SECRETS OF THE TULIP SISTERS by Susan Mallery
This is a complex entertaining story of a family challenged by abandonment and divorce. The sins of the parents were visited on the Murphy sisters when they were teenagers, but the pot comes to a boil after they reach adulthood.
Mallery tells an intricate, interwoven tale of anger and bitterness between the sisters, Kelly and Olivia, how they find their way back to each other, and the influence of the men in their lives. The book further expands the relationship between their divorced parents, Jeff and Marilee. The character development is strong. I appreciated that the book illustrated that May/December romances are possible. All three romances have happy endings. And the wicked witch fails to spoil those happy endings.
The external plot moves the story along, but doesn't overpower the character plots. The setting is well done. I could easily visualize the scenes and how the characters moved through them. I like learning about tulip farming and tiny houses.
I sincerely believe that Ms. Mallery should find another publisher. I read the library edition, 410 pages, hard copy. I won't even discuss missing commas. At times, it made determining who was doing what almost impossible. The book's editor should learn that a comma is used to separate two independent clauses joined by 'and' or 'but'.
Additionally, there were outrageous typos. Eg. in chapter 2 "…pulling your to-hundred-square-foot tiny house…"; or in chapter 8 where the sister, Olivia is being referenced, but the other sister's name, Kelly, appears instead; and in chapter 26 referring to Olivia's age, "…and there I was all of twenty-3o."
I might be persuaded to overlook errors of this nature in a self-published e-book, but they are inexcusable in a book that lists for more than $25.00.
This is a complex entertaining story of a family challenged by abandonment and divorce. The sins of the parents were visited on the Murphy sisters when they were teenagers, but the pot comes to a boil after they reach adulthood.
Mallery tells an intricate, interwoven tale of anger and bitterness between the sisters, Kelly and Olivia, how they find their way back to each other, and the influence of the men in their lives. The book further expands the relationship between their divorced parents, Jeff and Marilee. The character development is strong. I appreciated that the book illustrated that May/December romances are possible. All three romances have happy endings. And the wicked witch fails to spoil those happy endings.
The external plot moves the story along, but doesn't overpower the character plots. The setting is well done. I could easily visualize the scenes and how the characters moved through them. I like learning about tulip farming and tiny houses.
I sincerely believe that Ms. Mallery should find another publisher. I read the library edition, 410 pages, hard copy. I won't even discuss missing commas. At times, it made determining who was doing what almost impossible. The book's editor should learn that a comma is used to separate two independent clauses joined by 'and' or 'but'.
Additionally, there were outrageous typos. Eg. in chapter 2 "…pulling your to-hundred-square-foot tiny house…"; or in chapter 8 where the sister, Olivia is being referenced, but the other sister's name, Kelly, appears instead; and in chapter 26 referring to Olivia's age, "…and there I was all of twenty-3o."
I might be persuaded to overlook errors of this nature in a self-published e-book, but they are inexcusable in a book that lists for more than $25.00.