A Trick of Light

by Karen Blomain

When Hattie Darling's husband, Ben, dies on his first night home after a business trip, she is devastated. But when she finds evidence that there had been another woman in his life, Hattie is unable to mourn Ben, but decides to find the other woman and confront her. The confrontation leads to a suprise and an eventual understanding. At the heart of this unusual book is the unexpected intertwining of the lives of two women.

Genres: Fiction

358 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 2000

Reviews

[Alisha · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was not a particularly intellectually engaging novel. I was in the mood for an easy read that had a story I could get into and this fit the bill. It was quick, good for the commute, and had a fair amount of intrigue. I did not love it, however. It served the purpose I needed and wanted but I didn't come away from the experience supremely enlightened or changed. The story presents some themes that are worth contemplation, but I didn't really connect with any of the characters or find myself sympathetic to any of the situations in the story. I found the main character to be one of false strength. I think the intent was to show her as one who found her strength in the story, but there was nothing particularly courageous or admirable about her (Hattie Darling) in the end. As I mentioned, there is enough intrigue to get into the story and it served a necessary purpose, but this is not a book I would recommend.

[Peggy Elam · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the first novel in Karen Blomain's planned Fenston Trilogy. For an update on the characters, read The Season of Lost Children, which is the second novel. Sadly, when Karen passed away in 2012 the third book in the planned trilogy was unfinished.

A Trick of Light and The Season of Lost Children each can be read as stand-alone novels, but reading both deepens the experience of the characters and storytelling.

The planned third novel was going to center on the third of three best friends. How do I know this? I am the publisher of The Season of Lost Children, and was going to publish the third book when it was finished. I was going to republish A Trick of Light, too, but its original publisher sold the rights to Amazon.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.” Hattie Darling’s husband dies suddenly, and she sets out on a quest to find out what he was trying to tell her before he died.

It’s a good story, but one that drags on for too long with no good resolution. He’s a bigamist with a child and a whole other life. His secret life soon becomes her secret life. Her secret keeping, though, seems more cruel than his.

His other wife, Anya, is dying and she & her daughter are hoping Ben will soon come home. Hattie knows Ben is dead, yet, she stands by and let’s this family wonder where he is. She has so many opportunities to tell them, but makes excuses as to why she doesn’t or shouldn’t.

By the end, you’re angry with Hattie, no matter how much good she’s done throughout the story. She should have told them, shared some of the insurance money, and gone home. End of story.

[Hjwoodward · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must first quickly mention the cover: what a beautiful book! The colours, the two women on the front, the peeling paint. Excellent. Anyway. So the book. What an interesting and absorbing read. I was totally immersed in the moral dilemma of the woman who knew and what she should say to the woman who didn't know. Wowzers. Very very well done. I thought the characters totally believable, clear in their weaknesses, their choices (not what they should have been, perhaps, but I did LOVE the way judgement could not prevail! I am so against people judging others!) ... and their day-to-day tasks.

[Pmcdnld2 · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story has been done before (The Pilot's Wife) but I really enjoyed this one. Hattie's husband dies suddenly and unexpectedly. She finds a card for a doctor in Conneticut-they live in a small town in western Pennsylvania but he was a "traveling salesman." Her search leads her to her husband's secret life with unexpected results. Maybe nor realistic, but I still liked the story.

[Pearl Drolet · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an excellent book. The characters were well developed and very likable. It's the story of a woman who was married to a man for 25 years and after he dies suddenly, she finds he has another wife and daughter. She meets the wife and ends up living with her and her daughter. The plot develops further from here but I won't spoil it for you. It is definitely worth the read!

[Sue · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was one of the best I've read. Thoroughly enjoyed it and actually could understand how Ben got into the situation he did. I was pulled into each characters life and even liked the way it ended.

[Eddi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting, thought-provoking book. I kept wanting the story to go in ways that it didn’t go. I kept being confronted with the grayness of moral codes, of the complexities of telling lies and having secrets. A very good read!

[Val · Rating 3 out of 5]

Following the unexpected death of Ben Darling, Hattie’s husband, she finds evidence of “another woman” in his life. Against advice of friends, instead of leaving well alone, she sets out to find and confront this mystery woman. It is a tale of te intertwining of the lives of two very different women who are thrown together.

[Melissa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Novel storyline but just meh

I just didn’t “feel” the characters. And several times I almost quit reading. The theme of loving more than one person could have generated so much more emotion but it just didn’t.

[John McKenna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written and enjoyed it

[Elizabeth Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good Read

This book kept me interested from beginning to end. I couldn't put it down. It is sensual yet tastefully written without vulgarity.

[Tracy Chatterton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this but was disappointed with the ending

[Maral · Rating 5 out of 5]

great book

Loved every word, every sentence, every page of this book. I couldn’t wait to get to the end and then I was sad that it ended.
Amazing book.

[Claudia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somehow this book was on my Kindle, so I decided to read it. The premise was an interesting one. Hattie Darling, a woman who has chosen to remain in her family home and not venture out beyond her home town, ends up involved in the life of her husband's other wife and daughter. Ben, Hattie's husband, is a traveling salesman, and when he returns to her one night, he drops dead. She finds a doctor's card in his pocket, and searches for what was going on with him. Hattie moves outside of her comfort zone to do something good for this woman, but then she returns back to her own life. The story is very simple and easy to predict. The writing here is mundane, and there is not much to this book to make it memorable.

[Erika *and her little dog too* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shortly after returning home from a business trip Ben is lying in his wife Hattie's arms on the brink of telling her something important when suddenly... he dies. Hattie struggles with wanting to know the secret Ben never got the opportunity to tell her. Her need to know brings her to Hartford where she does indeed discover Ben's secret, but she also discovers a great deal about herself.

All in all the book was an enjoyable read. The writing was a bit choppy at times, and there were some auxiliary characters who did not seem entirely necessary (Mr. Miles and Paul). As a whole though, I liked it.

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't think I was going to like this book much at the start but I stuck with it and am glad I did. Its not a literary masterpiece by any means but I ended up enjoying the story. More than just a quest for answers as to the mystery of her husbands death, her journey causes her to actually live in the tension of the dichotomous life her husband led. Implausible, maybe. But, I didn't mind that as I appreciated its exploration of empathy, the lengths she went through to understand her husbands plight despite her hurt and anger. The story demonstrates the recklessness that one often feels in the wake of betrayal and deception and also the bravery it takes to overcome hurt and bitterness.

[Sandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Currently reading Hattie's search for 'the other woman'. While Hattie has been stuck in her house for the the entire marriage (agoraphobia)? she now ventures out into the world to find out what her deceased husband's life was like when working away from home. He came returned home only once a month to spend time with Hattie & his daughter with her. An easy read but interesting concept. Am enjoying.A Trick of Light

[Victoria · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting story, but took too long to tell it. The progression of the main character, Hattie, was interesting as she goes from denial to complete acceptance of her situation. One aspect of the story I found odd was the unfinished details of when Hattie's daughter tells her that she will be home for Christmas and hopes Hattie will be there. Clearly Hattie does not go home and yet we never hear from the daughter or the consequences of her being ignored. It felt like the author forgot about it.

[Kathy Barton · Rating 2 out of 5]

I had a really hard time with the premise of this book. It is about Ben and Hattie Darling, who have built a nice life for themselves. Then Ben dies unexpectedly and Hattie is left to pick up the pieces, but something does not add up and she goes to search out Ben's traveling salesman lifesytle and finds another family in connecticut. The fact that she rents a room from the other wife and then becomes friends with her - all without telling the other wife who she really is is very strange to me. The ending is even more bizarre.

[jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel like I'm missing something

Ok I just finished this book. I enjoyed it but there are a few things that bothered me about this book
.It starts off dreadfully slow in the beginning and drags on for a long while
.the way it ends kinda leaves way to much for the reader to assume
.how does her whole life just magically stop for months and nobody seems to notice

All in all the book was good once it got going, left to much to be assumed and all in all seemed to have missed the point it was going for
At least for me..

[Mary Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very readable book about Hattie whose traveling salesman husband dies suddenly. After his death, Hattie discovers her husband had had a second, secret life inlcuding a marriage and daughter. Hattie overcomes her fear of leaving her home to find this other family. The story is interesting and has some unexpected twists, but is also somewhat unbelievable. But still, a good, quick easy read for a lazy weekend when you don't want something to deep or thought provoking.

[Julie K Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hattie's husband dies suddenly, after a business trip, and as he is about to make an important announcement to her. Following his death, she begins a quest to try to piece together the gaps in their relationship, as he travels extensively. She uncovers some ugly truths. While the story is not entirely plausible, it never the less, causes one to think, "What would I do, if it were me." This is not great literature, but still a good read and would be interesting conversation for a book club.

[Cindy anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a nice read. It is in desperate need of copy editing, I fear the editor simply used spellcheck instead of ensuring the proper spelling of a word was used. I found character development to be wanting. That said, it is an engaging story overall. The ending left something to be desired. Hattie is a bit exasperating and not quite believable. Her friends are too undeveloped. Still, I couldn't quite just stop reading it.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read. A women welcomes her husband home and after a tender love session he tells her that he needs to talk with her and falls over and dies of a heart attack. She can't help but wonder what is was that "he wanted to tell her". She goes on mission to find out and discovers he has another family in another state. She grows to love them and discovers their is much more behind the scenes.

[Sherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book and will likely try another by this author. Others panned the book but I thought the portrait of Hattie Darling drawn in this book was well done. Choices in life are often nuanced and difficult and we experience this firsthand as Hattie discovers her dead husband's secret life.

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book was awful. It was frustrating to figure out so easily what the book was about, you know from the first chapter that the husband was about to confess an affair. Then, the whole premise that this woman would move in with the other family and not say anything, is far from believable. I finished the book, but can't recommend it.

[Carole Sustak · Rating 4 out of 5]

A warm and wonderful story

Of a woman who makes a devastating discovery about her husband who had suddenly died. A strong minded, independent woman evolves into a highly insightful, warm and loving woman who gives beyond imaginable parts of herself in repair of her husbands uncontrollable errors.

[Heather Lomason · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book seems a bit like a Hallmark made for TV movie at first, but as the story progresses and you begin to learn the details of her husbands affair you really began to care for the characters and the strange and complicated relationships they develop. I continued to think about this book long after I read it, which I think is the mark of a truly good book. More substantial than it appears.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Book was ok not great. I think I disliked the main character more than her cheating husband. I wish the book would have ended differently with closure for everyone invloved. Not one of my favorites but I'm glad I read it.