1956, Malibu, California: Something is not right on Paradise Circle.
With her name on the Hollywood blacklist and her life on hold, starlet Melanie Cole has little choice in company. There is her next-door neighbor, Elwood, but the screenwriter’s agoraphobia allows for just short chats through open windows. He’s her sole confidante, though, as she and her housekeeper, Eva, an immigrant from war-torn Europe, rarely make conversation.
Then one early morning Melanie and Eva spot Elwood’s sister-in-law and caretaker, June, digging in his beloved rose garden. After that they don’t see Elwood at all anymore. Where could a man who never leaves the house possibly have gone?
As they try to find out if something has happened to him, unexpected secrets are revealed among all three women, leading to an alliance that seems the only way for any of them to hold on to what they can still call their own. But it’s a fragile pact and one little spark could send it all up in smoke…
CW/TW – Domestic violence, suicide, mental health issues, murder
Dear Ms. Meissner,
Well, that was different. In 1950s Malibu, three women meet, and slowly discover each other’s past and secrets and forge a found family. I’m afraid if I say too much more then I’ll be spilling spoilers all over the place but readers who enjoy old 1950s melodrama movies might like this.
I’ll say that at one point or another, I was appalled or stunned by the actions of most of the characters in this book. When the story ends, I felt better about most of them but a few were still assholes.
The worldbuilding and 1950s details were a little light on the ground but honestly I’d almost rather that than the current fade of over describing every single little teeny tiny detail. That kind of overkill is killing a lot of books for me lately.
There were times when I wanted to shake everyone. People push into situations that really shouldn’t concern them that much – that is until later when some additional flashback scenes have set the stage for why this person should care so much what happens to a character who I thought was basically a stranger to them. The backgrounds of the three main characters are sketched out at first with finer details slowly added over the course of the book.
This truly is a women’s fiction story. Eva, Melanie, and June are all women who have faced drama and tragedy. Eva saw her family ripped from her during the war and then scrambled, alone, to find a new place in the world. During her childhood, June’s mother was a piece of work but by chance, June met her loving husband and then his brother. Tragedy hit them too with the aftermath still holding two of them captive. Melanie’s dream, in the face of her disapproving parents, has always been to become a famous actress and just as it was within her grasp, due to no fault of her own it’s all gone with little hope of being salvaged.
After events bring the three of them together, their lives become intertwined and, as the blurb says, they have to stick together or the repercussions will ruin them all. The secrets and issues they need to keep under wraps are major – with one being the linchpin of them all.
I think most people will put two and two together and get the correct answer about the fate of one person. The character driven story shows how events can sweep a person up and regardless of how good, innocent, or worthy they are, spin them into situations where they will have to make the best choices possible in terrible circumstances. When the truth is known to all three, their initial reactions seem logical. Watching them come together to work out a plan to salvage things is hopeful if, at times, it makes me a bit squeamish. I can easily see quite a few readers pulling back and saying “Nope, not gonna go with this.”
The end has some answers I needed but is missing a few – such as what was the deal with Melanie’s useless brother. June called him correctly. And what about Algernon? I assume June got him but don’t introduce an animal and then leave its fate in the air. I’m glad I stuck with this past some Moments to the end but honestly I doubt I’ll revisit it. B-/C+
~Jayne
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Jayne
Another long time reader who read romance novels in her teens, then took a long break before started back again about 25 years ago. She enjoys historical romance/fiction best, likes contemporaries, action- adventure and mysteries, will read suspense if there’s no TSTL characters and is currently reading more fantasy and SciFi.
