Tag: Blended Family

ECONOGAL > Blended Family

The Night We Lost Him

Posted on by Econogal

New Family Bonds

Laura Dave explores the complexities of families in The Night We Lost Him. Liam Samuel Noone is only alive during the prologue. But his life is the impetus of the story. Three wives and three children. Yet the love of his life for over fifty years refused to marry him. His sudden death brings two of his children together.

Nora and Sam are half-siblings. Sam’s twin Tommy plays only a minor role in the novel. Most of The Night We Lost Him focuses on the lack of closeness among the three growing up. And the bond created between Nora and Sam as they investigate the unusual death of their father.

Point of View in The Night We Lost Him

Most of the story is told through the eyes of Nora. Yet there is also a thread of flashbacks focusing on Liam and Cory. The flashbacks give insight into the couple and why they never married.

Nora is used as a parallel to her father. She is torn between the love of her life and a former romantic interest-a man close to her father. Her determination to discover her father’s cause of death and his secrets separates her from her fiancé.

Her strengthening relationship with her brother Sam brings stability into her life at a time when both need someone to trust. Nora, having previously lost her mother, is a loner due to the unusual compartmentalization of Liam Noone’s multiple families.

Following Dreams

A major thread in the novel is that of children following their own dreams. Nora achieved this by refusing to take part of the ownership in her father’s company. Sam took the opposite path and after an injury turned away from his dreams. Both have regrets.

In the flashbacks of The Night We Lost Him the reader sees how Liam Noone had his cake and ate it too. The moral ramifications lend both a twist and an explanation of his death.

Recommendation

The Night We Lost Him is an engaging story and a quick read. While it does not have the emotional tug of The Last Thing He Told Me, the novel entertains. Furthermore, the ending is much more satisfying. This would be a great book for holiday giving.

Laura Dave is quite the storyteller! Click here for a review of her novel The Last Thing He Told Me.

The Last Thing He Told Me Book Review

Posted on by Econogal

Pure Mystery

Book cover of The Last Thing He Told Me words written in cursive covering sky above floating houses in SausalitoLaura Dave’s The Last Thing He Told Me is a thrilling, moving novel of love in the face of lies. The need for family and the sacrifices one makes for that family is the heart and soul of the book. The outcome will move you to tears.

Emotion aside, the story is a fascinating mystery without being a who-done-it. Murder is not the theme. Instead, protecting family is. And yet, the protection comes at a cost. Can the protagonist give up the love of her life to provide stability to a teenager? A sixteen-year-old angry at having a stepmom?

Love at First Sight

Hannah Hall meets Owen Michaels when he accompanies his boss to check on a custom order. Hannah is a woodturner of high-quality furniture. She lives in New York City. Owen is a computer coder. He lives in Sausalito. They connect.

Two short years later, Hannah is opening the door to their houseboat. A twelve-year-old hands her a cryptic note from Owen. And the hunt begins. A hunt for Owen and a hunt for the truth. The search is hampered by her estranged relationship with her stepdaughter Bailey. But they both are desperate to find Owen and the truth.

Their search leads to Austin, Texas and unfathomable revelations.

False Identity

The Last Thing He Told Me uses flashback chapters to offer an explanation. The author easily moves the reader in and out of the present. The voice always of Hannah. But Laura Dave is masterful at conveying the heartbreak of all three principles through action and dialogue. The reader aches for both main and secondary characters. This is quite an accomplishment with a single point-of-view.

Moral questions are asked and answered by the characters as they push for the truth. The only constant for young Bailey is the determination of Hannah to find the answers. Gradually, albeit reluctantly at first, the teenager learns to trust her stepmom in the face of abandonment.

Recommendation for The Last Thing He Told Me

This book moved me to tears. Love and self-sacrifice always tug at this reader’s heartstrings. The plot is plausible and the settings act as reminders to any travelers of the highlighted cities. However, the characters are the heart of The Last Thing He Told Me.

And the ending…is it happy or sad? I can see book clubs and literature students taking either side. Read it and decide for yourself. This book is on my buy list.