September 15, 2015

Rainy Day Sisters. Kate Hewitt

book cover
Rainy Day Sisters
Kate Hewitt
Published: Penguin Group: Berkley, NAL / Signet
Date: 4th August 2015
Format: e-ARC
Pages: 368
Genre: Women's Fiction
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
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My thoughts bannerTwo sisters, almost total strangers, begin a journey towards connection and a sense of family.  They do not gel immediately, yet perhaps underneath they are more alike than they initially experience. Rainy Day Sisters is set in the fictional town of Hartley-on-Sea in Cumbria, England. Ultimately this is a story of hope and connection and finding family as two sisters battle it out to find what they need.

Rachel the older sister, has set up a B&B, she is a rather self-contained, organised, lonely person. When her sister Lucy arrives to stay with her she is remote and clinical and rather disapproving of Lucy. She is very prickly. It was easy to dislike her, yet as the story unfolds, the more I understood her, the more I felt compassion for her.

Lucy has come from Boston to stay with her sister, she is an artist, but has been shamed by her mother, the esteemed artist Fiona Bagshaw, in the press and through social media.  Lucy seeks refuge with Rachel and begins a job in the local school as a temp office worker.  While she is not really skilled for the work she soon finds her way about and her compassion and understanding for the children soon see her involved in the local communtiy.

At the core of the sisters' lives is the influence their mother Fiona Bagshaw has had on their lives. She has been cold and unloving towards Rachel, who has felt jealous and angry with Fiona for the way she wanted Lucy. Yet it was never a bed of roses for Lucy either.  She experienced some serious bullying at school because of her mother's 'art', and in general did not have a normal family experience.

I liked how the novel explored the mother/daughter relationship through Rachel and Lucy and also with a few of the families in the town.  The importance of family, love and acceptance is highlighted, and how important the actions of a parent are. In so many ways this is echoed throughout the lives of the villagers.

The way the story developed was very believable, the characters felt very real, the town and its inhabitants adding flavour and impact to the story. I liked the way the story ended, not over the top, but  realistic and promising.

4 stars

12 comments:

  1. This sounds like a book I would like. Another book to put on my list to read!

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    1. It was an interesting read. Those lists they sure do grow!

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  2. Yes I want to read this one too :)

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  3. Their mother doesn't sound very likable! I picked this one up last week, hope to get to it soon. I do like sister stories & all the messy family dynamics. Nice review Kathryn :)

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  4. Hi Kathryn, I love Kate Hewitt I used to review HQN's Presents series for RT and I loved her novels. I haven't read her for awhile I guess its time to change that. Thanks for the great review!!

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    1. Yes Debbie was just searching out a little about Kate yesterday as I posted and I see she has been quite prolific, so must chase up a few and try them.

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  5. I'm looking forward to reading this soon so I'm glad you liked it!

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    1. I did like it, the dynamics in relationships were very interesting.

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  6. This sounds good Kathryn, and I love how realistic the relationships sound..the B&B setting is one I know I will enjoy.

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  7. I have this one, downloaded very recently; now I can't wait to read it. Thanks for sharing!

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