Sarah Sobanski
Reader’s Release is a monthly column where members of Cavan-Monaghan Libraries review a book from the library’s new monthly releases to keep you updated on the hottest reads available to you locally.
I had never read Elin Hilderbrand before – perish the thought. I’ve carried around a lot of books, hoping to squeeze pages in every spare moment, but never have I had so many women ask about what I’m reading.
Here I was a skeptic when I saw that the Millbrook library was offering Hilderbrand’s The Rumor on their August new releases selection for the Times new monthly book review program. More of a magic, medieval and old literature type girl, I expected to sleep through it, or even be potentially alienated by a story about a pair of tea party California-style housewives from Nantucket. Instead, I found the guilty pleasures of Hilderbrand’s characters intriguing enough to make me stop to peak at her new novel – her fifteenth.
Hilderbrand’s latest novel, affectionately categorized as beach-fiction, is exactly what a girl needs, along with her toes in the sand and a subtly sweet sangria in hand. You will relate on some level to each character: Madeline King will remind you of that constant rush of scattered thoughts you can’t control on your busiest days about your chores, family and friends, while Grace Pancik will experience every sinful “what-if” you’ve ever considered, and Grace’s daughter, Hope, will induce smirk- worthy flashbacks to the days of junior year – popular kids, boys and heartbreak…
