Where or when (1993) by Anita Shreve

After seeing Sian Richards picture in the literary section of the newsletter, Charles Callahan wrote to her.  She was his first love in high school and he thought there could be no harm in an innocent correspondence.  However, the correspondence resulted in a meeting.  One meeting led to another and then both parties were living a lie with their respective spouses. Parts of this novel rang true, while other situations were unrealistic.  Sian was a more believable character than Charles.  The mechanism of using letters in the book was a good way to keep the plot going.

Stella Bain (2013) by Anita Shreve

Stella Bain was nursing wounded soldiers on The Front during World War One when she lost her memory.  In an attempt to find out who she was she travelled to England.  Taken in by a doctor and his wife, she made some progress and when she regained her memory, she returned to America to be reunited with her family.  Complications arose.  She fought for her children and her own life.

An entirely readable story, but predictable and not as insigthful as many of the author's other novels.

Strange Fits of Passion by Anita Shreve



Maureen escapes a marriage in which she is being physically abused.  She flees with her infant daughter and finds safety in a Maine coastal village.  Slowly she also finds love, but her husband is in the background looking for her.  This is a story of brave and loyal people, though they may not be wordly, they understand the world and human behaviour.

Resistance by Anita Shreve



What a pleasant surprise!  I found this historical fiction novel to be accurate and authentic.  Ms. Shreve has written with a depth of understanding and compassion that I have not read in her other books.  Characters were neither right nor wrong, but trying to survive and be human in a time that was 'fou', a time that was robbing people of their humanity.  Well worth the read!  A gem!

Rescue by Anita Shreve (2010)



Anita Shreve is an author I enjoy. Rescue is a particularly well-developed story.  Told from the voice of the father, Webster, a para-medic, the story was rather one-sided.  His wife Sheila came into the relationship with a lot of problems, which Webster knew.  He was crazy in love with her, but when her drinking began to endanger their daughter, Rowan, he sent her packing, with little choice.  Years later, both Peter Webster and Sheila reunite due to an accident brought on by their daughter's drinking on prom night.  The novels leads one to ponder if  the more mature and adult Webster and Sheila have a future.  I would have liked Sheila's character to be more developed and for Rowan, the daughter, to be more believable. Webster's parents were extremely well presented, as were his fellow para-medics.