Helpful Score: 6
Kristin Hannah has a way of letting you really become involved with the characters in her book. They just come to life for you and she shows so much emotion. This book is a really good story and holds your interest from beginning to end. I think this is one you wouldn't want to miss if you're a Kristin Hannah fan.
Helpful Score: 5
Do not read unless you have two full boxes of tissues. A thoroughly enjoyable tear-jerker of a read.
Helpful Score: 3
Emotional and poignant. A lovely story!
Helpful Score: 3
This is one of the best Kristin Hannah books I have read. The story showed very strong emotions, very realistic situations, and highly believable characters. This book looks some things straight in the eye, like poverty and teenage pregnancy, making the reader want to help those that are suffering from either. The story will make you believe in the power of family and the power of love, and it will more than likely make you shed a few tears. Not really a light read, but enjoyable nonetheless.
Helpful Score: 2
GRETA BOOK! Wonderfully written!
Helpful Score: 2
An engaging read by Hannah! I was anxious to see how the story would be resolved. The characters were very engaging, and this book was very well written--love Kristin Hannah, and this was another great one!
Helpful Score: 2
This is one of the best of Kristin Hannah's books that I have read. The story showed very strong emotions, very realistic situations, and highly believable characters. This book looks some things straight in the eye, like poverty and teenage pregnancy, making the reader want to help those that are suffering from either. The story will make you believe in the power of family and the power of love, and it will more than likely make you shed a few tears. Not really a light read, but enjoyable nonetheless.
Helpful Score: 2
This is an excellent story with a few good surprises just when you think you have
it all figured out.
Unfortunately, I think that Kristin Hannah was "off her game" and ended up cranking
out the number of needed pages to get the book to the publisher on time. It seems
she fell into the trap of the serial author and started padding her work with too many
repetitive phrases. We know it is rainy and misty in the Seattle/Portland area -- a lot.
I found it sad that the author had to refer to the weather every time a character
stepped outside or looked out a window. There is a weather report on every other page.
Enough is enough!
She also got hung up on the characters' eye color. The first time we meet them we
find Lauren has sad brown eyes, David had clear blue eyes, Conlon has the most clear
blue eyes, Lauren's mom has green eyes, and Angie's eyes are dark and shining with tears.
This description isn't needed in every chapter throughout the book.
All-in-all a good storyline but Ms. Hannah can do much better.
it all figured out.
Unfortunately, I think that Kristin Hannah was "off her game" and ended up cranking
out the number of needed pages to get the book to the publisher on time. It seems
she fell into the trap of the serial author and started padding her work with too many
repetitive phrases. We know it is rainy and misty in the Seattle/Portland area -- a lot.
I found it sad that the author had to refer to the weather every time a character
stepped outside or looked out a window. There is a weather report on every other page.
Enough is enough!
She also got hung up on the characters' eye color. The first time we meet them we
find Lauren has sad brown eyes, David had clear blue eyes, Conlon has the most clear
blue eyes, Lauren's mom has green eyes, and Angie's eyes are dark and shining with tears.
This description isn't needed in every chapter throughout the book.
All-in-all a good storyline but Ms. Hannah can do much better.
Helpful Score: 1
Great book! Read it in two days! Hard to put down. You feel like you really connect and form an attachment to the characters. Would definitely read more by this author.
Helpful Score: 1
A great book for reflection on how important families are . . . another great novel by Kristen Hannah
Helpful Score: 1
Awesome book!
Helpful Score: 1
A story that brought laughter, tears, and a sense of "having been there" many times. It is one that will stay with me because the characters were well-drawn (perhaps, as always, a little too beautiful and perfect!) and engaging. Another good story from Ms. Hannah.
Helpful Score: 1
Okay, I think the writing is occasionally clumsy and forced and it's a bit over-drama sometimes, but I loved the storyline and I was satisfied at the end.
Helpful Score: 1
This is a great story about love and family.
Helpful Score: 1
I thought this was a wonderful book, very emotionally gripping and inspiring. Reinforced personal values and family. Great story about teens, pregnancy, adoption and family.
Helpful Score: 1
I loved this book!
Helpful Score: 1
Kristin Hannah is a wonderful author!
Great Story~
Great Story~
Helpful Score: 1
Really great story! Captured my attention from the beginning. I like how this book was not very predictable. I really reccomend this book.
Helpful Score: 1
Very good story.
Helpful Score: 1
After years of trying to have a baby, Angela DeSaria is left with broken dreams and a ruined marriage. She moves back home and rejoins her family's restaurant business. Along the way Angie finds a man who once again opens her heart to love...and a troubled girl who will change her life.
I loved this book!
I loved this book!
Helpful Score: 1
Enjoyable, heartwarming story. The author gently pulls you in and makes you care about the characters. Some genuine and believable personal growth takes place the way it usually does in real life, under stress and duress. Dreams are redefined, goals are modified, and the definition of family is expanded. While the plot is a bit predictable, there is just enough of a twist at the end to make the read worthwhile.
Helpful Score: 1
Kristin Hanna touches a deep and tender corner in your heart with this book. An evocative story that celebrates the magic of motherhood, the joys of coming home and the price we so willingly pay for love.
Helpful Score: 1
I really enjoyed this book. Kristin Hannah always writes a story that I can really get into and see the characters in my mind as I read the story, great character development this one is no exception.
Helpful Score: 1
Anglea Desaria is left with broken dreams and ruined marriage. She moves home and rejoins her crazy, loud, loving family. She finds true love and a girl with troubles who will change her life forever.
Helpful Score: 1
Great read! I love stories of love lost and regained. Details and descriptions plus learning about what makes each character tick is what I have discovered makes me really like a book. Kristin Hannah knows how to do this!
Helpful Score: 1
This is a little diffrent then other books. Angie's marriage ends. She helps Lauren a teenager with her life and her pregnancy. I liked it very much. Almost as much as another Kristen Hannah book. If You Believe.
Helpful Score: 1
For years Angela tries to have a baby and can't. The desire for a child rules her life and results in a broken marrige, divorce and all her dreams lost. She returns to her home town and her family to rebuild her life. It was a very good book.
Best-selling Hannah's latest sensitive tale explores the need we all have for love in a portrait of two women of different ages and backgrounds. Angie Malone has come back to her small Washington State town after suffering the loss of a child, the end of a marriage, and the death of her father. Nestled in the bosom of her family, she tries to help with their failing restaurant. Her mother and sisters are glad she's home but realize that she needs something more as she copes with her grief, yet when Angie reaches out to 18-year-old Lauren Ribido, who seeks a job at the restaurant, they worry that she'll be disappointed. Lauren has not had an easy life. Her mother is an alcoholic who reminds Lauren constantly that she was a mistake and is the reason for their poverty, but Lauren is trying to rise above her circumstances through hard work and a quest for a college scholarship. Angie becomes attached to her and acts like a surrogate mother as they embark on a shaky friendship. Hannah captures the joy and heartache of family as she draws the reader into the lives of her characters and makes them feel like personal friends, proving once again why she is a star of women's fiction.
This is the first book for Kristin Hannah's that I have read and I was hooked. It had a great writing style and wonderful story line. It almost made me cry a few times!
Great Book! I could barely put it down. Very emotional - especially for any mom having trouble getting pregnant or for anyone whose had to give up a baby.
Fabulous book! Well written, smoothly flowing. Great story.
Very good Kristin Hannah story.
I had enjoyed the first book that I read by this author (_Magic Hour_), but I thought that was mostly due to the subject matter (feral children). This book shared similarities in that it too was about families and children. And also that the family was so unrealistic.
Still, it was an enjoyable and certainly escapist-fast read. I will most likely read more by her.
In many ways, this author is reminiscent of Jodi Picoult - though on a more superficial, beach-read type of level.
Still, I would recommend it to anyone looking for a sappy, sentimental-type book.
Still, it was an enjoyable and certainly escapist-fast read. I will most likely read more by her.
In many ways, this author is reminiscent of Jodi Picoult - though on a more superficial, beach-read type of level.
Still, I would recommend it to anyone looking for a sappy, sentimental-type book.
I enjoyed the book very much. Enjoy the authors writing a lot.
Great read.
This was a good book. But not one of my favorites. 3.5
Was a good book!Not in my highest list but was a good read.
Kristin Hannah writes books that show real emotion and leave an impression that lasts. Angie's had a bad year, she has a hard time getting and staying pregnant and has just lost a baby in a miscarriage. In addition, her father has recently died. Finally giving up on having children she divorces her husband who she still loves and moves to her hometown where her family has a restaurant.
The family has always been upset with her because she didn't stay and help in the family Italian restaurant. She discovers that the restaurant is failing and they are probably going to have to close its doors. Offering to help in spite of her sisters scorn at her lack of experience, she puts her marketing degree to work and helps revive the business.
In the process of settling in, Angie meets a 17-year-old girl Laurie, who has a terrible home life. With an alcoholic mother, Laurie has no place to go when she discovers she is pregnant and her mother throws her out of their tiny apartment. The rest of the story is wonderful and I'm not going to put in any spoilers. A great book that explores many family relationships. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The family has always been upset with her because she didn't stay and help in the family Italian restaurant. She discovers that the restaurant is failing and they are probably going to have to close its doors. Offering to help in spite of her sisters scorn at her lack of experience, she puts her marketing degree to work and helps revive the business.
In the process of settling in, Angie meets a 17-year-old girl Laurie, who has a terrible home life. With an alcoholic mother, Laurie has no place to go when she discovers she is pregnant and her mother throws her out of their tiny apartment. The rest of the story is wonderful and I'm not going to put in any spoilers. A great book that explores many family relationships. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
The youngest of three daughters, Angela DeSaria Malone was always; the princess; of the family, a girl who thought she knew how her life would unfold. High School. College. Marriage. Motherhood. That was how it had gone for her sisters, her cousins, her friends. But it didn't work out that way for Angie. She and her husband tried desperately to have a child; year after year, their perfectly decorated nursery remained empty. Finally, their marriage collapsed under the weight of lost dreams.
After the divorce, Angie moved back to her hometown and rejoined her loud, loving, slightly crazy family. In West End, a place where life rises and falls in time with the tides, she will find the man who once again will open her heart to love . . . and meet the girl who will change Angie's life.
Lauren Ribido lives in a rundown apartment in a bad part of town with a mother who cares more about her next drink than about her daughter. At seventeen, Lauren knows that her aspirations in life may never come to pass.
From the moment they meet, Angie sees something special in Lauren. They form a quick connection, this woman who is desperate for a daughter and the girl who has never known a mother's love. When Lauren is abandoned by her mother, Angie doesn't hesitate to offer the girl a place to stay. But nothing could have prepared Angie for the far-reaching repercussions of this act of kindness. In a dramatic turn of events, she and Lauren will be tested in a way that mothers and daughters seldom are. Together they will embark on an intensely moving, deeply emotional journey to the very heart of what it means to be a family.
This was a really great Kristin Hannah story. It was touching and heartfelt. I didn't think I was going to like it but I really got into the story and when I finished it, I was glad I read it until the end. I only have a few more Hannah books to read but I haven't read a bad one yet. Looking forward to my next Hannah book!
After the divorce, Angie moved back to her hometown and rejoined her loud, loving, slightly crazy family. In West End, a place where life rises and falls in time with the tides, she will find the man who once again will open her heart to love . . . and meet the girl who will change Angie's life.
Lauren Ribido lives in a rundown apartment in a bad part of town with a mother who cares more about her next drink than about her daughter. At seventeen, Lauren knows that her aspirations in life may never come to pass.
From the moment they meet, Angie sees something special in Lauren. They form a quick connection, this woman who is desperate for a daughter and the girl who has never known a mother's love. When Lauren is abandoned by her mother, Angie doesn't hesitate to offer the girl a place to stay. But nothing could have prepared Angie for the far-reaching repercussions of this act of kindness. In a dramatic turn of events, she and Lauren will be tested in a way that mothers and daughters seldom are. Together they will embark on an intensely moving, deeply emotional journey to the very heart of what it means to be a family.
This was a really great Kristin Hannah story. It was touching and heartfelt. I didn't think I was going to like it but I really got into the story and when I finished it, I was glad I read it until the end. I only have a few more Hannah books to read but I haven't read a bad one yet. Looking forward to my next Hannah book!
I loved this book! I have only recently discovered Kristin Hannah and I have loved every book of hers that I have read so far. She tells a good, clean story and really held my attention. Her characters are very "believable" and are so much just like every day life, which is what I like, as compared to a "fairy-tale land" type of story.
As usual Hannah is outstanding at making you feel that you are "there". It's a great read and an excellent example of the inter-play of humans and families.
Loved this book. A must read.
I love Kristin Hannah. However, this book bored me. It was just really slow, and what should have been a heartbreaking story, was just blah. The ending was fantastic, but it took until then to see any strong emotions.
This book tugged at my heart strings. I felt like I had a lot in common with Angie one of the main characters in the book.
Lauren one the other main characters is living a life that I could not imagine. She lives in a bad area. Her mother is an alcoholic and is never around. Her mother is always bringing men home. Lauren is always being told that she is a mistake. How awful to hear that.
Angie and Lauren meet,something magical happens. In an instant their lives change for the good and the bad. They are wonderful together. Angie's family takes her in with such love.
Get your tissues out,you will need them. Kristin Hannah does an amazing job. I loved loved this book. I recommend this book for so many reasons. Its true the things we do for love sometimes we won't stop at anything. Enjoy!!!!
Lauren one the other main characters is living a life that I could not imagine. She lives in a bad area. Her mother is an alcoholic and is never around. Her mother is always bringing men home. Lauren is always being told that she is a mistake. How awful to hear that.
Angie and Lauren meet,something magical happens. In an instant their lives change for the good and the bad. They are wonderful together. Angie's family takes her in with such love.
Get your tissues out,you will need them. Kristin Hannah does an amazing job. I loved loved this book. I recommend this book for so many reasons. Its true the things we do for love sometimes we won't stop at anything. Enjoy!!!!
WOW... reading this book makes you want it not to end you jus want it to keep going. Very good book and makes you think wow this could happen to me.
When Angie DeSaria's unfulfilled longing for a child finally stresses her marriage to the breaking point, she returns home to her small Washington town of West End and her Italian family and its struggling restaurant. When her life intersects with the beautiful and hardworking Lauren, a high school senior desperate to escape her horrible family life, unexpected consequences occur.
After years of trying to have a baby.Angela DeSaria is left with too many broken dreams and a ruined marriage. Following a painful divorce, she moves back to her hometown and rejoins her family. In the small town of West End, where life falls and rises like the tide. Angie finds a man who once again opens her heart to love-and a troubled girl who will change her life.
Lauren R. lives in a bad part of town with a mother who cares more about her next drink than about her daughter. Angie sees something special in Lauren. They form a quick bond-and when Lauren is abandoned by her mother. Angie offers the girl a place to stay. But nothing could have prepared Angie for the far-reaching repercussions of this act of kindness-and the emotional revelations about what it means to be a family.
Lauren R. lives in a bad part of town with a mother who cares more about her next drink than about her daughter. Angie sees something special in Lauren. They form a quick bond-and when Lauren is abandoned by her mother. Angie offers the girl a place to stay. But nothing could have prepared Angie for the far-reaching repercussions of this act of kindness-and the emotional revelations about what it means to be a family.
No disappointment here. Great story with lots of excitement.
Good family story. A nice easy read. Predictable ending but still an enjoyable book.
I ordered this book in June from PBS, but I didn't read it because the reviews were so great. I didn't want to be disappointed. Well, anything but! This is the best book I've read in a long time.
A really nice story that shows that family comes in many different forms. I enjoyed every page!
A really nice story that shows that family comes in many different forms. I enjoyed every page!
It is a beautiful story ~~ lots of promises and hope and joy. There is sadness and tears but it is a happy ever ending story ~~ which is what I like to read once in awhile! The scenery and the food descriptions sound wonderful....
From Publishers Weekly
In this tear-jerking novel by Hannah (Between Sisters), 38-year-old Angela Malone abandons a successful advertising career in Seattle to find comfort in West End, the small Pacific Northwest coastal town where she grew up. Pregnancy woes (chronic miscarriages, a baby who lived only for five days and a botched adoption) have caused her marriage to journalist Conlan to end in divorce. Her big, warmhearted Italian family welcomes her with open arms, and she throws herself into revamping the family restaurant, DeSaria's. Then she befriends hard-working teenager Lauren Ribido, who's in need of a new coat, some mothering and, later on, a place to live. Lauren's life is far worse than self-pitying Angie'sshe's pregnant, her alcoholic mother has given up on her, and her rich boyfriend, David, is off to his first-choice college. Lauren can't go through with the abortion David encourages her to have, and the next step seems obvious: she should give the baby up to Angie, who's on the way to reconciling with Conlan. Hannah stacks the odds against Lauren almost absurdly, and makes her life with Angie a rose-tinted dream come true, but she paints a wrenching, convincing picture of the dilemma teenage mothers face. Familiar but warmly rendered characters, a few surprising twists and a bittersweet ending make this satisfying summer reading.
From Publishers Weekly
In this tear-jerking novel by Hannah (Between Sisters), 38-year-old Angela Malone abandons a successful advertising career in Seattle to find comfort in West End, the small Pacific Northwest coastal town where she grew up. Pregnancy woes (chronic miscarriages, a baby who lived only for five days and a botched adoption) have caused her marriage to journalist Conlan to end in divorce. Her big, warmhearted Italian family welcomes her with open arms, and she throws herself into revamping the family restaurant, DeSaria's. Then she befriends hard-working teenager Lauren Ribido, who's in need of a new coat, some mothering and, later on, a place to live. Lauren's life is far worse than self-pitying Angie'sshe's pregnant, her alcoholic mother has given up on her, and her rich boyfriend, David, is off to his first-choice college. Lauren can't go through with the abortion David encourages her to have, and the next step seems obvious: she should give the baby up to Angie, who's on the way to reconciling with Conlan. Hannah stacks the odds against Lauren almost absurdly, and makes her life with Angie a rose-tinted dream come true, but she paints a wrenching, convincing picture of the dilemma teenage mothers face. Familiar but warmly rendered characters, a few surprising twists and a bittersweet ending make this satisfying summer reading.
Kristin Hannah never dissapoints..good read
her life falls apart...she moves home...there she works her magic for a troubled young girl and is rewarded with the love of her life.....
Liked the Book, good read
Entertaining, well written. Angela, after years of trying to have a baby, and a painful divorce, moves back to her hometown and life procedes from there.
this was a good book, the first one by this author that i had read nd when ever i find a new one it becomes one of my must purchases.
This is a wonderful book by a wonderful author
i am a sucker for titles and this one pulled me. it was a good book. a good story, and a good ending..after years of trying to have a baby angela desaria is left with too many broken dreams and a ruined marriage.
Great book! Kristin Hannah is one of my favorite authors. The back of the book says "wonderful...enormously touching...The warmth and complexities of these characters grab hold of the heartstrings". I think that's a perfect description.
Great read :) Realistic, loving, and fun!
It is pretty good.
explores the need we all have for love in a portrait of two women of different ages and backgrounds. Angie Malone has come back to her small Washington State town after suffering the loss of a child, the end of a marriage, and the death of her father. Nestled in the bosom of her family, she tries to help with their failing restaurant. Her mother and sisters are glad she's home but realize that she needs something more as she copes with her grief, yet when Angie reaches out to 18-year-old Lauren Ribido, who seeks a job at the restaurant, they worry that she'll be disappointed. Lauren has not had an easy life. Her mother is an alcoholic who reminds Lauren constantly that she was a mistake and is the reason for their poverty, but Lauren is trying to rise above her circumstances through hard work and a quest for a college scholarship. Angie becomes attached to her and acts like a surrogate mother as they embark on a shaky friendship.
Touching story of love, family, compassion.
Great book
Kristin Hannah is a great author that I've just "discovered". Her characters are believable and the dialogue is authentic - I feel like I'm listening in on a conversation. Great book!
tragety of family/romamce
Great book about a woman and her relationship with a girl abandoned by her mother.
Very good story.Experiences many of us have lived through.
This book was awesome!! It made me laugh & cry!!!
It started off very slow, but once the story developed, it was really sweet, and sad.
a great family story
This was a really good book!!!!!!!!!!!!
Kristin Hannah is starting to become one of my favorite authors - I loved this book! The characters are so real and your heart will tug for all of them. Wonderful story - I highly recommend. I gave this 5 stars.
Love loved this book. Full of emotion, descriptions and feeling. Not quite the predictable ending you may expect.
WELL WRITTEN ACCOUNT OF A WOMAN WHO WANTS A CHILD BUT CAN'T HAVE ONE, HER DIVORCE AND FRIENDSHIP WITH A YOUNG STUDENT WHO GETS PREGNANT. VERY NICE BOOK.
Heartwarming story, good page turner. A bit predictable but enjoyable nonetheless.
A good read just like the rest of Hannah's books.
Story about a new beginning, finally a young woman needs our heroine as much as she needs her.
Excellent Book
This book was excellent!
The story was predictable but the ending did not have a pretty bow tied around it. The characters were likable.
from back cover:
After years of trying to have a baby, Angela DeSaria is left with too many broken dreams and a ruined marriage. Following a painful divorce, she moves back to her hometown and rejoins her loud, loving, slightly crazy family. In the small Northwest town of West End, where life rises and falls like the tides, Angie finds a man who once again opens her heart to love...and a troubled girl who will change her life...
After years of trying to have a baby, Angela DeSaria is left with too many broken dreams and a ruined marriage. Following a painful divorce, she moves back to her hometown and rejoins her loud, loving, slightly crazy family. In the small Northwest town of West End, where life rises and falls like the tides, Angie finds a man who once again opens her heart to love...and a troubled girl who will change her life...
Romance with grownups
Great read!!!
Light summer read
Excellent.
