A fabulous, magical, wonderful love story!
Few things bring together hope, history, hard work, creative thinking, and pure faith like a treasure hunt. "A Sparkle of Silver" is, on the surface, just such a treasure hunt. But a few chapters is all it takes to realize that there is so much more here. This is, truly, about finding what is lost. Not a physical trinket left in a little cubby somewhere, but that intangible sense of self. Ben and Millie are desperately searching for themselves, for their place in the world, as their families are ripped asunder in ways completely out of their control. For Ben, the conviction of his mother for stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from dozens of families during his childhood. For Millie, a lineage, an extended family that could potentially embrace her and her beloved Grandma Joy, whose memories are slowly fading away.
Both Ben and Millie work extraordinarily hard to achieve their goals, and when the obstacles seem insurmountable - too much debt, too little time - they both seek something greater that can finally make their worlds well again. And they end up at the same place - the Chateau. Here, in the final days before the Depression, the greatest and wealthiest stars of the land came to pass an enjoyable summer. Millie knows that her great-grandmother was there that summer, kept a journal, and talked of a treasure. Millie finds work at the Historical Society-owned Chateau, playing the role of historical debutante by day and treasure-seeker by night.
Before Ben caught Millie in the library, totally out of bounds for her role-playing job, he had found work at the Chateau to try and earn more money to pay back the families his mother stole from. After that chance encounter, though, Ben and Millie team up and begin searching for the treasure together.
Their teamwork truly makes for a fabulous read. Millie is so enigmatic, but not cool or coy in any way. She wears her heart very much on her sleeve - along with a few bits of potato and a LOT of ketchup on occasion. She is so funny, so real. I absolutely adored her. She is a great fount of gregarious emotion just waiting to be poured out. At times, the reader gets the sense that she is at risk of combustion if she cannot find some kind of outlet. I personally believe that this is a cause of her stumbles and less-than-graceful moments.
Ben is the opposite. He is a deep, deep well of hope, waiting and praying for someone who will show him genuine love. His mother deeply wounded him by keeping him in constant turmoil as he grew up, and then betraying him completely when the truth of her actions came to light. She burdened him with a profound sense of guilt over her own actions that he had no part of but technically did not stop.
As Ben and Millie work together, as their friendship and relationship grows, the reader can feel both of their hearts filling with light. Together, they learn to trust, to breathe, to have fun, to overcome, and finally, to love each other.
There is so much history in this story. The journal entries by Ruth during her Roaring '20's summer at the Chateau take the reader right back to another time. Grandma Joy also brings a sense of history to the tale. She seems to float in a kind of unseen interim - not quite with Ruth, but not quite with Ben and Millie, either. More as a bridge between the three. At the end of the day, though, this is a story about love, and about Millie and Ben. A magical, wonderful, heart-melting tale of love.
This was such a fabulous story. I loved absolutely every minute of it. This book will keep a treasured spot on my bookshelf, as I am sure to return to it again and again.
Both Ben and Millie work extraordinarily hard to achieve their goals, and when the obstacles seem insurmountable - too much debt, too little time - they both seek something greater that can finally make their worlds well again. And they end up at the same place - the Chateau. Here, in the final days before the Depression, the greatest and wealthiest stars of the land came to pass an enjoyable summer. Millie knows that her great-grandmother was there that summer, kept a journal, and talked of a treasure. Millie finds work at the Historical Society-owned Chateau, playing the role of historical debutante by day and treasure-seeker by night.
Before Ben caught Millie in the library, totally out of bounds for her role-playing job, he had found work at the Chateau to try and earn more money to pay back the families his mother stole from. After that chance encounter, though, Ben and Millie team up and begin searching for the treasure together.
Their teamwork truly makes for a fabulous read. Millie is so enigmatic, but not cool or coy in any way. She wears her heart very much on her sleeve - along with a few bits of potato and a LOT of ketchup on occasion. She is so funny, so real. I absolutely adored her. She is a great fount of gregarious emotion just waiting to be poured out. At times, the reader gets the sense that she is at risk of combustion if she cannot find some kind of outlet. I personally believe that this is a cause of her stumbles and less-than-graceful moments.
Ben is the opposite. He is a deep, deep well of hope, waiting and praying for someone who will show him genuine love. His mother deeply wounded him by keeping him in constant turmoil as he grew up, and then betraying him completely when the truth of her actions came to light. She burdened him with a profound sense of guilt over her own actions that he had no part of but technically did not stop.
As Ben and Millie work together, as their friendship and relationship grows, the reader can feel both of their hearts filling with light. Together, they learn to trust, to breathe, to have fun, to overcome, and finally, to love each other.
There is so much history in this story. The journal entries by Ruth during her Roaring '20's summer at the Chateau take the reader right back to another time. Grandma Joy also brings a sense of history to the tale. She seems to float in a kind of unseen interim - not quite with Ruth, but not quite with Ben and Millie, either. More as a bridge between the three. At the end of the day, though, this is a story about love, and about Millie and Ben. A magical, wonderful, heart-melting tale of love.
This was such a fabulous story. I loved absolutely every minute of it. This book will keep a treasured spot on my bookshelf, as I am sure to return to it again and again.