Romance is not a favourite genre of mine, but back in November last year I read Macomber’s Starry Night and, much against my expectations, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Now reading that I sound a little up my own ego, almost being patronising about romance novels; that is not my intention at all.
What I am saying is that when a book is well written, it doesn’t matter what the genre, it is worth reading in its own right, and Debbie Macomber writes a very good book! Her style is light and pleasing, sentence construction is good and overall it is well written. Okay there are some times when you think “well that was predictable”, but this did not detract from my pleasure one iota.
Recently I started three different novels I didn’t finish; they just did not hold my interest, I didn’t care about the characters and in one instance the language was so coarse, in my Dad’s words, it would have “made a bullocky blush”!
So what a pleasure to read Debbie Macomber’s latest offering; I actually cared about the characters and wanted good outcomes for them. There are a number of stories in Blossom Street Brides, all linked by the local knitting and craft shop “A Good Yarn” owned by Lydia.
Lydia and her husband are happily married, raising two children, Cody, Brad’s son from his first marriage, and Casey their adopted daughter. Lydia’s business is profitable, but not sufficiently profitable to allow her to engage in any large scale marketing. More worrying is that Casey suffers from dreadful nightmares which leave her terrified and trembling, but she can’t tell her mother why.
Bethanne runs a successful party planning business, which she started when husband number one, Grant, left her for, you guessed it, a younger woman. A supremely selfish man, when his second marriage breaks down, Grant tries to return to Bethanne, but it’s too late, she has met and married Max. There is a slight problem marring their happiness; Max has a wine distribution business in California, Bethanne’s business, home and adult children are in Seattle. How long can they share only weekends particularly now the first grandchild is on its way?
Then there is Lauren, 30’ish, she has been in a long term relationship, but is starting to realise that she is really looking for more from a relationship than she is currently getting. When yet again her dinner arrangements are postponed, she decides it’s time to move on. Little does she know the man of her dreams is literally just around the corner; but surely such a sensible girl cannot possibly ride off into the sunset, on the back of a Harley, with someone she has just met and whose name is the highly unlikely Rooster?
Many of the chapters open with quotes from knitting and yarn specialists such as “If you don’t like it, it’s just not done yet – Heidi Dascher, fiber artist, The Artful Ewe”. Whilst I enjoyed these quotes, their use was explained when I learned Debbie Macomber is quite a crafts person herself and in fact owns a knitting and yarn shop called “A Good Yarn”.
Blossom Street Brides is not the first book written about Blossom Street, in fact it is part of a series, but I didn’t feel I had missed anything by not having read all previous books in the series. There is no need to read previous volumes, but you may want to read more about some of the characters.
One of the publishers comments about Debbie Macomber is she “ brings to life the compelling relationships that embrace family, community and enduring friendships, filling her readers with a sense of love and hope”. I agree and hope you do also. Thank you to Random House Australia, via Netgalley, for my pre-publication copy of Blossom Street Brides.
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About the Author
Despite her dyslexia, Debbie Macomber always wanted to be a writer. As a stay-at-home mother with four children, she spent five years writing books at her kitchen table until finally one was accepted by Sillhouette. Now, many books later and a worldwide bestseller, she and her husband live in Port Orchard, Washington, where her husband is building his own airplane.
Macomber is the author of more than 100 novels, most recently Rose Harbor in Bloom and Starting Now; two bestselling cookbooks; numerous inspirational and nonfiction works; two acclaimed children’s books and the Mrs. Miracle Christmas novels. She is also the author of beloved and bestselling Cedar Cove Series set in Cedar Cove, Washington. See more http://www.debbiemacomber.com/about-debbie/debbies-bio
