Saturday, November 16, 2013

The Runaway Wife

Title:  The Runaway Wife
Author:  Rowan Coleman
Publication Information:  Gallery Books. 2012. 410 pages.

Book Source:  I received this book through the GoodReads First Reads program free of cost in exchange for an honest review. The book arrived as a paperback advance uncorrected proof.

Favorite Quote:  "You are a remarkable woman and you deserve all the happiness, contentment, and love in the world."

As the book begins, Rose Pritchard and her seven year old daughter Maddie arrive at a B&B in Millthwaite in England's Lake District. The reader gets glimpses that Rose is escaping from a bad marriage - the details emerge throughout the book.

Rose is also searching for someone from her past - someone she met once but whom she feels might be her future. What she finds is another, unexpected aspect of her past. All the pieces come together along with a myriad of local characters to fill out Rose's story.

This book takes on the difficult issue of domestic abuse and about having the courage to get out and rebuild her life. As such, Rose is portrayed as courageous and determined. Yet, that element of the story appears as a undertone to the entire book rather than the main focus.

What rings less true is the fact that she comes to Millthwaite looking for Frasier McLeod - a man she has met once but feels might be the love of her future. She bases her entire search on one meeting and one letter. She find him and more that she did not expect. She finds her estranged father, whom she hasn't seen since her childhood. What follows is a rebuilding of relationships, new relationships, and a new life free from fear and abuse.

This book is a quick read and an easy read. Not bad, not great.

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