Customer Rating:  
Summary: Very disappointed
Comment: For the very first time, I feel compelled to review an Amazon book because of my extreme disappointment. The excerpt made it sound like a fun, interesting read so my book group bought a bunch of hard cover copies. By the end, each of us believed we could have written it. The plot lines, dialogue, and messages were predictable cliches. There were no surprises, and we never really cared about any of the characters whose stories were tied up quickly with neat little bows. Obviously there's a market for this type of book since some people appear to have enjoyed it. From our book club to you, save your money.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good Book
Comment: I totally enjoyed this book and how the author brought all the characters together in the end. It reminded me of my favorite author Mauve Binchey.
Customer Rating:
Summary: First Book I have read by this author
Comment: I love this book, it is the first book i have read by this author and it makes me laugh, cry and everything in between. Very good book and makes me think ALOT
Customer Rating:
Summary: Not her greatest work, but definitely not "Babyville"
Comment: I picked up "Babyville" a couple of weeks ago and realized that I have read it or have read so many books like this one that I have forgotten it. So I didn't finish reading it since there are so many other books clamoring for my attention and "Babyville" just didn't grab my attention. When the library called and told me that "The Beach House" was in, I thought it was going to be funny.
It is, but it isn't. The best thing about this book is that it's a very fast read. I read it in almost two days. Thankfully. It didn't drag nor did it sink. It is just a so-so novel from an author that I know is quite capable of producing better books. This is definitely not her best book and it is definitely right for a beach read or for a long plane ride.
This book reminds me of Maeve Binchy's short stories collection, where you have five different characters with different viewpoints and their stories intermeshed somehow into making this a novel. Green really needs to stick with novels with one main character as that is her strongest strength ... not books like this one.
There is Nan, matriach and widow who lives on Nantucket. She lives in the ancient Powell home and her son, Michael, returns home from NYC in disgrace. Then there's Daniel, a gay man who just outed himself for the first time and is in the midst of a divorce where he worries about never seeing his two daughters again. Then there's Daff, a young divorcee with a very moody teen-age daughter who decided to spend the summer with her dad. The stories are stereotpyical and predictable and unrealistic.
But if you want to escape reality for a few hours, this book would do the trick. However, hopefully sometime soon, Green will go back and write her fun novels and stick with a formula that is truly hers instead of just cranking out books that doesn't inspire readers to keep reading.
10/6/08
Customer Rating:
Summary: Beach House well worn territory
Comment: The last few Jane Green books I have read seem to have the exact same people going through infidelity, divorce, pregnancy issues, etc, the only difference is that she changes the characters names.
I really wish Jane Green would get back to writing novels with a main protaginist instead of having the plethera of characters she keeps throwing in her novels. It drove me nuts that once I got involved in someone's story the next chapter moved on to someone else.
I finished The Beach House in one afternoon and all in all I have to say the entire book just had me feeling unsatisfied since there were way too many plots going on and I think she would have been better served in just writing several different books or short stories instead of trying to tie things together with everyone staying at at "beach house" for the summer and having the wise old woman solving all of their problems. All of the plots were tied up too neatly.
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