The Puzzle Bark Tree: A Novel

by Stephanie Gertler

Struggling in an unfulfilling marriage after an unhappy childhood, Grace is shocked by her distant parents' double suicide and her inheritance of a lake cabin, where she meets a local fishing guide whose family history is bound to her own. 22,500 first printing.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery

319 pages, Hardcover

First published June 1, 2002

Reviews

[Leo · Rating 2 out of 5]

This story just flew right over my head. It wasn't that it was hard to understand, it just didn't stay in my memory. The minute I put down the book, I had already forgotten what I had read and it needed to refresh my memory every time. Probably just a me thing

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A generational saga ... inheritance of a family island and home that the children did not know existed. Lives are intertwined in story book fashion with no mystery ending but with such a memorable journey. I loved this book.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written, totally engaging. At first I thought I wasn't going to be able to finish it, it was such a tragic story of a strange and hugely dysfunctional family. Just when I thought I would lay it down, I got sucked in. The author really made the characters come to life and I grew attached to them.

[Rebecca I · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was entertaining all the way through, but east to guess what was coming next and had a fairy tale ending. Not entirely believable.

[Beth · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 March 2017 (while Skip, April & Rebecca here)

Fast, easy read. Liked it, enjoyed reading, but found it somewhat predictable. It was the predictability of that kind of ruined it for me, and there were several parts that just didn't feel real: Grace's husband Adam, while supposedly unemotional, was really quite nasty particularly after Grace woke up frightened after having had a nightmare. His total lack of any empathy following the dual suicide of the mother and father; the letter that had been written by the mother - yet all their lives, the mother had been a total recluse - really did not feel realistic.

This is the story of 2 daughters: Grace and Melanie who have a very dysfunctional relationship with their parents. Melanie gets a call from Jemma the housekeeper who has just found their parents - and who cannot wake them!. Jemma has been with the family and really was the one to have raised the girls as their own parents were basically non existent. Mom had been holed up in her room most of the time and father, a lawyer, had been totally immersed in his work. The girls have their own families now. Grace, married to Adam who is 16 years older than her, and her daughter Kate, soon to be graduating from High School and heading off to Boston College. Melanie, married to an amazing husband Mike with their twin 3 year old sons.

Following the parents death, upon the reading of the wills - the girls learn that Grace has been left a house, this is on a private Island (Canterbury Island - that no one even knew existed). Grace has always had a recurring dream about drowning in the water in a boat that was leaking and getting higher. The water is near freezing. All her life she has been deadly afraid of water. After the reading of the wills, and while her husband and daughter go off skiing in Aspen, she heads out to find the property. She stays at The Alpine Hotel, and at the local diner, she meets many of the the local townspeople including Luke a local fisherman and guide. Luke has a son who is now in College and a wife who had died some 10 years earlier from cancer. He's never had a date since Meg. Luke arranges to take Grace over to the Island.

It is hardly a surprise to learn that Grace had had a brother, Alex who had drowned in an accident at the age of 9. Alex had been Luke's best friend and all the townspeople knew and loved Grace's parents, Janie and Alex Sr. As Grace learns more and more about her parents (completely different from what they had known of them) ... and of course, Luke & Grace fall in love - it was meant to be.

Grace & Adam get an amicable divorce (Adam having fallen for the Grace moves to the Island full time, living at Luke's house during the winter months.

[Arlene Furing · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got this book last year from my great teacher in Creative Writing sub. as a reward for getting 100% in her exam. And I don't know how she knew very well how to choose the right book, the one that was like it's written just for me. I not only liked it, I loved it. A wonderful book with an entrancing story. I often became one with Grace's emotions.. Like grief, feeling isolated or brokenhearted. And I could not agree more with how she implied that a broken heart or damaged soul can not be fixed and mended by merely a medical procedure. I feel pity for her and Melanie over how their parents had treated them. It's very unusual for me. I've never known a family that act quite similar. I think it's too much so I've thought there must be a deep reason and I kind of made predictions as to why things went that way. None went exactly right, though they're relevant anyway. The story speaks a lot about the essence of a family and the relationships built in it. I don't totally like some events, especially when she and Adam divorced. But I think letting go makes sense in the story. It happens when you thought you found true love and happiness in each other's presence but then realized it could fade in time or it wasn't really there in the first place. Good thing Kate was very adaptable to changes and wisely understands and manages every situation. As a whole, I enjoyed the journey and the unraveling of the mysteries.. a great read.

[Mariah Schubert · Rating 4 out of 5]

This wasn’t a book I originally had on my list but my grandma gave it to me and said she loved it, and I ended up loving it too! It was a beautiful story, and it was amazing to see the complexities of the main character’s parents who were first shown in a very negative light but eventually you get to understand why they were the way they were. I loved the love story intertwined too. My favorite part was the setting of the book — I’m a sucker for sleepy small towns that are on a lake or coast! And I love how the tension in the book started relatively near the beginning so that I always had a push to keep reading to find out what would happen! I don’t love books that don’t have any tension/mystery/drama til the middle or end.

One of the only things that struck me as a little off was the dialogue. It seemed too polite/formal in comparison to the real way people talk with each other. Especially the dialogue with Grace’s daughter Kate, who was a teenager. And the only other thing that seemed unrealistic was Grace’s husband’s character. I get that the author was trying to paint him in a pretty awful light. But he didn’t have any moments of normalcy where he was kind/neutral with Grace, which I think even truly narcissistic/distant/verbally abusive have some moments of. But maybe I’ve just never met someone so unkind haha.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked various elements of the book and many of the characters. It was sad and difficult to read about the girls' treatment in childhood and the conversations in her unhappy marriage. Even knowing that, it made me cringe when they cheated on each other.

I loved that she found a place she belonged and got many answers. It was a good story despite the things I didn't want to read about. There were quite a few original ideas and nice descriptions of settings

Not for people who don't want to read about cold relationships, cheating, smoking, drinking, or suicide.

[Katelyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75⭐️

“…the tree had to compensate somehow in order to survive all these years the way it did. It had a rotten environment to grow but it, well, it adapted so that’s why the bark grows crazy like this.” p. 172

“Despite the odds, the dearth of water, the arid soil, the harsh winters, it grew with an irrepressible strength and distinct beauty.” p. 285

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Poignant story about love, loss and new beginnings.

[Barbara Brabank · Rating 5 out of 5]

It had a slow start and I almost stopped reading it, but I'm glad now that I kept reading. The book was very good.

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

Couldn't put it down. I'll be thinking about the characters for days. Loved this story.

[Diane · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didnt finish...boring for me

[Marianne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Swearing.

[Sandee · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story of family secrets, heartache and loss but with an interesting twist. I really enjoyed it and hope to read more from this author.

[Lindsey Bracken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hard to get into. First 2/3 off the book kind of boring but the ending was worth reading once.

[Lynn Foegen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is good book. It was lacking in twists and turns and rather predictable, but a good read.

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dysfunctional family drama. OK read.

[Katina Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't read the summary so at first when I started reading, I thought it was gonna be a murder mystery of the parents. It ended up being a decent book

[Emma Utley · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one is heart-wrenching. But a really good book is definitely worth a read. But I would only read this book once.

[Patience Lyssy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent story. Will definitely be looking for more of her books

[Johanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entirely too much foreshadowing for such an uncomplicated, easily discovered plot. When you finally arrive at the great, teary revelation that unveils the dark secrets (which are repeatedly given away) hidden in the broken memories of the main character's past, you may find yourself troubled and exhausted from all the effort it took to get there . You keep asking yourself how naive the character must be to have failed to figure all this out?? The only surprise? Whether the lost sibling was a brother or a sister. The only thing left to discover? Whether the main character will stay with her workaholic, anal husband, or leave him for her over-emotional lover. The dark setting and tone make for a relaxing, calming escape. Altogether an interesting novel- especially if you desire to be entertained without having to think.

[Gerry Durisin · Rating 4 out of 5]

An elderly couple commits suicide, and in their will leave their older daughter a house on a lake that neither she nor her sister had ever known about. Traveling to the lake to explore her legacy and the puzzle of her parents’ lives, she reconnects with a past she had blocked from memory, and also reassesses her own life.

[Jeanne Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book was really interesting, the relationships were fascinating, there is a mystery that was a little obvious, but in the end it was a page turner. there is adultery in it, I almost felt emabarassed finishing it....but I had to get to the end. definitely PG-13

[Sandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this book at the library somewhat randomly as my kids would say. I really enjoyed it. What were thought to be dreams were really bits of memories of an event in her childhood. Its kind a a haunnting feeling thinking of a house on an island frozen bak in an era of time.

[Mollie · Rating 3 out of 5]

i liked this book. started out slow for me, but picked up towards the middle... i guess once things started unraveling. the book itself was predictable, but i did like how it turned out. i enjoy a happy ending every so often!

[Carol · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good story. A woman finds out about her past & why she's been having the same nightmare for most of her life.

[Casey Nicholson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. Stephanie Gertler truly has a gift. Great from beginning to end!

[Ellie Revert · Rating 2 out of 5]

poignant story about opportunities lost by one generation and found by the next

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book really was a good puzzle, trying to find out the mystery and uncover all the family secrets. The characters are well developed and it conveys the lesson of being true to yourself.