Lack of continuity

[Meinir]

I'm an avid fan of the first trilogy, I've only just read 'Home to Big Stone Gap' and was really looking forward to revisit the wonderful characters in the first three books, but I'm gutted to find a very trite and lightweight book in comparison to the first three. I wonder to myself whether Adriana Trigiana was forced into writing this book against her better judgement? I'm big on 'continuity' and it grated on me the ham fisted mistakes that happened. The first was Worley Olinger seemed to be no longer married to Leah Grimes, Pearl's mother, there was no mention that they were ever a couple! Did they separate, where they never married, did I imagine reading about their wedding in the earliest books?! The other was the description given of Arthur their neighbour in Aberdeen by their host, 'Arthur lost his wife last year...', in less than 40 pages Arthur describes to Ave Maria his early marriage during the war, and the loss of his young wife in the war, and how that affected him and how he never felt the need to marry ever again! Did the author or her editors not proof read the book thoroughly before publishing? The chapters of Ave Maria and Jack in Scotland were terrible, simply because they were so 'twee'! I don't think, sorry I know everyone in Scotland doesn't eat shortbread and haggis continuously, that was lack of research I'm afraid. The scene with the relative who was a 'seer'...well, I'm not even going there, awful! I could say much more, but I'll stop there. The first three books are wonderful and inspirational, a MUST read for everyone, I've recommended them to others so many times, but this one...I will quietly return to the library and forget about it. It's like having the most 'scrummy', most gorgeous 3 layer cake you have ever tasted and topping it off with a watery tasteless icing. Such a shame.