Wednesday, May 22, 2013

Starting Now by Debbie Macomber

2.5 Star

For years Libby Morgan dreamed only of making partner in her competitive, high-pressure law firm. She sacrificed everything for her career—her friends, her marriage, her chance at creating a family. When her boss calls Libby into his office, she assumes it will finally be good news, but nothing can prepare her for the shocking reality: She’s been let go and must rebuild her entire life...starting now. 

With no job prospects in sight, Libby reaches out to old friends and spends her afternoons at A Good Yarn, the local knitting store. There she forms a close bond with Lydia, the sweet-natured shop owner; Lydia’s spirited teenage daughter, Casey; and Casey’s best friend, Ava, a shy yet troubled girl who will shape Libby’s future in surprising and profound ways. 

As A Good Yarn becomes a second home—and the women a new kind of family—Libby relishes the different person she’s become. She even finds time for romance with a charming and handsome doctor who seems to be her perfect match. But just as everything is coming together, Libby must make a choice that could forever change the life she holds so dear.


Kathryn - 2.5 Star

Libby is a strong woman career wise but has let her personal life fall to pieces because of the deep rooted pain of losing her mother as a child.  I think if I was as strong-minded as Libby appears to be in business I would have pushed harder to form some kind of relationship with my father or other family.  It seems as if Macomber just let that part of her past go almost entirely unexplained. At one point there is mention of a step-mother that Libby seems to like but there’s no exploration of their possible relationship and I would have felt more attached to Libby had I been able to see how that part of her life was lacking.

The new friendships Libby formed when she finds herself without a job had potential. They were intriguing and interesting and some of them were unique (I particularly liked the two teenage girls.) However, except for her love interest and the teen she takes under her wing none of the other characters seemed to move Libby forward in the next stage of her life.  The oddest relationship for me though was her best friend Robin who came off as chilly and unemotional and frankly I would have let her go on her merry way if she’d been my best buddy!

I really liked the exploration of Libby personally though, through her desire to get in shape to her new joy in rocking newborns in the hospital. There was development of her emotionally at those points that I appreciated.

To be truly, truly honest this story wasn’t very me and I say this with difficulty because there’s not a lot I can say about Starting Over that’s truly negative. Starting Now is well laid out, the characters are good and could draw you in-I was certainly rooting for some more than others and I wanted to finish the book to see how it all turned out. But I wasn’t moved by the way it read, or the plot or the end result.  Possibly The Blossom Street Novels by Macomber just isn’t my thing which I think is fine because there are lot of fans out there already!

Thank you to Random House for our review copy. All opinions are our own.

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