Reviewed by Desere
I have been a Danielle Steel fan for as long as I can remember, she has always been able to take me right into the heart of any saga romantic or family and entrance me till the very end.
Sadly this time around I was less than impressed. The story starts out really well, and has a nice even flow to it , the author let me in on the where and how of the life of Peter and his twin brother Michael, their friends and their parents, which is always important, no reader wants to feel like they are missing a crucial part of the puzzle.
Then we travel with Peter back to his hometown and the secrets it holds. For the first few chapters of this journey all goes in the right direction. The author gave me those little hints, not too much but just enough to let me know there is a whole lot more than meets the eye. Again great background information on the characters and then suddenly the read became slow, predictable and a dragging on and on of repeating lines.
For some readers this of course will not be an issue, I know plenty of readers that love when the same lines are repeated over and over, it is said it keeps the memory fresh of exactly what has happened and stops them from turning back to re-find the information.
I on the other hand prefer when new twists and turns enter every now and then, it keeps a story interesting and also of course keeps my attention. But with this read, it really was as if I was reading the same chapter over and over. I agree that some information deserves to be repeated, but on practically every page, a bit of an overdo, and I wanted to shout out " You said that like 2 pages ago, why are you repeating yet again ?"
Now repeating aside, this was actually a really great plot. At one stage I pretty much thought I had it figured out, then the whole theory was blown to bits with the introducing of Peter's nephew. The truth when it is revealed ( I will add that it happens very early in the read) was a bit of a shocker, the kind that makes you sit up and think , " Didn't I read this in the news a while ago?"
To sum up, this is the typical seems to be prefect family but actually holds a dark secret turns into a nice little ending read. And if you're a loyal Danielle Steel fan I am positive you will enjoy it.
But if the you prefer your family tragedy, secrets that will blow your mind, stories to be more easy flowing and less repetitive with a little more bang when it comes to twits and turns, then this read will be one I advise you to rather miss.
4 star review
"He returns, but will he let the secrets from the past escape into the future?"
** Available at Penguin Random House South Africa
Reviewers note : Copy provided by Penguin Random House in exchange for a honest review
