Book review: River's Song by Melody Carlson

River's Song, Inn at Shining Waters Series #1

River’s Song
Melody Carlson
The Inn at Shining Waters, Book 1
ISBN-13: 9781426712661
Abingdon Press
Christian Fiction
4 out of 5

Back of the book…
Following her mother’s funeral, and on the verge of her own midlife crisis, widow Anna Larson returns to the home of her youth to sort out her parents’ belongings, as well as her own turbulent life. For the first time since childhood, Anna embraces her native heritage, despite the disdain of her vicious mother-in-law. By transforming her old family home on the banks of Oregon’s Siuslaw River into The Inn at Shining Waters, Anna hopes to create a place of healing—a place where guests experience peace, grace, and new beginnings. Starting with her own family…

My thoughts…
Melody Carlson has once again written a gripping tale that draws you in. In this first installment we are brought to a peaceful river settlement on the Siuslaw River in Oregon. The time frame is 1959. Anna has just lost her mother which means that she inherits her family home. For the past several years Anna has lived with her daughter and mother-in-law in her mother-in-law’s home. She has slowly been beaten down into a shell of herself. With the unfolding story we get to witness Anna regain her self-worth.

I enjoyed reading about this strong woman reemerging into who she used to be. The mother-in-law is definitely everyone’s worst nightmare. Daughter Lauren is beyond spoiled, but comes around in the end. Babette makes up for everything lacking in those two. Who wouldn’t love to have a friend like her? The only thing that I really didn’t like was the pace of the romance between Anna and Clark. It just seemed to move along too quickly for my taste. 
The tease in the back of the book for the second installment makes me excited to read the continuation of this wonderful story.  The discussion questions make this a great pick for any reading group. Book two will be out 1/29/2012!!!



* I received a copy of this book from Glass Road Public Relations for my honest opinion. No other compensation was received.

2 comments:

  1. I have never read Melody Carlson before, but this one sounds very good to me...I like the fact that the setting seems to be almost a character in the book.

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  2. I look forward to reading this on NetGalley! Good to know that you enjoyed it. Thanks for visiting Read Love and entering my DVD giveaway for The SHunning.

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