Shelf Addiction
  • Home
  • The Podcast
  • Blog
  • Monthly Read-Alongs
  • About Shelf Addiction
    • Media Kit
    • Advertising
    • Privacy Policy
  • Support Us
  • Shop
  • Tee Public Merch Store
  • Book Club Guide
  • Giveaways
Sign up for the FREE Shelf Addiction Newsletter!

Book Review | Eden, by Jeanne McWilliams Blasberg

3/5/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
Publisher: She Writes Press
Release Date: May 2, 2017
Format: Paperback
Pages: 336
Source: Publicist/Publisher
Genre: Historical Fiction
​Rating: 3 bookmarks

​Synopsis: 
Becca Meister Fitzpatrick--wife, mother, grandmother, and pillar of the community--is the dutiful steward of her family's iconic summer tradition . . . until she discovers her recently deceased husband squandered their nest egg. As she struggles to accept that this is likely her last season in Long Harbor, Becca is inspired by her granddaughter's boldness in the face of impending single-motherhood, and summons the courage to reveal a secret she was forced to bury long ago: the existence of a daughter she gave up fifty years ago. The question now is how her other daughter, Rachel--with whom Becca has always had a strained relationship--will react. 
​
Eden is the account of the days leading up to the Fourth of July weekend, as Becca prepares to disclose her secret and her son and brothers conspire to put the estate on the market, interwoven with the century-old history of Becca's family--her parents' beginnings and ascent into affluence, and her mother's own secret struggles in the grand home her father named "Eden."

*This book was provided by the publicist/publisher in exchange for a honest review.


Eden is a house that is built on Long Harbor, and Becca is the current caretaker of the property. The home has been passed down through her family for generations after her up and coming grandfather built it for his family. The story revolves around not just Becca, but all of Eden’s inhabitants. Chapters are told in alternating time periods; 1940’s when Bunny and Sadie owned the house, and the year 2000, when the house is owned by the family as a whole (but Becca lives there). The dual timeline provides an interesting look at the workings of this family as it grows, ages, and changes.
​
I will say that there are a LOT of characters in this book. A LOT. I was struggling trying to remember who was who, and how they were related to one another throughout the entirety of the book. The dynamics of the family also naturally changed between the alternating timelines which didn’t help me with trying to remember just how everybody added up in the familial equation.
Many of the characters were also not very likable. The author paints a portrait of a well to do family, but many of them act like middle-age brats. Rachel seems to be a closet alcoholic, Thomas is the one with the illness and seems to use this as his means of entitlement, and even Becca seems to be so self-absorbed, she can’t even recognize that her long-standing maid may need (or want) to spend a holiday with her own family.

With that being said, the story told from the earlier time period had me enthralled. This was, of course, before the family started adding new members through marriage and children, so it was easier to keep track, but it also told the story of a clan of people who are trying to keep up with the Jones’, so to speak, but are crumbling on the inside. There are a lot of secrets that are kept within those four walls, and it was interesting to see how decisions made in this time period shaped and affected the members of the family 50-60 years later. One huge secret was kept from almost all members of the Meister clan, which just goes to show that you may not know the person standing in front of you as well as you think you do.

​If you are a fan of Jaqueline Mitchard or Anna Quindlen, I think you may like this book. I would give this book a solid 3 out of 5. If you like a story filled numerous complex characters, this one may be right up your alley.

Picture
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Gain access to exclusive content!
    Picture
    Click for Shelf Addiction merch!
    Follow on Bloglovin

    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Picture
    Get ONE month FREE!

    ​Rating Scale: 

    Picture
    Wonderful! Loved it! Add it to your shelf!
    Picture
    ​Very good read! It's bookshelf worthy.
    Picture
    ​I liked it. Borrow it from the library or a friend.
    Picture
    I got through it...barely! If you must read it, borrow it.
    Picture
    Don't waste your time.

    Picture

    Currently Reading

    Somebody I Used to Know
    Hidden Bodies

    Follow on Bloglovin

    Read the Printed Word!
    Picture

    DISCLAIMER 
    All affiliate links used on this site are links which I will receive a small commission if you purchase using them. A percent of all monies earned goes to help pay for this website and giveaways hosted by me .
    Click here to read the 
    Privacy Policy for Shelf Addiction


    Categories

    All
    1 Bookmark
    2 Bookmarks
    3 Bookmarks
    4 Bookmarks
    5 Bookmarks
    Aa Fiction
    Armchair Bea
    Audiobook
    Author Features
    Autobiography
    Biography
    Blog Tours
    Book Conventions
    Book Haul Tuesday
    Bookish Bargains
    Bookish News
    Bookish Pod Chat
    Book To Movie Adaptations
    Book To TV Adaptations
    BookTube Weekly
    Buddy Reads
    Chick Lit
    Christian Fiction
    Contemporary Fiction
    Contemporary Romance
    Cover Reveal
    Dystopian
    Erotica
    Fantasy
    Fantasy Series
    Feature & Follow Friday
    General Fiction
    Giveaways
    Guest Posts
    Historical Fiction
    Horror
    Inspirational
    Literacy Events
    Memoir
    Movie Reviews
    Mystery
    Narrator Interviews
    New Adult
    Non Fiction
    Paranormal
    Paranormal Romance
    Pop Culture Sunday
    Read Along
    Read A Thon
    Romance
    Romantic Suspense
    RTU
    Sa-book-club
    Saturday Book Chat
    Science Fiction
    Seasonal Reading
    Shelf Byte
    Short Stories
    Steampunk
    Summer Of Indie
    Suspense
    TBR Jar
    The Book Exchange
    The Recap!
    Thriller
    Throwback Thursday
    TPCP
    Tv Show Reviews
    Urban Fantasy
    Why I Love Wednesdays
    Womens Fiction
    Ya Dystopian
    Ya Fantasy
    Ya Fiction
    Ya Historical Fantasy
    Ya Historical Fiction
    Ya Mystery
    Ya Paranormal
    Ya Retelling
    Ya Romance
    Ya Science Fiction
    Ya Steampunk
    Ya Thriller
    Ya Urban Fantasy

    Reviews Published

    Sponsor Love

    Picture
    Advertise on 
    ​Shelf Addiction!

    Picture
    Picture
    We can't do this without you!! Support this podcast! Use the referral links, leave a review on your platform of choice, donate a coffee or checkout the merch store. Even show your support on Patreon!

    Podcast Book Chats, Bookish Topics, Book Reviews, Audiobook Reviews, Author and Narrator Interviews, Online Book Club

© 2012-2023 shelfaddiction.com. All rights reserved.