Shelter Me: A Novel About Grief, Fierce Motherhood, and Unexpected Love

by Juliette Fay

In the tradition of Marisa de los Santos and Anne Tyler comes a moving debut about a young mother's year of heartbreak, loss, and forgiveness...and help that arrives from unexpected sources Four months after her husband's death, Janie LaMarche remains undone by grief and anger. Her mourning is disrupted, however, by the unexpected arrival of a builder with a contract to add a porch onto her house. Stunned, Janie realizes the porch was meant to be a surprise from her husband—now his last gift to her. As she reluctantly allows construction to begin, Janie clings to the familiar outposts of her sorrow—mothering her two small children with fierce protectiveness, avoiding friends and family, and stewing in a rage she can't release. Yet Janie's self-imposed isolation is breached by a cast of unlikely interventionists: her chattering, ipecac-toting aunt; her bossy, over-manicured neighbor; her muffin-bearing cousin; and even Tug, the contractor with a private grief all his own. As the porch takes shape, Janie discovers that the unknowable terrain of the future is best navigated with the help of others—even those we least expect to call on, much less learn to love.

Genres: Fiction, Romance, Chick Lit, Book Club, Contemporary, Audiobook, Family

415 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2009

About the author

Juliette Fay is the bestselling author of eight novels, including THE HARVEY GIRLS, THE HALF OF IT, CATCH US WHEN WE FALL, CITY OF FLICKERING LIGHT and THE TUMBLING TURNER SISTERS, a USA Today bestseller and Costco Pennie’s Book Club Pick. Previous novels include THE SHORTEST WAY HOME, one of Library Journal’s Top 5 Best Books of 2012: Women’s Fiction; DEEP DOWN TRUE, short-listed for the 2011Women’s Fiction award by the American Library Association; and SHELTER ME, a 2009 Massachusetts Book Award “Must-Read Book” and an Indie Next pick.

Juliette is a graduate of Boston College and Harvard University, and lives in Massachusetts with her family. Follow her on Facebook: Juliette Fay author, Instagram: Juliette_Fay, and BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/julie...

Reviews

[Juliette · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, I'm listing my own book -- how weird is that. However I did read it ... way too many times!

[Deanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so amazing, especially since the author, Juliette Fay, admits she's never been widowed and that this book stemmed from her obsessive fear of losing her husband at a young age. In my case, this book was like looking in a mirror. There were times when I had to put it down and walk away as my sobbing disrupted my young daughter's play. Fay really reaches into that deep, dark place we widows walk daily in her beautiful yet flawed character. The young widow's attitudes, anger, restentment, and inability to "suffer fools lightly" after the sudden death of her young husband is so profoundly accurate. My hope is that when people read this book, they will think about their own loved ones and how blessed they truly are.

[Rhonda · Rating 2 out of 5]

Story about a woman who lost her husband in a bicycle accident, and how she must learn to carry on, with her young son and baby daughter. Of course she's mad, and doesn't want to get up in the morning, that's expected. This is about her friendships and how they eventually bring her out of the worst of the grieving period.

I didn't like this nearly as well as the others who have already reviewed it. Seemed like so much of it was drivel, not important to the story. Just boring parts. Maybe it was just my mood while reading it, but it was actually a pretty good story, but could have been said in many less pages.

[T. Rosado · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Stars

I saw some reviews that mentioned the length and how it could have been shortened, but I absolutely loved being immersed in Janie's life and all the details of her struggle to overcome the death of her young husband. I also enjoyed getting to know her zany family and the newcomers in her life.

This may have been a story about loss, grieving, and overcoming, but it was also full of humor, snark, and new romance. I laughed, I cried, and I loved it.

[Staci · Rating 4 out of 5]

From my blog: www.lifeinthethumb.blogspot.com

This is a new author to me and one that I will definitely be reading more of in the future. This book was truly a great read. I enjoyed how the author went between entries of Janie's journal and then back to the story. I loved Janie's character and even loved her when she would get pissed off and throw a fit. She misses her husband so much that she is drowning in the day-to-day monotony of life. With the help of her cousin and aunt, plus a few other characters you will get to know, she manages to hold on and make it through that first year of grieving. I found myself rooting for her, wanting her life to be good, wanting her to heal and to start enjoying the life she now had, one without her beloved husband Robby. Her oldest child, Dylan, will make you laugh, smile, and tug at your heartstrings. Fay has captured an old soul with this precious character. An added bonus to this book is an outstanding Author Insights Q&A, recipes (very cool!), questions for discussions for a book club (this would make for a fantastic book club read!!) and a funny story about how this book ended up all over I-89 in Vermont. If you're looking for a good book with a heartfelt story then I would totally recommend this to you.

[Malissa · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this book.
This is a story about a young widow left to raise two young children after the tragic death of her husband. He leaves behind a request to have a porch built on their house, a porch that will provide shelter for his family. There have been some discussions about the cover of the book. When I look at the cover I see a mother and her child wrapped in a patchwork quilt. Each patch represents an event, a memory, and a person that has provided some sort of assistance to Janie to help her patch up her life. The vacant field represents for Janie and her family an opportunity to start anew. A blank canvas if you will. All the while keeping the shelter of the porch overhead (symbolizing Robby watching from above) and the quilt on their backs to be a constant reminder of the past, that which has made them stronger.

[Michelle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Warning: there are some minor spoilers.
2.5 stars. Mom of two young kids deals with her newly widowed status. Takes place in Massachusetts, with scenes on the Cape, a hallmark of women’s fiction. You have to have a beach house somewhere, right? There are some lovely, real, and raw scenes and it’s easy to root for the main character. She is winsome and flawed and completely believable. I enjoyed her relationship with her Aunt Jude (side note: there are a lot of names starting with J in this book). The religious aspect is also handled nicely and this is coming from someone who is not religious at all. Though some of the religious imagery is a bit heavy handed (carpenters anyone?)

However, the major “piece” of the religion storyline was unnecessary and downright annoying/not believable. This storyline totally dissipates about midway through and then there’s like a paragraph of “closure” at the end. Very, very weird. And I did not buy the romance, not one bit. It’s like she finds out he likes her and is all into it, but not before. Her weirdness when they do get involved is well written, though, given her grief.

I also thought Janie’s journal entries were superfluous. They add nothing to the story as it was told in very close third person. Most the time the entries recapped what already went on. I didn’t understand the point. There are also a ton of extraneous characters (nosy neighbors and other peoples’ kids and lecherous divorcees and autistic family members and absentee mothers and cousins’ girlfriends and homeless people, to name a few) that really bogged down the plot.

All in, though there were flashes of brilliance and this plot has a lot of heart, it was pack with too many things that didn’t make up the story.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will admit that I began reading this book assuming I wouldn't like it. Fay is one of my mother's good friends, and it's hard to imagine someone you know having the creativity and intelligence to publish a full-length novel, let alone a GOOD full-length novel. This book is also a genre I would not normally pick up/enjoy.

But read it I did, and to my surprise, I really enjoyed it. I couldn't put the book down once I started- I had to find out what happened to the characters whom I quickly grew to love. Even though the situations in the book aren't ones I could immediately relate to, I found myself emotionally invested in their outcome. The story didn't leave me for some time, occupying my thoughts for several days- a hallmark of a well-written book, in my opinion.

So yes, I do recommend reading this book.

[M · Rating 2 out of 5]

The staggeringly high GR rating convinced me to set aside my instincts (this looks dumb! Title and cover echo the sentiment! A brief skim shows that much dialogue is in all caps which basically guarantees that this will be BAD!) and read this despite myself, and while it was not as bad as I thought, it was not much better.
Shelter Me takes on the incredibly whiny and unlikable Jane who has lost her husband and now has to take care of her two kids. Jane is a miserable ingrate who blithely accepts the ready assistance of the many caring people around her while kvetching and moaning about them in her head. Somehow, though, Jane manages to get two single, good looking, and wonderful men to chase after her while she plays them like fiddles.
On the one hand, I can appreciate the intense personality change that can happen after a tragic loss and how unlikable a person can become, and it's not like Jane doesn't get called out on it. But it makes it rather hard to like her, and I do think this could have been achieved and, frankly, was much needed. I felt that overall the story was a stretch, took on too much (the ostensibly center conflict is that one of the suitors is a priest which is way interesting but that got shoved aside for a far less interesting story), and was overall pretty blah. There were moments of good writing, and I read this mostly on the beach which it was perfect for, so I will give it two stars, but I am frankly shocked that it did as well as it did here and was even compared to Ann Tyler - yows!

[momruncraft · Rating 3 out of 5]

A tragic bike accident leaves a family of four struggling to adjust to life as a family of three. A young mother of two: a toddler and an infant, navigates her new life with the help of eccentric characters and friends.

This book, much unlike the others I have read lately, is not a thrilling, page turner. Instead, it moved slowly. Almost too slowly at times. I nearly put this book back on the shelf a number of times but chose to plod through it and am glad I did. While I think chunks of this 415 page book would have been better left on the editing floor, the overall theme and message is touching and thought provoking. Who shelters YOU from heartache? Tragedy? Day to day challenges? Who do you shelter from such things?

As a mother of two kids similar in age, the scenes with the childrean coping with the loss are what stayed with me the most. One in particular: the young boy's first swimming lesson. He spends the morning fighting with his mother over which trunks to wear. She pushes his new blue ones and he insists on the red ones. AND his goggles. Which he wears from time to time. She would later come to find out that he wanted the red trunks in case his Daddy decided to make a special trip home from heaven to watch him swim. If he wore red, his Daddy would be more likely to spot him in the pool. Heartwrenching.

[Barbara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hesitate to given this three stars without explaining that I think that three stars is a decent rating. The main character is a young woman with two children widowed suddently. The novel takes you through the first year following her husband's accident and all of her emotional adjustment and angst. I found myself somewhat annoyed with her at times because of her insular approach to things, not realizing how her behavior and emotions might be affecting those around her simply trying to understand and to help. I guess she just continued to be shocked each day by the fact that, regardless of how much people want to help, there is no way around the pain - only through it. She seems to make some pretty tough judgements about others. That said, I found myself caring about the characters and would read another book by this author.

[Renae · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was really taken away by this story and in particular this author's writing style. The thing is it's not an unusual story line, however, the way the author presents it is what makes this book just so very enjoyable. About half way through I started worrying that it would be over. I didn't want the story to end! Lots of humor and wit in every page too. I would say run out to your library or to Target and buy this book!!

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the perfect 'take me away' book! Fay's easy to read prose allows the reader to immediately identify with her main character. Without spoiling the plot, this tale of a grieving single mom, will make even the greatest cynic into a romantic. I loved the characters, setting, and recipes! (A book with food--Yum!)

[Jane Stewart · Rating 2 out of 5]

Depressing and unpleasant. I don’t like the subject. It’s grief and an unlikeable heroine.

STORY BRIEF:
This is women’s fiction with some romance at the end. Janie’s husband died in a bicycle accident. The story takes place during the subsequent year.

OPINION:
It’s hard to like a book when you do not like the main character Janie. She is antagonistic, snide, snotty, insufferably irritable, sarcastic, angry, hurting others, and disrespectful to others. One character said to her “You snarl and snipe at people all day long. The people that love you the most you treat the worst as if they’re disposable.”

I want enjoyable and feel good stories. So this was not a good choice for me. 99% of the book is watching Janie’s grief, rage, and meanness to others. Another thing I did not like about her: Janie was going to throw out some of Dillon’s toys when he wasn’t around because he would disagree on what to throw. I find that disrespectful to Dillon.

What a nasty person Janie’s mother was. I did not enjoy watching her. She did something mean concerning Janie and Jake. She should have talked to Janie first before talking to Jake. Later she was critical and insulting about Janie and Tug. If you're going to have a nasty person I'd prefer some reaction, resolution, regret, or change. Here there was no change, just meanness thrown in.

In the physical book the diary pages are written in italic and in 1st person. That is a problem for the audiobook because the reader doesn’t know when it is switching between diary and regular narrative. It was disconcerting to hear changes between 1st and 3rd person. But more important, the diary was a distraction. It should have been eliminated.

WHAT I LIKED:
AUDIOBOOK NARRATOR:
Marguerite Gavin was excellent. She was wonderful doing dialogue for two 4 year old boys. That had me smiling.

DATA:
Narrative mode: most is 3rd person Janie, with frequent diary entries done in 1st person. Unabridged audiobook length: 13 hrs and 19 mins. Swearing language: strong but not often used. Sexual language: none. Number of sex scenes: two vaguely done. Setting: current day mostly Pelham, Massachusetts. Book copyright: 2009. Genre: women’s fiction, grief.

[Robin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book in less than 24 hours. It wasn't necessarily because it was such an amazing book but it was more because I have always wondered what I would do if my husband were to unexpectedly die. What decisions would I make? How would I respond? I was sucked into Janie's life as she dealt with this life altering event. I admired her commitment to her children as she slogged through the first year following her husband's death. I really enjoyed her Aunt Jude and her lessons in serving and selflessness. That is definitely one way to take the focus off of our own misery and focus on others. I have always thought I would never remarry (actually I still think that) but it was interesting to see her thought process as she struggled with that option.

Added on 3.3.10: I just had to add to my previous review. Off and on over the past few days I think about Janie and wonder how she's doing.....I guess that is a sign of a pretty good book. Janie's character came alive for me and I find myself wishing her well!

[Vickie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed listening to this story. Julie LaMarche's husband, Robbie, is killed while out riding his bike and she is left alone to raise two young children. She is consumed by both anger and grief and then meets the contractor, Tug, who arrives to build her a porch, which was the last gift given to her by her husband.

There is so much in this story. The characters are quite colorful, from her crazy aunt to her flamboyant neighbor. I loved living the year through Julie's life. The ending??? Priceless and very heartfelt.

Go Cards! L1C4!!

[Toni · Rating 4 out of 5]

What started out as just another "chick-lit" novel became, for me, a truly enjoyable read with characters I really cared about. Sprinkled throughout this tale of love and loss (or more accurately loss and love) are words of wisdom, some humor and a great deal of realism.

This is Juliette Fay's first novel - I hope it will not be her last. I will certainly look for her in the future.

[Lori · Rating 2 out of 5]

Juliette Fay's writing is wonderful. She can paint detailed scenes with her words. Unfortunately she wasted a lot of this book painting dull, mundane scenes. I skipped pages after pages of details about the sandwiches the protagonist made for lunch, what she packed for the Cape, what she chose at a bakery, etc. Too bad.

[Shelby *trains flying monkeys* · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this book alot. It did drag for me abit about halfway but I'm so glad I finished it. Ended up really liking this story and became attached to the characters.

[Kelli · Rating 1 out of 5]

For the first time EVER in my life, and upon the suggestion of a friend, I returned this book to the library when I was 196 pages invested. I was thoroughly disappointed and utterly disinterested.

[Chloe (Always Booked) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is really hard to rate. I'd probably give it a 3 1/2. At some points I loved it and at other points I felt like it really dragged. the story is about loss and grief and the sometimes unexpected people in your life who step in when you really need them. I liked that theme and really enjoyed some of the relationships in the story, but I also felt like a lot of characters were a little underdeveloped.
SPOILERS:
this story is about Janie and her life after her husband is tragically killed in a Biking accident. She has 2 kids- a 4(?) year old boy and a baby girl. As expected, Janie is devastated when her husband dies. Her loud and over the top aunt Jude arranges it so their priest comes over every week to visit with Janie and hopefully help her with her grief. Janie and the priest fall in love, but when her mom comes to visit from Italy , she says she doesn't think it's a good idea and they break it off.
Another part of this story is Tug. He was hired by Janie's Husband before he died to build a porch. He works on the house and has quickly bonded with Janie's son. After her relationship with the priest ends, Janie and Tug fall in love. Both of these relationships happen within the first year of her husband's death. That really bothered me because as upset as she was (understandably) I don't understand how she could fall in love with 2 other men. That being said, I liked the dynamic with Janie and both men and it was entertaining to watch the relationships grow.
Also there for her support are her neighbor Shelly (until she meets A man and moves in with him), her cousin who is a baker, and her semi autistic twin brother.
Overall I enjoyed this book and would recommend reading it, but I think it'll take me a few weeks to see if it sticks with me or not.

[Mary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Janie LaMarche has recently lost her husband Rob in a biking accident. In the four months since his death, she has been balanced on the edge of an overwhelmingly emotional crisis - teetering from heartwrenching grief to blazing anger from day to day. However, her mourning is disrupted by the unexpected arrival of a contractor with a building order to add a porch onto her house. Bewildered by his sudden arrival, Janie slowly realizes that the porch was actually meant to be a surprise from her husband - now his final gift to her.

As a reluctant Janie allows the construction to begin, she steadfastly clings to the familiarity of her sorrow - mothering her two small children with a fierce protectiveness, avoiding well-meaning friends and family, and stewing in a rage she can't release. Yet Janie's self-imposed isolation is continuously breached by a motley crew of unlikely interventionists, all determined to break through her steely shell of grief. The cast of loving intermediaries includes: Janie's chatty Aunt Jude, for whom a stiff slug of ipecac solves everything; her over-manicured, tremendously nosy neighbor Shelly, whose home visits are so regular Janie can almost set her watch by them; her muffin-bearing cousin Cormac, who considers baked goods to be downright therapeutic; and even Tug, the contractor with a private grief all his own.

So, as the porch begins to take shape, Janie discovers that the unknown terrain of the future is better charted a day at a time. And that any potential potholes she may encounter along the way are best navigated with the help of others - even those who she never expected to call on, much less learn to love.

I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Everything about it resonated with me: the story was well-written, the characters were entirely believable, and the plot was very well-developed. I'm going to be putting this author's name right at the top of my wishlist and would certainly give this book an A+!

[Diane · Rating 2 out of 5]

I thought this book was awful - poorly written, heavily in need of editing, complete lack of character development and just plain boring - long and boring. I don't know why I even bothered to finish it except I am generally reluctant to not finish a book once I have started it - and I kept thinking it might get better. It didn't. Nothing special about the plot - basically the story of a woman with two young children and how she copes when her husband is killed in a car/bike accident. Enough said!

[Maggie M · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a year in the life of a wife that tragedy lost her husband. To make things worse she had 2 young children. The unexpected friendships she found along the way and how she dealt with the loss.
I felt this book was a fictional look into what a person would have to go through to deal with such a great loss.
The reason I didn’t give this a 5 star rating is because in my eyes I didn’t feel it was realistic enough. I think if it was the same story spread out over several years it would have been more real to me.

[Amelia Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was at 5 stars all the way until the last 100 pages. I really enjoyed the day to day life of this woman grieving and learning to enjoy life again BUT I did NOT need a love interest. Too soon, I wasn’t even over her husband by the time she was in love with two new men? Not necessary, I would’ve loved to see her learning to live her life again without needing a new guy

[Kate West · Rating 3 out of 5]

the self defense class scene felt unnecessary in my opinion and also unnecessarily traumatic. i understand it was so the pastor could be seen leaving her house, but i feel like there could have been a less triggering and descriptive way. loved tug. didn’t like how he reacted with her not taking off her ring. better book than i way expecting tho.

[Rianonne]

Abbruch nach 121 Seiten...

[Teri Pre · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book!

[Leslie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good bones and idea for a novel. Main feeling was too long with 2-3 extraneous subplots. With some tweaking I think I could have given it more stars. It definitely read as a first novel by the author.

[Jackie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps I should wait a day or two to write my thoughts about this book, since I just now finished reading it. I have been engrossed in it for the last two days. But my stack of books is tall, and I shouldn't wait lest I forget anything. I think I'll just make a list and see where it takes me.

1. I love the wonderful images Ms. Fay presents with her words.

2. I really, really dislike the foul language. When someone uses words as deftly and compellingly as this author, why would they resort to the laziness of foul language?

3. I loved the back and forth of the narrative interspersed with the 1st person journal entries. Very effective.

4. Even though I was enjoying the reading, it really was too long. Too much stuff was included in the book, making it a bit fragmented with all the directions that were started and mostly resolved, but really felt like mere plot devices.

5. The apparently mandatory graphic sex would have had more impact had it been only hinted at. Here again, it felt like a "selling point". Too calculated, while not adding anything to the story.

6. While I felt thoroughly involved in the book while reading it, I'm feeling very ambivalent about the next outing from this author. Not sure where she would go after this. She mentioned at the end of the book working on something to do with teenagers and body image. Sounds to me like an anorexic or bulemic book. I'm not big on "cause" books. We'll have to see.


Several passages I particularly liked:

"Janie suspected him of being too happy for marriage. He never seemed to need anything or anyone in his life that he didn't already have."

"But these random women from every walk of life, having just leaked out a little of their own misery...they did not feel pity. No. It was something else, something that's always there, like the rumble of the earth's core. It was like the hum of all the world's sorrow."

"They eat like they're at war. With the food. The food hates them, and they have to outsmart it. Deprive it of butter or salad dressing or the like. But no matter what they do, if they eat it, the food wins. So they put on more lip gloss and go after each other."