just one.
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13155316
This story spans generations, but the protagonist is in the present. Is it Marne, the bitter young woman who has come home for a while? Or her mother Jane? It seems that Jane figures most in the actions, so I'll call it for her.
Marne has returned home from California and doesn't know what her next move will be. She is irritated by her mother, as she has been for years, and is again finding herself attracted to her brother Alex's best friend Ray. Resistant to anything too intimate, Marne nevertheless decides to try him on.
Meanwhile, Jane has been playing chess with Ray's grandmother Ada. Ada may have the key to a mystery Jane has been mulling over since she was a child: what happened to her father. Ada's father Luce had been seeing Ada on the sly when one day he disappeared. As the chess games continue, Jane pumps Ada.
This isn't a straightforward mystery, in which the characters clearly state what they want or what they want to know. They may not know. There are a few odd bits that had me wondering about the timeline. For example, Marne mentions being a teen "thirty years ago" in one place, and then later notes that she is in her thirties. Also, Ray is Ada's son while Marne is Luce's grandson. Possible of course, just a little confusing.
I found it absorbing but wished it hadn't jumped around quite so much, from character to character. I wanted to spend a bit more time with just one.
July 9, 2012
This was a very quick read and beautifully written. I like the way all the stories intertwined with these families. How Jane is now friends with the woman who was her father's mistress 50 years before - and her daughter and Ada's son are flirting with an attraction that is growing between them. The three women - Ada, Jane and Marne - play the larger roles in this story and while the men they love (or who love them) figure in to the story, it is the women who you learn the most about. While the story could not happen without them, these men seem sometime incidental. It gives the impression that life, love, family, history is all moved forward or sometimes stilted based on the women.
A lot of the story is learned as Ada and Jane play their weekly game of Scrabble. The words played or changed hint as to what lies in the past. As to the murder of Luce, it had never been solved, though the women each had their beliefs as to what happened. It isn't the only mystery/secret that is discovered through the course of the book though. One secret was obvious to me - the other was a secret until the end!
Read more: http://booksandneedlepoint.blogspot.c...
A lot of the story is learned as Ada and Jane play their weekly game of Scrabble. The words played or changed hint as to what lies in the past. As to the murder of Luce, it had never been solved, though the women each had their beliefs as to what happened. It isn't the only mystery/secret that is discovered through the course of the book though. One secret was obvious to me - the other was a secret until the end!
Read more: http://booksandneedlepoint.blogspot.c...
August 9, 2012
I received Game of Secrets in a Goodreads giveaway, and, to be honest, left it sitting on my bedside table for a month. I was uncertain how this "literary thriller" tied to a weekly Scrabble game was going to play out. I dreaded reading one of those dramatic, depressing stories where a parent or a child has to betray the other for the common good.
The promotional quotes proclaiming it to be a thriller is misleading. A thriller implies hot and fast and dramatic unfolding. Game of Secrets was quiet and deep and strong. It was so much more than I expected. Dawn Tripp slowly unfolds a story spanning several generations, reinforcing how the actions of one generation ripple to their children and grandchildren. There is some dramatic mystery to the secrets of the story, but most of the secrets are those that all of us hold as we work our way through life. The secrets that parents hold from their children and children from their parents. The ones we know are inside the ones we love and are afraid to ask or tell so we don't hurt them or ourselves.
Game of Secrets is a lovely story that stays with you even after you put it back on your beside table.
The promotional quotes proclaiming it to be a thriller is misleading. A thriller implies hot and fast and dramatic unfolding. Game of Secrets was quiet and deep and strong. It was so much more than I expected. Dawn Tripp slowly unfolds a story spanning several generations, reinforcing how the actions of one generation ripple to their children and grandchildren. There is some dramatic mystery to the secrets of the story, but most of the secrets are those that all of us hold as we work our way through life. The secrets that parents hold from their children and children from their parents. The ones we know are inside the ones we love and are afraid to ask or tell so we don't hurt them or ourselves.
Game of Secrets is a lovely story that stays with you even after you put it back on your beside table.
December 26, 2011
I'd give this a 2.5. I read Dawn Tripp's earlier novels and loved both of them. Sadly, this novel didn't quite measure up to these two earlier works. I found it rather disjointed, and for some reason, I had a hard time keeping track of the relationships between characters. There was a fair amount of emotion around certain characters that I didn't think was fully explained. One particular character appears along the periphery of Jane's life but then seems to fade out without a reason for his appearance. Finally, I never quite understood why Marne had such a difficult relationship with her mother.
Perhaps part of my reaction is because it took a few days to read this and I had to keep reminding myself of what I had read before. Certainly, using Scrabble as a device to explain the past was creative and Ms. Tripp does write very well - she has some lovely descriptions. But, overall, I didn't feel like the book came together as well as it could have.
Perhaps part of my reaction is because it took a few days to read this and I had to keep reminding myself of what I had read before. Certainly, using Scrabble as a device to explain the past was creative and Ms. Tripp does write very well - she has some lovely descriptions. But, overall, I didn't feel like the book came together as well as it could have.
July 5, 2013
Game of Secrets by Dawn Tripp I won this book through Goodreads. A missing man becomes a mystery, never told. Two women play a weekly of scrabble trying to figure things out. A daughter come back to her hometown and lives simply; falling in love with a local boy she has known forever. The book examines the past and present, trying to make sense of life.
August 21, 2011
This one is definitely a read again some time in the future. It has layers of complexity that will offer up something new the second time around.
September 4, 2011
story was decent enough, i was pleasantly surprised by the twist in the last chapter. the writing was a bit more "stream of conscious" than i like.
July 8, 2019
Roxane Gay mentions this book, almost recommending it, in her collection of essays in Bad Feminist. I was on my library's website and decided to order it. Why not?
When I finished, I quickly scanned a number of reviews - on Goodreads and elsewhere. I had to agree with many of the criticisms and accolades other readers bestowed on this novel. In other words, I have nothing unique to add to the conversation.
Tripp's novel is most successful in her description of the New England setting which serves as the backdrop of the story. Her writing doesn't linger and isn't particularly circuitous. Her sentences seem to splice the most salient and beautiful observations about nature and small towns and put them together perhaps more closely or at a greater distance than you might find necessary. Rather than thinking of a beautiful, natural setting as languid, the reader feels a sort of catharsis in the stillness and awesomeness with which Tripp imputes it.
The novel is, however, very heavy handed. Some of the symbolism is overwhelming. I'll admit that during some of the Scrabble passages, I cringed. It's not that what Tripp is saying isn't true or worth exploring. In reading some of these sections, it's almost as if the author has difficulty trusting the story to do the work for itself without her aid. She doesn't think the reader incompetent, mind you, otherwise some of the more nuanced scenes would be absent or much diluted. There were just too many moments that I didn't get to explore and experience for myself because the path was too easy to find, the breadcrumbs being just too large to ignore or see in any other way other than that which the author wanted me to view them.
Marne, who along with Huck, is one of the most interesting characters though we get too little of her history and story arc to connect with her in a way that could overcome some of the heavy handedness described earlier. Marne's relationship with Ray feels...stereotypical and superfluous? Again, that relationship seemed most significant in terms of its symbolism; it was a vehicle by which Jane (Marne's mother) could intuit something about and connect with her daughter. The relationship itself was not interesting to me and even if the scene at Outback is meant to be a revelation about small town living's proximity to a person who might read a piece of literary fiction such as Game of Secrets, the dialogue there felt improperly forced and unnatural.
You can tell Tripp is a good writer. Trusting readers a bit more will only make that more evident.
When I finished, I quickly scanned a number of reviews - on Goodreads and elsewhere. I had to agree with many of the criticisms and accolades other readers bestowed on this novel. In other words, I have nothing unique to add to the conversation.
Tripp's novel is most successful in her description of the New England setting which serves as the backdrop of the story. Her writing doesn't linger and isn't particularly circuitous. Her sentences seem to splice the most salient and beautiful observations about nature and small towns and put them together perhaps more closely or at a greater distance than you might find necessary. Rather than thinking of a beautiful, natural setting as languid, the reader feels a sort of catharsis in the stillness and awesomeness with which Tripp imputes it.
The novel is, however, very heavy handed. Some of the symbolism is overwhelming. I'll admit that during some of the Scrabble passages, I cringed. It's not that what Tripp is saying isn't true or worth exploring. In reading some of these sections, it's almost as if the author has difficulty trusting the story to do the work for itself without her aid. She doesn't think the reader incompetent, mind you, otherwise some of the more nuanced scenes would be absent or much diluted. There were just too many moments that I didn't get to explore and experience for myself because the path was too easy to find, the breadcrumbs being just too large to ignore or see in any other way other than that which the author wanted me to view them.
Marne, who along with Huck, is one of the most interesting characters though we get too little of her history and story arc to connect with her in a way that could overcome some of the heavy handedness described earlier. Marne's relationship with Ray feels...stereotypical and superfluous? Again, that relationship seemed most significant in terms of its symbolism; it was a vehicle by which Jane (Marne's mother) could intuit something about and connect with her daughter. The relationship itself was not interesting to me and even if the scene at Outback is meant to be a revelation about small town living's proximity to a person who might read a piece of literary fiction such as Game of Secrets, the dialogue there felt improperly forced and unnatural.
You can tell Tripp is a good writer. Trusting readers a bit more will only make that more evident.
July 20, 2022
This book was not at all what I was expecting in a disappointing turn of events. I thought the focus would be on trying to figure out who killed the father and would be all his daughter's perspective. Instead, it's actually a painfully introspective literary drama with multiple POVs, including random lapses from the typical 1st person into 2nd-person that are confusingly jarring. It felt like a bad Don DeLilo novel (I despise his work). Not much suspense at all, just a bunch of family drama that is oppressively slow to play out over the short span of this book. Not written particularly well either, as I'm sure this review tells you. I'm not usually one for scathingly poor reviews, but given the fact that I went to the trouble to borrow this book on inter-library loan, it felt like a waste of time. I need it for a prompt in my reading challenge, and it's short, so I powered through.
September 26, 2022
This has been sitting on my “to read” shelf for a long time and I finally pulled it down because it fit a reading challenge prompt (game in the title). I received this advance copy years ago in exchange for an honest review.
If you’re looking for an intriguing plot, this isn’t for you. But Dawn Tripp writes beautiful prose and - even though the story line itself didn’t- her writing style engaged me. Put quite simply, this book tells the story of two families and the ongoing tensions within and between them. Through her beautiful use of language, Tripp made me want to keep reading.
If you’re looking for an intriguing plot, this isn’t for you. But Dawn Tripp writes beautiful prose and - even though the story line itself didn’t- her writing style engaged me. Put quite simply, this book tells the story of two families and the ongoing tensions within and between them. Through her beautiful use of language, Tripp made me want to keep reading.
December 27, 2024
This was a tough one for me. The only reason I gave it 2 stars instead of 1 is because I actually “finished” it and didn’t want to add it to my DNF list. I skimmed about the last 50 pages. I could not get excited about picking up this book at all. It was incredibly wordy and descriptive in many parts and with zero value added. Although you didn’t know who killed Luce, the book didn’t feel like a mystery. It was anticlimactic, boring, and felt unresolved in some aspects.
May 29, 2019
I couldn't decide whether to give it 2 or 3 stars. Ultimately I was generous because the prose really is lovely. However, I am going to forget everything about this book in no time flat. None of the characters were especially vivid, the plot was just so so, but I did enjoy her descriptions of the landscapes. I'm a sucker for that stuff.
January 13, 2020
The only reason I finished this book was because it was only about 250 pages. The story and characters didn't do much for me. It wasn't exciting and just seemed to drag on about halfway through. It's less about the murder and family secrets and more about everyone's mundane feelings and relationships. I was zoning out by the end of it, just struggling to finish and put it down.
November 29, 2023
A woman plays Scrabble with her murdered father's mistress, her daughter & the women's son are interested in each other & playing at dating. What should be an interesting character study is instead a sorry excuse for a story that barely skims the surface of the depths of feeling that should be involved.
January 13, 2018
A good read but I found it confusing and hard to keep the characters straight - a lot of jumping back and forth in time and between characters. It was one of those books that I needed to finish to try and figure how everyone connected!
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