Book Synopsis:
Jennifer is an only child, and so were her parents—at least that's what she thinks, until she finds an old photo in the back of one of her mother's books. The woman in the photo looks just like Jennifer, down to the smattering of freckles across her nose. And her mother refuses to talk about it.
Compelled to find answers, Jennifer embarks on a quest that takes her from the wheat fields of Nebraska to the fishing town of Smithport, Maine, home to the one person who can help her solve this family secret—the woman in the photo. But Jennifer learns that it takes the entire village of Smithport to piece together the story of her mother's hidden past. She needs help from Nathan, the genius with the reluctant smile from across the cove; Little, the elderly town matriarch and former movie star; and The Jacks, three weathered fishermen who dabble in pyrotechnics. As Jennifer discovers the lost chapters of her mother's life, she unwittingly begins to write a few chapters of her own.
My Review:
4/5 stars. I really don't know what to rate this book. On the one hand, I don't have a lot of negative thoughts on it, but on the other hand, it didn't really feel like a five-star read. I don't have too many positive thoughts, either. It was an enjoyable story, but I don't have a lot of specific thoughts about it. The setting was very vivid, and the small-town cast of characters was fun. That's what I enjoyed most.
As someone from the Midwest, I liked that the main character was from there. While the book was primarily set in Maine, it was nice to have a little bit of Midwest representation. The Kansas City airport was even named, although not by name, and I'm from Kansas and have been to that airport.
Speaking of the Maine setting, though - or should I say the "main" setting - I liked it a lot. I just recently came back from a trip to California, where we stayed a couple of days on the coast, so the coastal town was easy to picture. I also always enjoy books set in small towns, and this was no exception. The dynamic of all the characters in the town and how they interacted was very fun. Each character was so unique.
There was a small thing early on that I had a bit of an issue with. Before he's introduced more, the character, Nathan, is described. It's mentioned that he's extremely smart and had been since he was a child, and that he might have had autism. This mention of autism never comes up again, but the fact that it was mentioned once kind of played into the "savant" stereotype often associated with characters with autism. This is a big generalization; not everyone with autism is a super genius. The term "mentally handicapped" was also used in the same context.
Another part I found weird was the backstory of another character, Little. She shares her love story with the main character, which involved her being deeply in love with a much older man when she was a teenager. She was 16, and the man was almost as old as her father. That's messed up, but it's not treated like that in the book. It's romanticized and talked about like it was some amazing love story.
Content:
Language: Only two uses each of h*ll and a**
Sexual Content: A few mildly crude jokes; a character's mother has four children, all with different fathers; a kiss; lots of thinking about romantic feelings and wanting to be near someone
Drugs/Alcohol: None
Violence/Gore: A character punches another character
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