Helpful Score: 3
From the dust jacket: "At the center of FAMILY BLESSINGS is forty-four-year-old Lee Reston, a widow who takes deep pleasure in her three children and satisfaction from the profitable florist business she has skillfully built. Then Greg, her oldest son, is killed in a motorcycle crash, and Lee's world shatters with renewed pain. She turns to Christopher Lallek, Greg's best friend, for comfort. A loner raised in a dysfuctional household, Chris warms to Lee and her brood, and they to him. Together they grieve for Greg and begin the healing process.
Lee and Chris' friendship begins with small gestures. First his strong sense of responsibility leads him to extend a helping hand around the house by assisting with the chores that were once Greg's province, from fixing the garden hose to mowing the lawn; Lee responds in kind by treating this serious, mature young man to the simple pleasures of home-cooked meals and backyard barbecues shared among loving family members who eagerly include him.
Over time, the bond between the young man and the older woman blossoms from friendship to romance. Lee is stirred by emotions she never dreamed she would experience again; Chris learns at last the power of unconditional love. Despite the heady thrill of what seems to be deep true love, the difference in their ages makes Lee wary of what the world will think, and she insists they keep their affair a secret. But when her daughter, who harbors her own feelings for Chris, discovers the truth about their romance, she sets off a violent emotional chain reacion. Lee and Christopher find that a close family can be a mixed blessing."
Lee and Chris' friendship begins with small gestures. First his strong sense of responsibility leads him to extend a helping hand around the house by assisting with the chores that were once Greg's province, from fixing the garden hose to mowing the lawn; Lee responds in kind by treating this serious, mature young man to the simple pleasures of home-cooked meals and backyard barbecues shared among loving family members who eagerly include him.
Over time, the bond between the young man and the older woman blossoms from friendship to romance. Lee is stirred by emotions she never dreamed she would experience again; Chris learns at last the power of unconditional love. Despite the heady thrill of what seems to be deep true love, the difference in their ages makes Lee wary of what the world will think, and she insists they keep their affair a secret. But when her daughter, who harbors her own feelings for Chris, discovers the truth about their romance, she sets off a violent emotional chain reacion. Lee and Christopher find that a close family can be a mixed blessing."
Helpful Score: 2
I wasn't sure how I'd like this book since there was a 15 yr age difference between the two main characters but it really came together. If your looking for a few laughs and a few tears then this is a great romance.
Helpful Score: 2
Ordinary people coming to grips with real problems.. a moving tale!
Helpful Score: 1
a great tearjerker, lavyrle spencer writes good dramas!
Out of the deepest grief comes the greatest love. Ordinary people come to grips with real people.
Sad and yet enlightening. A good read.
Loved it!
Awesome book! I couldn't put it down!!
Great book!
Good story line!
Ordinary people coming to grips with real problems are handled with a sure, restrained touch that makes this latest novel from the bestselling author of Bygones a moving tale. When Greg Reston, a young policeman in the small Minnesota town of Anoka, is killed in an automobile accident, it is up to his best friend and fellow officer Chris Lallek to break the news to Greg's widowed mother Lee. In the months following the tragedy, Chris proves invaluable to the Reston family, as a surrogate brother to Greg's siblings Janice, 23, and Joey, 14, and a source of unwavering emotional strength for all of them. But underlying his devotion is a clandestine and highly charged affair with the 45-year-old Lee, 15 years his senior. Is their need for each other really love, or is it simply comfort for two grieving people? When Chris proposes marriage, Lee must consider not only her judgmental mother and prudish sister, but also Janice, who has developed a crush on Chris. Spencer depicts the Reston clan with empathy, presenting fully dimensional characters with carefully limned vulnerabilities and hostilities. While residing safely within the parameters of romance fiction, this novel has an appealing candor that transcends the genre.
Really good romance book w/ a good plot.
A good book about a widowed woman struggling to decide between her family, who are the center of her life or the exciting, younger, new love of her life. Must she make a choice or is there a way to bring her two worlds together?
love all her books
Ordinary people coming to grips with real problems, a moving tale.
A good story about family ties. abiding love. and strenght in the face of adversity. These are hallmarks of LaVyrle spencer's fiction.
LaVyrle Spencer - you love her or you hate her...she has a distinct writing style and a large number of books in print. I personally enjoy her books - this one is not my favorite, but still remains a very good read
A heartwarming story of a widow who falls in love witha somewhat younger man and how they deal with the various responses from mamily members. Pleasurable ilght reading
Several summers ago, I discovered Lavyrle Spencer. I am never disappointed. A very good read.
The emotional New York Times bestseller from the author of Home Song and November of the Heart. Widowed at an early age, 44-year-old Lee Reston has overcome many obstacles to raise three children and build a successful business. When her eldest son is killed in a motorcycle accident, Lee turns to his 30-year-old best friend for comfort--and falls in love with him.
When Christopher's best friend and partner is killed in an accident, he helps Greg's mother through the grief. Christopher soon realizes that he has feelings for Lee
Lee Weston, a widow in her mid-forties loses her oldest son Greg in an accident. She turns to Gregs friend Christopher for comfort. She falls in love with this young man. So does her granddaughter, go figure!
the cover is different from the stock photo.
NYT bestseller from another great Maine author!
LaVyrle Spencer's books get read adn reread, passed on from one friend to another. They touch the heart and are even used by some professionals to help people develop healthier ways to live.
Out of the deepest grief comes the greatest love...Lee Reston, a widow in her mid=forties, had a full and rewarding life w/ her three incredible children and a thriving florist business. And like most of us, Lee never imagined how she would cope if that which was most precious was taken from her...
Then came the shattering news that turned her life upside down: Lee's oldest son, Greg, is killed in a motorcycle accident. In her anguish & grief, she turns to police officer Christopher Lallek, Greg's best friend; together they grieve for Greg & begin to heal their pain. As their friendship blossoms, Chris becomes part of the family, helping w/ odd jobs around the house & joining in family dinners & backyard barbecues. Soon,Lee realizes she's experiencing feelings she never thought she'd feel again--she's falling inlove w/ this serious, gentle young man--and wonders what the world will think of their unexpected love affair. She finds her answer clost to home, for Lee's daughter has feelings of her own for Chris. Now the family that was once the core of her existence becomes a mixed blessing, as Lee must confront her own children to understand where family ties end--and a woman's need for love begins...
Then came the shattering news that turned her life upside down: Lee's oldest son, Greg, is killed in a motorcycle accident. In her anguish & grief, she turns to police officer Christopher Lallek, Greg's best friend; together they grieve for Greg & begin to heal their pain. As their friendship blossoms, Chris becomes part of the family, helping w/ odd jobs around the house & joining in family dinners & backyard barbecues. Soon,Lee realizes she's experiencing feelings she never thought she'd feel again--she's falling inlove w/ this serious, gentle young man--and wonders what the world will think of their unexpected love affair. She finds her answer clost to home, for Lee's daughter has feelings of her own for Chris. Now the family that was once the core of her existence becomes a mixed blessing, as Lee must confront her own children to understand where family ties end--and a woman's need for love begins...
LaVyrle Spencer is an incredible writer that has a way of making a story come to life especially this one.
