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What Members Thought
"...I can forgive and forget... it is so much less exhausting. You only have to forgive once. To resent, you have to do it all day, every day. You have to keep remembering all the bad things."
-- Frank Roennfeldt
***SPOILER ALERT***
M.L. Stedman is absolutely brilliant! She covered every base ensuring the reader would be completely torn in all directions. You understand why Isabel and Tom made the decision to keep Lucy. Even though Tom struggled with that decision, it was reinforced by the effect ...more
-- Frank Roennfeldt
***SPOILER ALERT***
M.L. Stedman is absolutely brilliant! She covered every base ensuring the reader would be completely torn in all directions. You understand why Isabel and Tom made the decision to keep Lucy. Even though Tom struggled with that decision, it was reinforced by the effect ...more
Apr 12, 2013
Clifford
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
novels,
reading-liberally
I didn't want to like this as much as I did, but it was a very entertaining and compelling read. Mildly disappointed by the ending, but then I'm not sure what could have been done differently or better. The language was generally very good; wonderful extended metaphors abound. The central question of the novel is very powerful. So, in the end, I'm a fan.
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I really, really, really liked this book. It's the first time in a long time that I could not put a book down. It wasn't that way at first, because the building tension made me need occasional breaks. But that final third of the book! I knew what was coming and pretty much knew how, but by then I was so caught up in the story that I was living it along with the characters and my heart was breaking for all of them. I will eagerly watch for another book by M. L Stedman. It is a stunning debut.
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If you are familiar with the Biblical story of King Solomon and his tough decision in deciding which woman a baby belongs to, you will understand the pain explored in this novel. This novel excels at examining various factors that unfortunately combine to create an unimaginably painful situation for all involved when a baby shifts from one woman's arms to another. Set in the years immediately following World War I in Australia, the acts of dying and killing as well as racism are felt. Lots of em
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Love love love this book! It took a couple chapters for me to get into it, but once I did, I couldn't put it down. I found myself crying and hugging my children a lot as I read it. Not only does the author do a great job with character growth and plot development; she also just writes beautifully with eloquent descriptions and symbolism throughout. Highly recommend.
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The descriptions of the landscape were lovely and did not detract from the flow of the plot at all, which surprised me. The ending had a knife twist twice and I cried like a baby. A lovely and unexpected story all the way around.
Beautiful and poignant. You can't help but feel for the characters and I'll admit I shed a tear at the end. I look forward to reading more from this author.
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Excellent! My favorite recent read
What a lovely book.
Oh my! I thought this book could have ended in so many different ways. The author tried to show everyone's point of view, but I still found myself drawn to Isabelle and her choice.
In the end, I was surprised to find out this book is more about claiming a child as your own, it is a love story. I wept uncontrollable. Well done. ...more
In the end, I was surprised to find out this book is more about claiming a child as your own, it is a love story. I wept uncontrollable. Well done. ...more
Wow. The story line was compelling and I had a hard time putting it down. I had heard that it was a tear jerker so I was "proud" of myself for not crying. Yeah, until the end. Great story.
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Yes, heart-wrenching, but very good. Given the complex situation, the ending was well done and satisfying. The switches from present to past tense were bothersome.
I absolutely loved this book! The choices we make for or in spite of love. I couldn't put it down.
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3.5, it was a great story and set off Western Australia made it even more interesting for me.
