This book hadn’t exactly been recommended to me, rather I was present when it was debated heatedly between two members of my family. Intrigued, I acquired it.

I didn’t get it at all. It seems so disjointed, in many ways.

The plot flits from one sensational event to another, never settling on anything for very long and leaving the reader wondering if they’ve missed something. There is much ‘and this happened then this happened then this happened’ but very little to emotionally engage the reader. I would also have to sometimes re-read a paragraph or even a page as it was unclear which character it referred to. I was irritated at the double spacing in conversations, which served to make every response seem more significant than it actually was. I continued to read through to the end, hoping for a few explanations or a conclusion to tie the book together somehow. None came.

Some aspects of the book I did enjoy. The nativity play deserves a special mention for dark humour. There are beautiful descriptions of nature. Elly’s outburst when she loses patience with Joe is very human and real. But these raw, real moments are few and far between. Most of the interactions feel wooden and stilted.

Ultimately I cannot recommend this book and don’t understand why it received so many rave reviews.

(2nd in 2012)