** this giveaway is closed **
Synopsis: "It's been six years since Pen Calloway watched her best friends walk out of her life. And through the birth of her daughter, the death of her father, and the vicissitudes of single motherhood, she has never stopped missing them.
Pen, Cat, and Will met on their first day of college and formed what seemed like a magical and lifelong bond, only to see their friendship break apart amid the realities of adulthood. When, after years of silence, Cat--the bewitching, charismatic center of their group--e-mails Pen and Will with an urgent request to meet at their college reunion, they can't refuse. But instead of a happy reconciliation, what awaits is a collision of past and present that sends Pen and Will, with Pen's five-year-old daughter and Cat's hostile husband in tow, on a journey across the world.
With her trademark wit, vivid prose, and gift for creating authentic, captivating characters, Marisa de los Santos returns with an emotionally resonant novel about our deepest human connections. As Pen and Will struggle to uncover the truth about Cat, they find more than they bargained for."
About the Author: "The child of a general surgeon hailing from Cebu City, Philippines and a nurse hailing from Westminster, Maryland, Marisa de los Santos grew up in Baltimore and Northern Virginia. She was a happy, if somewhat neurotic, kid, and had a little sister, Kristina, whom she both antagonized and adored, usually at the same time.
She earned a degree in English from the University of Virginia, as well as an MFA in Poetry from Sarah Lawrence College and a Ph.D in English and Creative Writing from the University of Houston. Marisa found early literary success with the publications of her poetry. Soon after she settled in Philadelphia with her husband, David Teague, their son Charles arrived.
Along with being handsome and brilliant, the infant Charles screamed more than any baby on the planet. Nearly three years later, Charles’s sister Annabel, also lovely and brilliant, also a screaming maniac, made the scene. The combination of noise and kids kept her from writing poems, and instead heard a new voice in her head, that would become the lead character in her first book. She hasn't stopped writing since. "
Review: This book is pretty autobiographical in that the locations and character set up comes from the author's life. This is a book not to be rushed, as it is full of nuances of friendship and family relationships, lush descriptions and prose that will make you laugh and want to reach out and hug the characters. She also stretches your intellect, as her degree in English comes through with, as they say in the novel, "college words"!
I took my time reading this book, as the language and descriptions really draw you in and envelope you in the characters lives- you want to revel in the dialogue and situations and see all the nuances. This is not to say it's a slow read- on the contrary it can be a quick read. I think it's a perfect book for Fall (pun intended), as with the onset of football season, at least here in the South, college relationships and friendships, always seem to get revisited.
The author does a great job exploring the depths of loss, both in friendship and in families, and how different people react differently to the same situation. In many ways I saw where the book was headed and saw the ending coming. My only wish was that it hadn't ended 100% as the author ended it. I understand why she did it that way (and no I won't tell you to spoil it!), I just wish about 14% had been more different. I highly recommend the book!
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Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this book for review purposes, free of charge, from the Amazon Vine Program ! No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it!
Pen, Cat, and Will met on their first day of college and formed what seemed like a magical and lifelong bond, only to see their friendship break apart amid the realities of adulthood. When, after years of silence, Cat--the bewitching, charismatic center of their group--e-mails Pen and Will with an urgent request to meet at their college reunion, they can't refuse. But instead of a happy reconciliation, what awaits is a collision of past and present that sends Pen and Will, with Pen's five-year-old daughter and Cat's hostile husband in tow, on a journey across the world.
With her trademark wit, vivid prose, and gift for creating authentic, captivating characters, Marisa de los Santos returns with an emotionally resonant novel about our deepest human connections. As Pen and Will struggle to uncover the truth about Cat, they find more than they bargained for."
About the Author: "The child of a general surgeon hailing from Cebu City, Philippines and a nurse hailing from Westminster, Maryland, Marisa de los Santos grew up in Baltimore and Northern Virginia. She was a happy, if somewhat neurotic, kid, and had a little sister, Kristina, whom she both antagonized and adored, usually at the same time.
She earned a degree in English from the University of Virginia, as well as an MFA in Poetry from Sarah Lawrence College and a Ph.D in English and Creative Writing from the University of Houston. Marisa found early literary success with the publications of her poetry. Soon after she settled in Philadelphia with her husband, David Teague, their son Charles arrived.
Along with being handsome and brilliant, the infant Charles screamed more than any baby on the planet. Nearly three years later, Charles’s sister Annabel, also lovely and brilliant, also a screaming maniac, made the scene. The combination of noise and kids kept her from writing poems, and instead heard a new voice in her head, that would become the lead character in her first book. She hasn't stopped writing since. "
Review: This book is pretty autobiographical in that the locations and character set up comes from the author's life. This is a book not to be rushed, as it is full of nuances of friendship and family relationships, lush descriptions and prose that will make you laugh and want to reach out and hug the characters. She also stretches your intellect, as her degree in English comes through with, as they say in the novel, "college words"!
I took my time reading this book, as the language and descriptions really draw you in and envelope you in the characters lives- you want to revel in the dialogue and situations and see all the nuances. This is not to say it's a slow read- on the contrary it can be a quick read. I think it's a perfect book for Fall (pun intended), as with the onset of football season, at least here in the South, college relationships and friendships, always seem to get revisited.
The author does a great job exploring the depths of loss, both in friendship and in families, and how different people react differently to the same situation. In many ways I saw where the book was headed and saw the ending coming. My only wish was that it hadn't ended 100% as the author ended it. I understand why she did it that way (and no I won't tell you to spoil it!), I just wish about 14% had been more different. I highly recommend the book!
**
**
Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this book for review purposes, free of charge, from the Amazon Vine Program ! No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it!
Thanks! Looks like a good book.
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