Cadence appears to have an idyllic life. She has everything money could buy and she spends her summers with her extended family on their private island off the coast of Massachusetts. Between her two dear cousins and a beloved friend, she finds a haven of acceptance. But during her fifteenth summer on the island, something goes very wrong - but despite time passing, Cadence cannot remember what.
Wowza.
It might be better for you to go read this knowing nothing. Reading any more might be a spoiler. Beware.
Really. If you can handle books with a serious emotional punch, don't read more of this review.
I started listening to this having no idea what it was about. I didn't know it was a mystery, a piecing together of memories. I didn't know it was about the all-consuming power of first love or the way that money and jealousy can rip a family apart - you can't help but think of King Lear. So much of it I just did not see coming, and maybe I should have, but the scope and tragedy of this book caught me by surprise all the same.
I have read several reviews that sang its praises to high heaven and several reviews that hated the characters and the plot. For myself, I was just compelled by it, in its entirety. I found the family dynamic to be completely fascinating and it made me think a lot about how huge we can let small things become. I felt the ending very deeply, my emotions were real and I didn't feel like I was being manipulated, which really matters. I cannot forget the moment where things hit my heart, like even I, as a reader, was backpeddling, trying to undo things that cannot be undone.
It's not an easy book, but it is a well-crafted book about love and loss, mistakes and consequences. Even though it isn't a pretty story, I'm glad I listened.
note: if you're interested in the content of the books I read, please go to http://ratedreads.com
1 comment:
Loved it! Recommending it to everyone that comes within talking distance!
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