From the Bookshelf of On The Same Page …

Winter Solstice

Rosamunde Pilcher

Start date: December 1, 2021

Finish date: December 30, 2021

Discussion: On The Same Page Monthly Reads

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On The Same Page Monthly Reads

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* What to read in December 2023
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What Members Thought

Dec 26, 2018 Natalie [genreneutralreader] rated it did not like it · review of another edition

This book made me sad. I was thinking it would be a light, but uplifting Christmas read. It was fairly light, but the subject and subtext of the novel I couldn't shake as sad. It is about a bunch of people whose stories come together in a Scottish hamlet at Christmas time one year. There is humor, great scenery, cute characters.

What makes me sad about it is the subtext of praise for adultery and casual parenting. The main character is the pseudo-widow of a man who was married but lived with her This book made me sad. I was thinking it would be a light, but uplifting Christmas read. It was fairly light, but the subject and subtext of the novel I couldn't shake as sad. It is about a bunch of people whose stories come together in a Scottish hamlet at Christmas time one year. There is humor, great scenery, cute characters.

What makes me sad about it is the subtext of praise for adultery and casual parenting. The main character is the pseudo-widow of a man who was married but lived with her until his death of Parkinsons. Another is a woman who lost the "love of her life" who was a married man when after a long time together he decided he couldn't leave his wife and children. Yet another character neglected his wife, then she cheated on him so he moved across the ocean from her but is not divorced nor in the process, but is ready to pursue his next relationship. A minor character is somewhat praised for having left his selfish wife for his much younger lover when his two kids with her are finally adults....the book conveniently leaves out the stress and angst that relationship must have caused his younger lover for the time they were together before he left his wife. The book also only gives minor voice to the pain the marriage dissolution caused his newly adult daughters from his first marriage. I guess the author thought it was of no consequence since he had two new children with the younger second wife. Sigh.

I get it. People cheat and not everyone who does has an unhappy ending. I just hate to see if glamorized. It is hard on so many people, not just the ones in the relationship.

Finally, the aspect of the book that made me the most sad and uncomfortable was the part about Lucy, the 14-yr old whose parents are divorced and she doesn't see her dad anymore because his new wife doesn't really wish to have her around. Her mom is desperate to find a new man so she has neglected Lucy and very clearly thinks of her as a burden and doesn't accept responsibility for her. Finally her grandmother is a selfish woman who, though she takes Lucy in to live with her, refuses to take any of the burden of responsibility for her. Both Lucy's mother and grandmother dump her with people she barely knows the Christmas in this book so that they can gallivant with friends and lovers.

I just found the story heavy and depressing when I think its aim was to be uplifting. All a matter of perspective, I suppose. ...more

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Jan 02, 2022 Lauren coffeebooksandescape rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: 5-star, christmas, romance, womens-fiction, 400-plus-pages

‘Life is so extraordinary. Wonderful surprises are just around the most unexpected corners.’

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The perfect feel-good Christmassy tale. Elfrida moved to a small village in Hampshire, where she met a family that made her feel more than welcome. A few months after moving there, she headed down to Cornwall to visit her cousin, and upon returning home a month later finds disaster has struck…

This book is so perfect. I never knew where the storyline would take me next… There were so many charact ...more

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Nov 10, 2022 Lace rated it liked it

A warm and surprising tale of a solstice turning into a Christmas. Main characters from 70+ to 14. Can’t explain it without spoilers. Give it a try.

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May 20, 2022 Kelly Nichols rated it it was ok

This book is not my cup of tea. When I read or listen to a book I normally do not know much about the book. This books makes me think of an Austen or one of the Brontë's novels or some other classic story I can't think of the author. They are just not much cup of tea and lots of other people love the books. It was hard for me to get through this book. I put this book down and finished two other books before coming back. I did not find the story interesting. ...more

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