Clare Porterfield, a professional
photographer, returns to her childhood home in Galveston after the
death of her only daughter. Clare is caught up in remorse. Did the
famous picture she took of her daughter lead inexorably to her death?
Clare is also caught up in remembrance of her own childhood. After
she and her best friend, Patrick, started a fire in which a girl lost
her life, she was sent to live with her Grandmother. Now she wonders
if that was the only reason. Galveston seems to be filled with
secrets about her family and earlier secrets about the Carraday
family who own the big house across the alley.
The author has a captivating ability to
bring you into the area she's describing. You can actually feel the
heat, dampness, and decay in Galveston. That's the best part of the
book. I couldn't be sure whether the author was attempting to write a
mystery or a family saga. In neither case, did she catch and keep my
attention. The solution to the mystery is predictable in the first
fifty pages.
As a family saga, it lacks the
participation of most of the characters. Clare's mother is almost a
ghost in the story. Patrick doesn't show up until very late in the
book. Will Caraday, owner of the big house across the alley, is a
presence, but we never get to know him. Everything is seen from the
outside.
I loved the portrayal of Galveston.,
but if you're reading the book for the mystery, or insight into a
dysfunctional family, the novel disappoints. I enjoyed the book, but
wouldn't recommend it unless you're especially interested in a story
set in Galveston.
I reviewed this book as part of the
Amazon Vine Program.
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