I can't believe I didn't post this review on here when I read the book back in December. It was a book club book, and my book club enjoyed my candid review. :)
While restoring her run-down, wood-sided home--its creaking floors, broken banister, and neglected widow's walk--that secret slowly unfolds like a bit of snowflake wonder, crystallizing hopes and dreams for many in this small Connecticut town. But mostly for Derek Cooper whose own tragic story has headlined Addison's news. And whom Vera has come to love.
When the first snowstorm hits during Derek's annual Deck the Boats Festival at the cove, residents become stranded. It is then up to Vera to not only bring the town together, but to mend one man's heart she fears she may have lost.
Snowflakes and Coffee Cakes is a heartwarming story, one that reminds us to look to winter's stars. Because snowflakes can grant very special wishes ... if only we believe
My Thoughts:
I loathed this book. I would have quit it was it not a book for book club. I generally don’t finish and review a book that I dislike this much. But, alas, book club.
I do wonder if my negative reaction to it was based on me being too cynical. Or just the wrong book at the wrong time. Both those things are possible. So perhaps take my review with a grain of salt.
I was looking forward to this book. I like cozy Christmas tales. Both the title and premise were cute. Unfortunately, it didn’t go past that for me.
The storyline was disjointed and jumpy throughout. I could get no clear sense of time – how much had passed, one event in relation to previous events, etc. – unless it was specifically stated. Otherwise the timeline was confusing, especially as many section breaks were present when there wasn’t a change of scene or anything. The voice of the whole book just seems off. I kept checking verb tenses to see if that was the issue. I don’t think it was. There was just no consistency or flow.
I didn’t like any of the main characters. Okay, maybe I could have liked Vera’s sister, Brooke, if she were more developed. They were just all so…I don’t know. Their motivations were beyond me and their musings boring. Was Vera so clueless and unaware of her surroundings that she really needed warnings to see dogs and people that were right in front of her? Could Derek be any more sullen and withdrawn? He blows hot and cold while Vera just hangs on, chasing him around. The characters don’t even talk in real ways.
Then there is the suspension of disbelief required for so many scenarios. It was presented that Addison was a small town. But no one knows anyone else? And Vera hadn’t ever come home or talked to any of her family in the past 5 years to know what a big deal Deck the Boat is to the whole town? And let’s talk about how Derek has been working on Vera’s house for months yet she doesn’t have his phone number until she goes over to his apartment. How in the world does Vera come across the article on the daughter when searching for Christmas trolley information? There is never indication there is a connection between the two at all. So, it would be weird for that article to show up with Christmas trolley search terms.
Overall, there was too much introspection – of all the characters. Introspection on snowflakes and winter and stars and…everything. The analogies and metaphors were over the top as well – eye roll inducing.
The book stated it was her “red plaid pea coat” EVERY SINGLE TIME Vera put on or had on her coat. Absolutely like nails on a chalkboard for me.
But, hey, a lot of people *really* liked this book. In fact, most in my book club rated it 3 or 4 stars (I would have said -5 but 1 is as low as Goodreads goes). So, don’t take my word for it. Read some more reviews…or just read the book. You might like it even though I didn’t.
Genre: Fiction; Christmas; Chick Lit
Pages: 209 pages
Publishing Date: October 15, 2013
Rating: 1
out of 5 stars on Goodreads
Synopsis from Goodreads:
Reluctant to leave her cherished New England hometown after
her sister's winter wedding, former journalist Vera Sterling makes a sudden
decision. She takes what's left of her severance pay and invests it in real
estate ... in one particular drafty colonial home and old timber barn set upon
the pretty banks of Addison Cove. In that rough-hewn barn, she discovers a
secret treasure left behind by the previous owner, the proprietor of the
long-forgotten Christmas Barn gift shop.While restoring her run-down, wood-sided home--its creaking floors, broken banister, and neglected widow's walk--that secret slowly unfolds like a bit of snowflake wonder, crystallizing hopes and dreams for many in this small Connecticut town. But mostly for Derek Cooper whose own tragic story has headlined Addison's news. And whom Vera has come to love.
When the first snowstorm hits during Derek's annual Deck the Boats Festival at the cove, residents become stranded. It is then up to Vera to not only bring the town together, but to mend one man's heart she fears she may have lost.
Snowflakes and Coffee Cakes is a heartwarming story, one that reminds us to look to winter's stars. Because snowflakes can grant very special wishes ... if only we believe
My Thoughts:
I loathed this book. I would have quit it was it not a book for book club. I generally don’t finish and review a book that I dislike this much. But, alas, book club.
I do wonder if my negative reaction to it was based on me being too cynical. Or just the wrong book at the wrong time. Both those things are possible. So perhaps take my review with a grain of salt.
I was looking forward to this book. I like cozy Christmas tales. Both the title and premise were cute. Unfortunately, it didn’t go past that for me.
The storyline was disjointed and jumpy throughout. I could get no clear sense of time – how much had passed, one event in relation to previous events, etc. – unless it was specifically stated. Otherwise the timeline was confusing, especially as many section breaks were present when there wasn’t a change of scene or anything. The voice of the whole book just seems off. I kept checking verb tenses to see if that was the issue. I don’t think it was. There was just no consistency or flow.
I didn’t like any of the main characters. Okay, maybe I could have liked Vera’s sister, Brooke, if she were more developed. They were just all so…I don’t know. Their motivations were beyond me and their musings boring. Was Vera so clueless and unaware of her surroundings that she really needed warnings to see dogs and people that were right in front of her? Could Derek be any more sullen and withdrawn? He blows hot and cold while Vera just hangs on, chasing him around. The characters don’t even talk in real ways.
Then there is the suspension of disbelief required for so many scenarios. It was presented that Addison was a small town. But no one knows anyone else? And Vera hadn’t ever come home or talked to any of her family in the past 5 years to know what a big deal Deck the Boat is to the whole town? And let’s talk about how Derek has been working on Vera’s house for months yet she doesn’t have his phone number until she goes over to his apartment. How in the world does Vera come across the article on the daughter when searching for Christmas trolley information? There is never indication there is a connection between the two at all. So, it would be weird for that article to show up with Christmas trolley search terms.
Overall, there was too much introspection – of all the characters. Introspection on snowflakes and winter and stars and…everything. The analogies and metaphors were over the top as well – eye roll inducing.
The book stated it was her “red plaid pea coat” EVERY SINGLE TIME Vera put on or had on her coat. Absolutely like nails on a chalkboard for me.
But, hey, a lot of people *really* liked this book. In fact, most in my book club rated it 3 or 4 stars (I would have said -5 but 1 is as low as Goodreads goes). So, don’t take my word for it. Read some more reviews…or just read the book. You might like it even though I didn’t.
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