Tag: Family Drama

ECONOGAL > Family Drama

Summer State of Mind Book Review

Posted on by Econogal

Family Ties

Summer State of Mind by Kristy Woodson Harvey could go by many titles. Family Secrets or Family Ties pop into mind first. But Lost Child or Missing Parent fit too. This book covers foster care, adoption, abandonment, loss of child and other ways children and parents can be separated. Harvey pens an excellent story of family and all that entails.

Plot of Summer State of Mind

Coach Mason Thaysden and star pitcher Drew Christianson find an abandoned newborn in the dumpster behind the school. Upon rushing the baby to the hospital they meet Cape Carolina newcomer Daisy Stevens, NICU nurse. Since this is a beach read, at least on the surface, there is an immediate attraction between the adults. But the novel presents much, much more than a summer diversion

Main Characters

Daisy, orphaned at a young age, was raised by her uncle and his wife. But ties were cut off after a divorce and she still feels the sting of abandonment. However, details of her parents split were kept from her.

Coach Mason was the star pitcher of his day. Then an injury changed everything. After struggling with altered life plans, Mason has put his life in order.

Aunt Tilley, mind and soul addled by her past, occupies a key place in the heart of Mason’s extended family. Her story of lost love explains eccentricity. At least in part. But her story is so much more complex. And serves as a contrast to the story of Maisy, the abandoned baby.

Theme of Summer State of Mind

A baby discovered in a dumpster provides a natural start to a complex story of unexpected children. Societal acceptance of unplanned pregnancies still faces obstacles. Family support is key to keeping children out of the foster system when birth parents die. Furthermore, foster care is a necessity and even with its’ challenges is a better option than the orphanages of yesteryear. (Read the review of Before We Were Yours by clicking here.)

Recommendation

Kristy Woodson Harvey writes with heart and depth. If you have not read any of her novels, I encourage you to look for her work. Look for novels she has penned at bookstores, online and at your library. They are more than a summer escape. The topics are current and make you think and feel.

Family Drama Book Review

Posted on by Econogal

Debut Novel

Family Drama is a debut novel by Rebecca Fallon. It begins with the funeral of Susan, heroine of the story. Fallon jumps between Susan’s life and the story of her family after her death.  This is a debut novel and has the hallmarks of one. The start of the novel is captivating. Then the middle becomes a bit muddled. However, those with persistence are well rewarded. The complexities of the novel make it unique.

Two Careers

Susan is torn between two loves, her family and her career thus creating much family drama. She is an actress and stars on a popular soap opera filmed on the West Coast. Her family: her husband and twins reside in New England. She wears out with a constant shuttling back-and-forth.

Family Drama Present Day

The current story focuses on the motherless twins growing up to adulthood. Viola and Sebastion differ in personalities as well as in memories of their mother. Viola is serious and scholarly like her father even though her looks resemble her mother. Sebastion is far more artsy and hates to study. Plus, he is obsessed with Susan the actress.

Fallon’s plot is intriguing, if a bit unsettling. Young Viola falls in love with her mother’s co-star when she meets him at the funeral. And again, many years later as a college student in England. Their relationship is troubling until the author unravels the plot.

Meanwhile, Sebastian continues his rebellion against their father. He is unwilling to accept a replacement for his mother even though her death occurred fifteen years prior. Fortunately, Sebastian learns to channel his anger into art.

The distancing between the twins as they mature is blamed by both on their mother’s premature death. Yet, they are also accountable.

Alcott Bliss

Husband and father, Al bears the brunt of the blame both before and after Susan’s death. Yet the author does not paint him as a villain. His blunders in handling the twins as they grow stem from his own great loss. However, Fallon takes her time in revealing the depth of his love for Susan. His grief is truly the cause of the later family drama.

Recommendation

I enjoyed this debut novel. Hard to put down from the first, the complexities keep the drama from roaring past reflection. This is a good book to look for at the library. Since Family Drama is a 2026 release, copies should be in all major bookstores.