Sunday, September 8, 2019

Time after Time: A Novel Set in Maine



Last week’s posting announced the publication of the historical novel—The Reluctant Spy. This week, I’m doing a 180° flip-flop into contemporary times to write a review of a novel by a fellow blogger: Rian.


She has written a wonderfully warm and gentle novel—Time afterTime—that became a page-turner for me. It is so delightful that it totally took my mind away from physical discomfort as I iced my left knee each morning and evening the past couple of weeks.

The setting of the novel is Maine—specifically a lighthouse there which Annie, the main character, has bought after the death of her husband. His death draws her into a reassessment of her life and her hopes for the future. Putting aside the concern of her extended family, she moves to Maine to discover who she is now that she is no longer a wife.

In Maine, Annie meets a cast of characters who bring new interests and excitement into her life. There’s Abner who introduces her to the cove and beach, the winds and tides. There’s Jimmie who brings laughter and . . . delicious meals . . . into the lighthouse. And perhaps, just perhaps, there’s a ghost or two from the maritime past of Maine.

There’s the Bed and Breakfast nearby, the Bookstore in town, the remodeler who values the history of the lighthouse. And . . . there’s the diary, hidden for decades.

What drew me into this novel is the humanity of the characters. I normally read mysteries, by writers such as Louise Penny, Julia Spencer-Fleming, Deborah Crombie, Anne Perry, Charles Todd, Charles Finch, P. J. Tracy, Alan Bradley, and the list goes on. All these writers draw me into their stories with suspenseful plots and finely drawn characters, but often the characters may be just a little eccentric, just a little different from my next-door neighbor.

But in Time after Time, the characters are ones I’ve met throughout my life. They are warm, interesting people whose lives have the same ups and downs I’m experiencing. They remind me of characters in Anna Quindlen’s novels.

The story is what publishers call a cozy. It takes place in a small community in which the inhabitants care about and enjoy one another. In this, it reminds of a book that Arkansas Patti, another blogger, reviewed a few years back: Out to Pasture by Effie Leland Wilder.

On the basis of Patti’s review, I read that book and the four that followed. That book made me feel good. Made me feel that all works out to good in the end and that just around the next corner there is an enjoyable surprise waiting for us.

Time after Time did the same thing for me. It made me smile, laugh, cry, and know the deep, down goodness of humanity. I highly recommend it to you.

If you do decide to read the novel and enjoy it as much as I did, please leave a comment for Rian to read. That’s such a delightful part of publishing a book: reading readers’ comments!


Peace.

22 comments:

  1. 'Time After Time' looks like my kind of book. I'll check out its listing at Amazon. Ive read 'Out to Pasture' and enjoyed it too. Thanks for the review!

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    1. Dear Jean, glad you're checking out the book. As I said in the posting, I seldom read anything beyond mysteries, but having read this, I really think I need to start thinking of other genres! Peace.

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  2. Thank you (and Rian) so much. This looks right up my very broad alley (which excludes very few genres). When my unread towers diminish I will track it down. After The Reluctant Spy.

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    1. Dear Sue, I'm so glad the book appeals to you. I do read historical fiction and nonfiction as well as novels by Anne Tyler and Quindlen and several other women whose stories speak to me. but mostly, my index finger is moving the e-pages of a mystery novel! And thanks again for saying that you've got "The Reluctant Spy" and "Time after Time" on your reading list! Peace.

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  3. This is a very thoughtful review, Dee. It sounds like Rian has done good work!

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    1. Dear Bea, thank you for the compliment. I've never thought that I was a good book reviewer, but I so enjoyed this book. Rian is a good writer. Her characters have depth; her plot has suspense and tension; her setting was well drawn that I felt myself in Maine even though I've never been there. Peace.

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  4. Rain 's novel seems very intriguing dear Dee

    main character sounds inspiring
    i also like readings where character are from real word and less unnatural
    your review is provoking my friend!
    hugs!

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    1. Dear Baili, the main character is inspiring. She's also somewhat intrepid--ready for new adventures! Like you! Peace.

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  5. Lovely review and thanks for the shout out. I have this book in my to be read pile. Oddly right now I have 4 novels written by my blogger friends waiting to be read but you make me want to get going with this one. A feel good book seems to be the prescription for today.

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    1. Dear Patti, your review for the Wilder book was so enticing that I got the book right away and I'm so glad I did as it led to all her other books. I so hope that you enjoy Rian's book when you read it. It made me feel "cozy!!!!!" Peace.

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  6. I wish my sight and brain would let me read these books. I no longer can get through a book without pain. I do miss it but I can do audio books so I will check to see if they are available.

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    1. Dear Arleen, I am so sorry to learn that your sight and your brain no longer permit you to read easily. Because of Glaucoma, I can read only e-books and large-print books, so I understand a little of what you are going through and living with. I wish that "Time after Time" as well as my book "The Reluctant Spy" were available in audio. They aren't. At some point, if my sells ever get large enough, I'll be able to get this novel as well as my last cat gift book into audio. But that's all dependent on getting an audio narrator and without good sells, few want to take on a project.

      I hate to hear that it is painful for you to read. This growing old is a step-by-step letting go of one thing after another. Please know that I send you, each day, my thoughts and prayers. Peace.

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    2. Dee, thank you so much for your kind review of my book. I'm so happy that you enjoyed reading it. Although I also tend to ready cozy mysteries, home-town cozies like Jan Karon's Mitford series are my favorites. No murders, no horror, no explicit sex - just a quiet life among good people - with charming pets, interesting characters, and maybe a few ghosts thrown in...

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    3. Dear Rian, you are so welcomed. I think I must not really understand the genre cozy. I think of mystery cozies. I've read some of them. But, I've read all of the Mitford series, not thinking about the genre and I'm sure you're right: they are cozies! They have given much reading enjoyment. Thanks for helping me understand. Peace.

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  7. It sounds like a book I would enjoy. Actually, I think I was hooked after the sentence where you state that the protagonist BOUGHT a lighthouse! I’m off to Amazon to check it out.

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    1. Dear Cynthia, I think she bought the lighthouse but maybe Abner willed it to her. I can't remember, but one of the two! I'm so glad you're going to check it out on Amazon. And with your ever delightful curiosity, which makes your blog so interesting, I can see why that lighthouse appealed to you. Peace.

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  8. Dee, I ordered your book from Amazon Smile.
    I wish I could have ordered directly from you so you could have autographed it for me. I can hardly wait for it to get here.
    But, in the long run, you got paid, Amazon got their fees and because I ordered it through Amazon Smile, my favorite charity, St. Jude got a bit also.

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  9. Now you have made me want to get this book.
    I haven't read a book all the way through in 7 years!
    I will save up and see if I can get "Time After Time" next month.

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  10. I loved Rian's book. It was lovely and I read it in one sitting. I just wish there were more of her books to read. I put a review on Amazon and hope others will read it, too. :-)

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    1. Dear DJan, I'm so glad you enjoyed it. I thought it was so, so, so good and I wanted to share it with all my blogging friends--like you! Peace.

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  11. Your review makes me want to read it, Dee!

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    1. Dear Sandi, I hope you do read it as it will brighten your days. Although I think you dwell in happiness, this book will just add to that! Peace.

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