47. The Bookstore Family by Alice Hoffman - a short story

listened on Audible

42 pgs.

copyright
Adult contemporary fiction
Finished 10/28
Goodreads rating: 4.22
My rating: 3.5
Setting: Paris and an island off the coast of Maine, contemporary

My comments:   Depressing short story about a young woman who has spent five years in France since leaving the small Maine island that she grew up on and loved until she returns home because her mother is dying.

Goodreads synopsis:  New York Times bestselling author Alice Hoffman takes her sweet bookshop series to Paris with an emotional short story about chasing your dreams—and finding your passion where you least expect it.

Growing up, Violet was so busy helping others realize their dreams, she found little time to pursue her own. But five years ago, she took the chance of a lifetime, leaving the family bookshop on Brinkley’s Island, Maine, to attend culinary school in Paris. Now she’s working her dream job as a pâtissiere in an upscale Parisian restaurant—yet all she can think about is home.

Feeling unmoored, Violet finds herself still searching for something…Connection? Maybe. She hasn’t made any real friends in the city. Inspiration? Possibly. Her desserts are lovely, but they’re definitely lacking something.

After her aunt Isabel urges her to keep on looking, Violet finally gets a taste of what she’s been missing in the café at the Museum of Romantic Life. But just as life begins to come into focus, she’s abruptly called home to Maine. Like her aunt before her, Violet soon learns that family could hold the key to discovering what she truly needs.

69. The Bookstore Sisters - a short story by Alice Hoffman,

read & listened on Kindle Unlimited/Audible

2022
36 pgs.
Adult CRF
Finished  11/23/2022
Goodreads rating: 4.18
My rating: 4
Setting: Contemporary small island off the Maine coast

My comments: A sweet story that takes place on a small island on the Maine coast.  Two sisters who haven't spoken in over a decade reconcile...slowly....  When their mother died, the youngest, Isabel, totally retreated into herself and left eh older sister, Sophie, to deal with everything on her own.  This included the tiny bookstore that their dad ran after their mom's death.  When Isabel does finally return to the island, she faces her past history and wakes up for the first time since she was 12.

Goodreads synopsis:  From New York Times bestselling author Alice Hoffman comes a heartfelt short story about family, independence, and finding your place in the world.
Isabel Gibson has all but perfected the art of forgetting. She’s a New Yorker now, with nothing left to tie her to Brinkley’s Island, Maine. Her parents are gone, the family bookstore is all but bankrupt, and her sister, Sophie, will probably never speak to her again.

But when a mysterious letter arrives in her mailbox, Isabel feels herself drawn to the past. After years of fighting for her independence, she dreads the thought of going back to the island. What she finds there may forever alter her path—and change everything she thought she knew about her family, her home, and herself.

36. Skylight Confessions - Alice Hoffman

Audio read by Mare Winningham
6 unabridged cds (7.5 hrs.)
rating:  interesting story, holds attention, depressing and clever
272 pgs.
2007 Hachette Audio
Alice Hoffman's 19th novel

Setting:  Contemporary small-town Connecticut with bits of NYC
OSS:  Arlyn (Arly) Singer, at 17, enters a more-or-less loveless marriage with John Moody thinking he's her destiny.....dying a few short years later after both partners have dabbled in infidelity, leaving a disturbed son, Sam, and baby daughter, Blanca.

The story begins with Arly, switching to Blanca and then to the governess that raises Sam, Blana, and John & his new wife's child.  Secrets are uncovered, ghosts are watched, lives unfold through the years.  It's sad, filled with heartache, and pretty much a downer to listen to, although I was quite mesmerized (beautiful reading by Mare Winningham) by the writing.