The Memory of Water
NAL Trade - NAL Trade
Release date: 2008-03-04
Paperback
Author: Karen White
Popular American Fiction, Fiction, Fiction - Psychological Suspense, Family & Relationships / Family Relationships, Psychological, Family & Relationships, Family/Marriage, Family Life, Family secrets, Mentally ill parents, Sisters
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The Memory of Water
Date undefinedKaren White is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. Her latest book, The House on Tradd Street [review], was an amazingly written book that was as gripping as it was beautiful. The Memory of Water is equally as haunting, and though I didn't enjoy it quite as much as The House on Tradd Street, I still thought it was an excellent novel.
The setting of the book is in the Lowcountry marshes of South Carolina. White does an amazing job describing the locale. Though I have never visited the area, I have a vivid picture of it in my head from White's descriptions. They are as beautiful as they are haunting.
White is also a master at building suspense. She manages to keep the reader hooked throughout the novel without giving out too much information. The disquieting feeling her novels evokes in the reader is reminiscent of Carol Goodman, whose virtues I have previously extolled in this blog. [Review of The Night Villa][Review of The Drowning Tree]
The character of Marnie was extremely well written; she had many ghosts of her own that she had to face. Diana was a little more difficult. She was very difficult to sympathize with, and the way she treated Marnie was disappointing at best and cruel at worst. When the mystery is finally revealed at the end of the book, Diana moves even further away from the reader.
Overall, I really enjoyed The Memory of Water. It had a little bit of everything - mystery, character development, a wonderful setting, and the connections of family. I'd definitely recommend it to other readers and can't wait to pick up another one of her novels.
The Memory of Water
Date undefinedAs a huge fan of Karen White's two other books [FALLING HOME and AFTER THE RAIN, both 5-star reads], I looked forward to reading more of her work. However, this book was so very slow and the characters were so very flat that I had to force myself to turn the pages. After awhile, I thought that I had become as depressed as the bipolar sister. Couldn't even finish it.......
I'd love to see her return to the style of HOME and RAIN, where there was character development, an authentic Southern mood AND a plot that actually moved along.
The Memory of Water
Date undefinedThis is the first book I've read by Karen White. It was a wonderful story of the Carolina lowcountry with rich detailed characters and an intriguing storyline. Family secrets and sister's connections come to the surface after an accident that has forced one of them to come home. My only bone to pick was the multiple narrations. While I enjoyed the adult characters' perspectives, I found the young boy Gil's to be a bit out of place. It didn't 'ring true' for me. None the less, I'm passing this gem along because I know my friends will snap it up and love it for a fun summer read!
