Letters from David

by Eve Paludan

Letters from David by Eve Paludan (Book) in Romance
Copyright: © 2008 Eve Paludan Standard Copyright License
Language: English
Country: United States
  • E-bookDownload $1.99
Download: 1 documents, 1388 KB

Description:

In the tradition of novels driven by love letters...

A Midwestern woman faces devastating changes in midlife, loses her home and the love of her life, moves cross country to the ocean, finds a lover, and discovers the truths of life and love within the pages of letters.

"Claire Mead didn’t have her husband anymore, her children lived abroad, her income was shrinking and she hadn’t shaved her legs all winter. She hadn’t had recreational sex with herself, or laughed, truly laughed, for months. She was going broke and still cried much too easily since David died, but suddenly, she realized she had something she had never once had before in her life -- her freedom."

Book review by Shannon Yarbrough at: http://lulubookreview.wordpress.com/2008/07/06/review-20-letters-from-david-by-eve-paludan/


Listed in:

Romance

Stats:

Lulu Sales Rank: Not yet ranked
Average customer rating:
  1. *
  2. *
  3. *
  4. *
  5. *
  6. *
2 votes
Please log in or sign up to rate this item.

Reviews:

Please log in or sign up to post a review.

Letters from David
  1. *
  2. *
  3. *
  4. *
  5. *
  6. *
10 Sep 2008
Thanks to email and the rising price of stamps, I’ve often wondered if the art of letter writing is dead. We’ve even given it the sluggish nickname “Snail Mail,” adopting our eager fascination with having things so immediate thanks to our ever growing lack of patience. And yet the ending highlight of each of my workdays is coming home and checking the mailbox.

Eve Paludan’s book is NOT another collection of letters allowing us that glimpse into someone else’s life for a while. Yes, Dear _____, letters in italic are placed throughout the manuscript, but it is what comes between them that makes up the essence of her story. Her central character, Clare Mead, is a widow with a son away at war and a daughter in Paris, but she’s determined not to let loneliness be an illness. She refuses to succumb to it and is trying to adapt to the new emptiness in her life - this freedom. She seeks out the advice of other women like her, but soon ends up in a bit of an odd situation with her husband’s best friend, Tucker, who was also responsible for his death. A tornado is coming and the two end up taking cover in her basement, and begin to reminisce of the old days and the way it could have been.

Secrets begin to unravel as you discover Tucker was once her lover and they had a child together, but their roads in life went in opposite directions. Tucker beats himself up over the death of his friend, while Clare refuses to mourn anymore. Together, they relive the memories they shared with David, a best friend and a husband. Just as you think Tucker and Clare’s time together is building to the climactic arrival of the tornado, no weather alarm will prepare you for the secrets that are revealed in the letter than begins the next chapter! It’s a letter from David, Clare’s husband, which Tucker had been saving to give to her at a later time.

My only criticism of the story comes into play in the letters themselves. Although Paludan has used them sparingly to push the story forward, be warned that they are heavy in content that is crucial to the plot and backbone of her characters. Therefore, they can seem a bit melodramatic and even soap opera-ish at times, but they do not distract from the overall point the author wants to make.

Letters from David turned out to be a “whirl wind” of a story that I totally was not expecting. At first, based on the author’s previous work, I predicted a much heavier romance and cliche collection of predictable love letters. Not so! The story continues to build with David, the son, writing to his half sister in Paris. Although their story is told completely in letters, reading it as if you were a person in another room over hearing a conversation is quite intriguing. Paludan has written a magnificent tale of love and loss which anyone can enjoy. So, grab a box of tissues and your high school yearbooks, because this book will take you down a path off memory lane where you never expected to go!

Read the whole review at www.lulubookreview.wordpress.com.

[Click the preview to close]

Share or Bookmark This Item

Fill out this form to send an e-mail to your friend telling them about this page on Lulu.com:

We respect your privacy. The names and e-mail addresses you enter are used only for sending this message. Please read our Privacy Pledge.

Your Friend's Name:
Your Friend's Email:
Your Name:
Your E-mail:
Your Message:
(max. 1024 characters)
 
Lulu is an advocate for global consumer privacy rights, protection and security.
Member Agreement   |   Privacy Pledge