I liked it but not as much as I was expecting to
I was actually really looking forward to reading this book because look at that pretty cover. It totally drew me in. I don't think it was as good as I was hoping it would be, but I still really enjoyed it!
There are a lot of great things this book has going for it. The setting, for one. I probably love this little town and the way it's described so much because it reminds me of the little town from my all time favorite show Gilmore Girls. Dove Pond and Stars Hollow could totally exist in the same universe. This book also has a lot of quirky characters just like Gilmore Girls, with the extra bonus of the fact that everyone in town has their own unique "thing"...the ability to cook really well, an extra special green thumb, a longstanding feud with another family that no one even remembers the cause of, every woman in the family has attracted a rich man, the ability to hear books. It's silly and charming and I really loved it.
Now the actual storyline I felt like had the potential to be amazing, but the main focus of the book wasn't that exciting to me. If it had been focused on Grace and Hannah as foster children finally finding Mama G, like the prologue hinted at, I think that would have been a great storyline. Or Grace's unique family life suddenly having to raise her niece and take care of her foster mother with dementia, I loved when those parts were focused on. But the saving the financially dying town storyline was the least interesting part of the book. I kinda feel like it was ALMOST amazing but then fell short. It's funny, I was hooked by the first half of the book, which was really just set up and introducing these crazy characters and this charming town. Once the actual plot got going, I was less interested.
That being said, I think Karen Hawkins is a great author. There were so many beautiful sentences and memorable quotes that I had to stop reading and think about for a second. I should have written them down. And the setting and the characters were amazing and charming and so well done. But the storyline left some to be desired. I will say, I didn't realize this was the first in a series. The way it ended really wrapped up this storyline but I bet these characters continue in the next book and have an entirely different plot, so I'm excited to see where it goes from here.
There are a lot of great things this book has going for it. The setting, for one. I probably love this little town and the way it's described so much because it reminds me of the little town from my all time favorite show Gilmore Girls. Dove Pond and Stars Hollow could totally exist in the same universe. This book also has a lot of quirky characters just like Gilmore Girls, with the extra bonus of the fact that everyone in town has their own unique "thing"...the ability to cook really well, an extra special green thumb, a longstanding feud with another family that no one even remembers the cause of, every woman in the family has attracted a rich man, the ability to hear books. It's silly and charming and I really loved it.
Now the actual storyline I felt like had the potential to be amazing, but the main focus of the book wasn't that exciting to me. If it had been focused on Grace and Hannah as foster children finally finding Mama G, like the prologue hinted at, I think that would have been a great storyline. Or Grace's unique family life suddenly having to raise her niece and take care of her foster mother with dementia, I loved when those parts were focused on. But the saving the financially dying town storyline was the least interesting part of the book. I kinda feel like it was ALMOST amazing but then fell short. It's funny, I was hooked by the first half of the book, which was really just set up and introducing these crazy characters and this charming town. Once the actual plot got going, I was less interested.
That being said, I think Karen Hawkins is a great author. There were so many beautiful sentences and memorable quotes that I had to stop reading and think about for a second. I should have written them down. And the setting and the characters were amazing and charming and so well done. But the storyline left some to be desired. I will say, I didn't realize this was the first in a series. The way it ended really wrapped up this storyline but I bet these characters continue in the next book and have an entirely different plot, so I'm excited to see where it goes from here.