Loss of Innocence

The Blaine Trilogy #2

by Richard North Patterson

Number one New York Times best-selling author Richard North Patterson, author of more than twenty novels, including Degree of Guilt and Silent Witness, returns with a sweeping family drama of dark secrets and individual awakenings.

Loss of Innocence, the second book in the Blaine trilogy, "in one life of the 1960s, symbolizes a movement that keeps changing all our lives" (Gloria Steinem) in "a richly-layered look at the loss of innocence not only among his characters but that which America lost as a nation." (Martha's Vineyard Times) "An extraordinary novel--profound, emotionally involving and totally addictive," said actor and author Stephen Fry, "this may be Richard North Patterson's best work."

In 1968 America is in turmoil, engulfed in civil unrest and in the midst of an unpopular war. Yet for Whitney Dane--spending the summer of her twenty-first year on Martha's Vineyard, planning a September wedding to her handsome and equally privileged fiance--life could not be safer, nor the future more certain.

Educated at Wheaton, soon to be married, and the youngest daughter of the patrician Dane family, Whitney has everything she has ever wanted, and is everything her doting father, Wall Street titan Charles Dane, wants her to be: smart, sensible, predictable. Nonetheless, Whitney's nascent disquiet about society and her potential role in it is powerfully stimulated by the forces transforming the nation.

The Vineyard's still waters are disturbed by the appearance of Benjamin Blaine, an underprivileged, yet fiercely ambitious and charismatic figure who worked as an aide to the recently slain Bobby Kennedy. Ben's presence accelerates Whitney's growing intellectual independence, inspires her to question long-held truths about her family, and stirs her sexual curiosity. It also brings deep-rooted tensions within the Dane clan to a dangerous head. Soon, Whitney's future seems far less secure, and her ideal family far more human, than she ever could have suspected.

An acknowledged master of the courtroom thriller, Patterson's Blaine trilogy, a bold and surprising departure from his past novels, is a complex family drama pulsing with the tumult of the time and "dripping with summer diversions, youthful passion and ideals, class tensions, and familial disruptions." (Library Journal)

Genres: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Audiobook, Thriller, Romance, Historical, Adult Fiction

368 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Richard North Patterson is the author of fourteen previous bestselling and critically acclaimed novels. Formerly a trial lawyer, Patterson served as the SEC’s liaison to the Watergate special prosecutor and has served on the boards of several Washington advocacy groups dealing with gun violence, political reform, and women’s rights. He lives in San Francisco and on Martha’s Vineyard.
Macmillan.com Author Profile

Awards
Edgar Award, 1980, Best First Novel for The Lasko Tangent

Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, International Award, 1995 for Degree of Guilt

http://us.macmillan.com/author/richar...

Reviews

[Susanna - Censored by GoodReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actually 3.5 stars, I think.

Unlike many of Richard North Patterson's novels, this is not a mystery novel. (He writes good mystery novels, by the way.)

It's a coming of age story, set in 1968 Martha's Vinyard, with the backdrop of America pulling itself apart. (The late Bobby Kennedy is very nearly a character in his own right.)

I learned this was the middle book of a trilogy after I picked it up, but it reads as a whole novel, as a stand-alone.

[Adrienne]

Did not finish

[Matt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Patterson returns with the second Martha's Vineyard trilogy, pushing the reader back to the summer of '68, where Whitney Dane is coming into her own. After her engagement to a social acceptable young man, her summer of revelations begins, which will change life as she knows it. The novel outlines Whitney's struggles with these revelations and the toll it takes on her entire family of rich, New England Republicans. When Whitney encounters a young Ben Blaine, Yale drop-out and aspiring writer, her life takes a major turn, leaving her to ponder the pre-determined path her life should take. While others around her are threatened by the young Blaine, Whitney discovers kindred friendship with him, forcing her to realise that stability is no guarantee, no matter one's class. As the country witnesses a political upheaval, where divisions within the Democrats paves the way for a united GOP to crown Nixon and keep the war in Vietnam going strong, lines are drawn, with Whitney in the middle. Both Whitney and Ben suffer their own loss of innocence as they see life around them metamorphosise, not always for the better. Patterson adds layers to his trilogy and enriches both the story and its characters with this instalment that seeks to offer a complete different spin on Ben Blaine from his depiction in the pages of FALL FROM GRACE.

Patterson again aptly titles the novel, as 1968 was surely a loss of innocence for many. Assassinations of King and Kennedy, riots in Chicago, and the build-up of Vietnam, to name but a few. Patterson tackles these events through the lens of the New England rich and their stuffy-shirt interpretations. While fans of the series will know that Ben Blaine played a pivotal role in FALL FROM GRACE (through flashbacks at his funeral), the Blaine character emerges in this novel, giving more of a first-hand look at the man who was strongly vilified. A powerful story filled with the politics of the time helps Patterson lay the foundation with some of the older generation of characters made popular in the opening book. Fabulous insight into this series, a complete reinvention of Patterson's norm.

Kudos, Mr. Patterson for this intelligent novel, seeking to open the reader's eyes and minds to another means of analysis of this fiery year. I am eager to see how you will tie off the trilogy in short order.

[Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Loss of Innocence, a novel by Richard North Patterson, should have been titled Loss of Interest. Whitney Dane is a young woman of privilege, engaged to be married to a young man named Peter. She and her family spend the summer, as they always do, on Martha's Vineyard, where Whitney is strangely attracted to her neighbor, Ben. Whitney also has a sister, Janine, who is very troubled and her mother's favorite. Whitney's father inherited his father-in-law's business and has built it into a thriving force, and has brought Peter, who, in a way is the son he never had, into the firm. The family faces challenges throughout the story. The setting is the 1960's: Richard Nixon is President; Robert Kennedy is killed on the campaign trail; young men nationwide live in fear of the draft; and the drama of the Chicago Democratic Convention unfolds and ignites the city and then Nation.

I wanted to like this book, as the story had potential, POTENTIAL, being the operative word. This book has received many excellent reviews, but like many other reviewers, I must add my voice to the chorus that sings, "this is not a good book." I think I read about a quarter of it before deciding it was not worth my time, and tried to skim part of the rest of it, but I never finished, because I did not care about these people or their conflicts and concerns. The characters are one-dimensional, uninteresting, dull, one-note ponies, and the way they speak is unlike any human conversation I have ever heard. North has them using words that I, a person with an extraordinary vocabulary, had to look up in a dictionary (thank you, Kindle Fire HDX!) and often he uses words incorrectly, which for an author is, for me, a cardinal sin. I had no desire to ever meet any of them. The language and writing style are stilted, stiff, and the story line is predictable. The story is a very thinly veiled anti-Viet Nam War polemic. Whitney's father is a big fan of Nixon, and he co-opts Peter, who is weak and unwilling to speak his own mind (if he has one) into supporting Nixon to "get along" in the culture of Mr. Dane's firm and that of the Danes' friends. Whitney pouts that she feels uncomfortable, and then turns her attention to a charming young man she meets on the neighbor's dock on the Vineyard. Whitney is supposed to be the model for the burgeoning feminism of the mid-twentieth century, but her words fall flat, do not ring true, and, she pouts that no one listens to her, and a better name for her would have been "Whiney." I certainly didn't want listen to her.


I have not read any of Richard North Patterson's thrillers, but I know they are very highly reviewed, and I thought this novel would be as well-written as his other books. Sadly, this is not the case.

Maybe he should stick to writing thrillers - he seems to have found his niche in that genre.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Marvin · Rating 2 out of 5]

I generally appreciate Patterson's novels, especially those in which he takes some social or political issue and has his characters debate it. This one, an attempt to introduce us to a female character striving to establish her own identity in the summer of 1968 after she graduates from college and as she prepares for her wedding at the end of the summer. (The national events of that summer--Bobby Kennedy's assassination, the 1968 Democratic convention in Chicago, et al.--are integrated into the story.) She gradually comes to the realization that her identity has been shaped by the men in her life and fitfully seeks to redress that. Perhaps this suffered from having been read in the wake of some really fine literary efforts--Jim Crace's Harvest, Ben Fountain's Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, and Mary Doria Russell's Doc--but it felt really amateurish to me, basically a feminist soap opera, if you can imagine such a thing. But Patterson does, as always, create a story that keeps you turning the pages, even if the result is not particularly satisfying.

[Randy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nor familiar with Patterson's work, but really enjoyed this look at a period in U.S. history I was growing up in, a young adult at the time.

It's the story of the dissolution of a family over the summer of 1968, as secrets are revealed, truths uncovered that shock one young woman planning her wedding at the end of that summer.

The title conveys both the break-up of the family and what happened to young Americans during that tumultuous period of our history.

Quite liked this one.

[Skip · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's hard to believe that RNP thinks we needed more about Ben Blaine and the dysfunctionality of rich families on Martha's Vineyard, but apparently he thinks we do. I was quite disappointed to read that there will be a third book in this series. About the only interesting thing in this book was the good job he did portraying the 1960s, and that generations feelings about love, war, politics, and Bobby Kennedy.

[Alwyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

a beautifully written book with alot of emotion. from the first page to the last this book held my full attention so much that I just didn't want to put it down there were even tears along the way. such a great book!

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loss of Innocence by Richard North Patterson is a Quercus publication. This book is slated for an early October,2013 release.

Our story starts out in Martha's Vineyard in 2011. Carla is pregnant with her lover's child. She's an actress, recovering alcoholic, and hiding out from the media. She is staying in the guest house of Whitney Dane, a woman that shared a history with Carla's now deceased lover and father of her unborn child. Whitney is now in her mid sixties, was a WASP, and now a successful novelist.

As she and Carla meet for a get to know you chat, Whitney begins to tell Carla about her past with Ben. This takes us back to Martha's Vineyard in the landmark year of 1968.

Whitney's life was going according to plan. She as engaged to be married. Her father liked her fiancé enough to give him a job and keep him out of the draft. Whitney and her best friend Clarice have the summer to spend together and plan a wedding. The only dark clouds in the sky have to do with Whitney's sister Janine. Whitney was not her mother's favorite daughter. Janine was model material and Whitney's mother lived vicariously through her. If her relationship with her mother was strained, it was made up a little bit by her father. Whitney held her father in the highest regard.
While Whitney harbors the usual doubts about marriage and her fear of becoming like her mother, for the most part she is content. Until she meets Ben.
Ben and his brother Jack are from a violent background. Their father was an abusive man and a heavy drinker. The boys worked for caterers for the wealthy on Martha's Vineyard.
Ben is like no one Whitney has ever met. He was enrolled at Yale, but had dropped out to work for Bobby Kennedy. He was still raw from Bobby's death and now fears that he will be drafted. His politics and resentment toward those of privilege, causes Whitney to take stock of her life. She realizes that her life has been sheltered and isolated. There was more she could do and be besides someone's wife or someone's mother. For the first time Whitney begins to see things from another perfective and this worries her parents a great deal. They do not like her new friendship with Ben.
Ben stirs up things between Whitney and her fiancé, Peter as well. As Whitney grapples with her sudden restlessness regarding her future and feelings for Ben, dark family secrets come to the surface. For Whitney things may never be the same again.

The bulk of the story is set in 1968. This particular year was just mind blowing. Going back and remembering all the events of that year, it was hard to believe so much happened is such a short space of time.
The setting of Martha's Vineyard was perfect. This location was so far removed from the violence and drugs and rock festivals and all the other trappings of that year. It was like being on another planet. The upper classes were still holding on the old value system. The wife lurking in the background, while her husband provides for the family. The prejudices against race and religion, the conservative politics and the power at the finger tips of those with wealth.
Whitney was not unlike a lot of girls in that time, raised in the type of family she was. There was certain amount of innocence that really is naïvete. These girls didn't march in Washington or protest openly, or any of the other things going on in that era. Whitney did defy tradition in some ways, but for the most part she did what was expected of her. It was particularly disturbing to read some to the conversations between Whitney and her mother. The expectations of wives that she felt Whitney should adhere to in her upcoming marriage.
Although Whitney was college educated, she was mostly surrounded by others like herself. Meeting Ben was the best and worst thing that happened to Whitney. He was the first person that shook her out of her own little world. Even Whitney's best friend's only ambition was to achieve status quo.
It was no wonder Ben had such an effect on Whitney.
We watch with interest as Whitney comes out of her shell and then we watch in absolute horror as she discovers horrible truths about her own family. Things don't turn out like you might expect. But for Whitney, a young girl that grows into womanhood in one summer, she takes control of her life in a way she never would have imagined herself doing.
This is a poignant story. Nostalgic , but also melancholy. It was tragic, but ironic, and ultimately Whitney wins my approval and respect. I would like to have been given a little information about Ben and Carla and the circumstances that brought Carla to this point. Maybe someday we will read about that portion of Ben's life.
This was an absorbing story. I have read Richard North Patterson's novels for many years. I always liked his style. This one is a departure from the type of books I've read by him previously. The style I like was still present, and I really enjoyed the novel. Over all a B+

[Valerie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The title of this book, "Loss of Innocence" describes the story very well. It takes place primarily in Martha's Vineyard in 1968-69 when troops were being called up by lottery to go to Vietnam. During this period, also, Robert Kennedy was assassinated, thus clearning the way for Richard Nixon to win the presidential election, after which civil unrest in our own country became insane. The year 2011 was about terrorists from Islamic extremist factions; this prior period was citizens of our own country. I personally knew at least 43 young men who were killed in Vietnam; the ones who came home developed severe cases of PTSD and it was YEARS before our own fighting troops received any V.A. benefits, including medical, for the service they gave to our country. Because of napalm, 7 of my close friends died of cancer-related illnesses but without any help from our government for treatment and benefits for their families. This book tells the story of two families, one whose patriarch is a Nixon supporter, and the young man who saw through all the corruption and lies being told to our own people. Much of this is available through the Freedom of Information Act now, although I suspect the worst atrocities, if documented, never saw the light of day. This was an age when I graduated from high school and women were discouraged from having careers as such; if anything, perhaps they could earn a little extra spending money. I certainly would like to know how this government became corrupt so fast and the worst thing of all was the fact that the dreaded word Communism had absolutely NOTHING to do with these "conflicts." I was NEVER a housewife solely. I had a business (water well drilling), worked for the USPS, the State of California and also for two counties as an eligibility specialist in social services. I can honestly say that unless a female came from a very rich family, the stay-at-home mom was simply a pipe dream for most people, although I believe being an effective and stable parent is just about the most important job one can hold in our society. That goes for both genders. It is time to stop the madness of dividing societal chores up into "men's" work and "women's" work; with the women dominated occupations never paying as well as the men's. For example: and I will use only one at this point: sawmill workers. Young men who received diplomas and literally could not read were hired by high numbers at these mills until the wood supply began to run out. A tree takes longer than four years to grow to maturity after all. As a result of all this, I peronally believe our educational system was inferior to many, many others in the world. Slowly that is being changed, but why did no one have the vision to see what the future would and could bring? This book gave me a lot to think about, and God willing, 'conflicts' and 'wars' will one day be part of ancient history......

[Mark · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whitney Dane tells Carla Pacelli the story of her 1968 summer at Martha's Vineyard. Just graduated from college, Whitney was preparing for her marriage to Peter, an Ivy league lacrosse player who has been taken under the wing of her father, who leads a Wall Street investment firm. Although she is in love with Peter, she has doubts about his being happy as an investment banker. Ben Blaine, a local Vineyard boy who had a scholarship to Yale, dropped out to work in Bobby Kennedy's presidential campaign. Devastated by Kennedy's assassination and worried he will be drafted, Ben is back on the Vineyard for the summer. He meets Whitney on the beach and later saves her from drowning. They strike up a friendship which worries her father and makes Peter jealous. Blaine wants to become a journalist, then write novels. He is very ambitious and is angry at the rich and privileged. He tells Whitney about growing up with his alcoholic, wife abusing father, whom he physically assaulted once he was old enough. Then he left home.

Whitney's father is controlling, used to getting his way. Whitney's mother is committed to being a successful man's wife. (He, born poor, took over her father's investment firm.) She is unhappy and invests her emotions in Whitney's older sister, who is a beautiful NYC model. Neither her mother or father can see that Whitney's sister is troubled.

When Ben makes an advance, Whitney flees to NYC apartment her father gave to her and Peter. There she discovers her father is having an affair with her best friend Clarice. Whitney flees to her sister's apartment, only to find that she has had an abortion and has drunken a large quantity of alcohol and taken a number of Valium pills. She takes her sister to the Vineyard. There she confronts (blackmails) her father and forces him to have her sister hospitalized. She breaks off her engagement to Peter, partly because he knew that her father was using the apartment for an affair.

Whitney goes to Ben. They have sex. The next morning Ben--who is 3 wks from induction into the military because Whitney's father pulled strings with the draft board to move him to the head of the line--asks her to marry him. After thinking it over, she says no but also says that she will wait for him to return from the service. Ben angrily rejects her. She tells her parents that she is going to NYC to work in publishing and that she will not accept their financial support. Going by Ben's residence on the way out of the Vineyard, she sees her best friend Clarice with Ben.

Whitney later becomes a successful author. Ben is a decorated Viet Nahm vet who makes his reputation with a memoir of the war. He marries Clarice, but has many affairs. Whitney marries an artist and has a happy marriage. Ben's life is more fully developed in the earlier Patterson novel, Fall From Grace.

[Nadeen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loss of Innocence is the second book in the Blaine trilogy and I looked forward to seeing the story move forward. However that wasn’t what Patterson had in mind when he wrote this book. Instead this is the story of Benjamin Blaine as he was as a young man in the 60s and Whitney Dane, rich summer denizen of the Vineyard. The backdrop of the turbulent times is pivotal for Whitney, her conservative family, her finance and Benjamin, a foot soldier in Robert Kennedy’s campaign. Complicating the situation were the conflicting expectations facing a woman in the 60s whose family expected her to behave in a way that no longer fit the emerging social fabric of the times. This book was their story and Ben’s story and especially Whitney’s story.

Initially I was unenthused. I knew everything I needed to know about Benjamin Blaine from the first book: he was a misogynistic, womanizing, egotistical man who left everyone in his wake a wreck. His poor suffering wife Clarisse endured his string of affairs in order to keep the sham of her life and her status intact. My reluctance to embrace the book was further tempered by an admitted prejudice against the concept of prequels as introduced by Hollywood. Generally a prequel to a movie seems to signify the writers are at a loss for ideas and a prequel is their desperate attempt to feed the fan frenzy. But I digress.

I hung on and was rewarded since this challenged me to rethink my view of both Benjamin and Clarisse, who is a significant player in the novel though she sits in the shadows most of the time. This a different Benjamin Blaine, already damaged by his family and his ambition and while he wasn’t yet the person he became, all the seeds were planted and explained. It is a feat to change the opinion of a character that was excoriated in one book and then further developed in another. Benjamin is by no means redeemed by the events in this book but in further fleshing him out, he becomes a more realistic character with all the same faults and some redeeming qualities. The artifice of having Whitney relay the story to Carla Pacelli, Ben’s mistress in the first book works since it is barely noticeable. The story occurs in the present only in the very beginning and in the end.

This is a book that made me think about the characters while I was listening to the story and hours after I finished it and for that reason I loved it.

[David Highton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not what I was expecting from Richard North Patterson, a complex family drama principally involving two 21 year olds, who go on to become famous writers, in the politically tumultuous summer of 1968 on Martha’s Vineyard. I was a bit concerned that Goodreads showed it as #2 in a trilogy, but the author explains it is a prequel to #1, so I can happily go and read that.

[Becky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyed mostly because of Julia Whelan narration and review of late 60’s and Vietnam war, political climate with Robert Kennedy’s and Marin Luther king. Extreme entitlement of stereotype upper class Martha’s Vineyard society not so pleasant.

[Sheila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rich folks in the east

[Peter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Setting is summer 1968, when Whitney Dane was 21. About to marry Peter Brooks (who works for her father), but calls off the engagement. Her father Charles Dane having/had an affair with her best friend, Clarice Barkley, so that ends the friendship. At the same time, her sister Janine spirals into rehab, after an abortion, from a relationship with a married fashion photographer. Her mom Anne's a wacko too, but probably caused by family dysfunction, although not visible to the outside. Her relationship with Ben Blaine combines with all this to reach a climax. (He saves her from drowning.) Her father arranges to get Blaine drafted (to Vietnam) as part of an ugly quid pro quo. Blaine asks her to marry him, which may get him out of the draft. She decides to move to New York and attempt to become a writer.
In an epilogue set in the present (2011 for this 2013 novel), there were updates. Blaine went to Vietnam, survived, and was decorated for bravery. He becomes a best-selling author. (So her father had a role in this, because he got Blaine drafted.) Whitney did become an author. She married Aaron Ravinsky, had two kids (David, Rachel). Blaine married Clarice. Peter married another girl, worked at another company. Parents dead 7+ years. Mentioned Adam Blaine, Ben's son, and Teddy, another son. Carla Pacelli, Ben's current partner, helped Ben turn around (drinking, bad behaviour, etc.). Ben is dead now.
Enjoyed it. I do like the author's writing style. Well-written, nice pacing, careful, patient.
Nmkt library.

[Scott Parsons · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have read most of Richard North Patterson's books and enjoyed them, particularly the earlier crime and political thrillers. Loss of Innocence falls into a category that would normally not interest me all that much. But, contrary to my expectations, I could hardly put this book down. Since 1968 was a pivotal year for me (graduated university, married, birth of first child) I could certainly relate to the context of the times: the Robert Kennedy Assassination, the Chicago police thuggery at the DNC, the rise to power of Richard Nixon following Lyndon Johnston's departure as the anti-Vietnam war movement gathered momentum. I found it less easy to relate to the life and story of Whitney Dane, born to wealth and power but struggling to find her way on Martha's Vineyard in summer of 1968 as she transitions between college and her impending marriage in September. But her powerful father Charles and her financee Peter are rather insipid compared with firebrand Benjamin Blaine whom Whitney meets and tries to resist that summer. Her confidante is Clarice whom she has known since childhood.At heart Whitney is an aspiring writer. But her comfortable plans for a life with Peter go up in smoke late in the novel when Whitney stumbles upon a betrayal by two people very close to her. The story is told by a 65-year-old Whitney in the summer of 2011 to a young woman living in Whitney's guesthouse on Martha's Vineyard.

[Catherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't consider "Loss of Innocence" Patterson's best work. Although I enjoyed reading about an era I lived through, I didn't find the characters believable. They seemed to be stereotypes of the 1960's: the clueless wife focused on her children to the detriment of her own self development, the philandering husband, the beautiful daughter lost in a haze of drugs and alcohol, and the "good girl" Whitney trying to find her own voice but overpowered by her conservative, narrow minded father. Whitney's finance Peter doesn't seem to know himself well enough to stand up to his controlling future father-in-law and half-heartedly joins the family business because it seems like the thing to do. He then earns himself a pass on being drafted through his future father-in-law's connections. The "bad boy" is Ben Blaine, a local boy with big dreams, a tough childhood, and a resentment of those who seemingly have it made. Not a bad book, but one that just didn't seem to capture the ambiguity of the times.

[Wendy · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I started this book I didn't realize that it was a sequel and part of a trilogy. Thank goodness I read all of Richard North Patterson's books and I read the first book last year. But usually I will wait to read them all together. I remember the first book so I know I liked it but I think this one was probably better than the first one.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Confused. I could not put it down. That life is so different from mine. The book kept me entranced. Is this good writing? I am not an English major. It held me. I would love to have some of my friends read it and tell me their opinions. This is the first time reading this author.

[Don · Rating 2 out of 5]

Patterson wrote a this novel as a prequel to the excellent "Fall From Grace." "Loss..." however does not stand up to either "Fall From Grace" or any other of his fine books. It is basically a romance that does not have any socially redeeming characters.

[Jerry Drook · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was confused by the prologue, but found better footing as the story was told; finally becoming absorbed. by the great writing. I think RNP is truly talented and enjoyed this work immensely.

[Margaret · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it! I could not put it down!

[Cook Memorial Public Library · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recommended by Jane T. Check our catalog: http://encore.cooklib.org/iii/encore/...

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok. A quick easy read.

[Dennis McClure · Rating 1 out of 5]

I couldn’t get past page 40.

[Margo]

A richly textured romance,deftly set amid the social shifts of 1968.

[Jez · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was looking forward to reading this (I like the location, the era is an interesting time, and the synopsis sounded like a good mix of soap opera and historical fiction), but I gave up after about a fifth of the way in. The problem? The book bored me. The writing style didn’t help either - Somewhat old fashioned, and probably fits for the rich US east coast elite of the era (late 1960’s), but I found it distracting, difficult to follow.
Ok, do what I did get from it? The early book focuses mainly on a few bright young things of Martha’s Vineyard, mainly Whitney (ambitious, clever), Clarice (glamour model airhead), and Whitney’s love interest (can’t remember his name). He gets himself groomed for the future father-in-law’s firm but the threat of the Vietnam draft is looming in the background.
There seems to be work-around for that, but to be honest I was severely losing interest.
And there’s the rub. This should have interested me. The horror of a draft hanging over you should have been enough to keep me hooked… but it was just all so utterly flat. When your mind drifts and you have to re-read a chapter, it’s time to call it a day.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really good book.
First of all, I had no idea this book was part of a trilogy. If you haven't read the first book - don't worry. I didn't feel like I missed anything so it stood alone perfectly. Now I'm interested to see what came before and after.
I was entertained and felt like I knew the characters well. The only thing that kept me from giving this 5 stars was the flowery language the author used. I guess he was trying to display the affluence of the "richer" characters, but it was just really annoying. He used "big" words where they honestly weren't necessary. And he repeated odd phrases. Like saying that someone "turned on their elbow." What does that even mean? And whatever it means, it doesn't need to be used twice on the same page.
Anyway, other than those few oddities, still a great book and I'm glad I read it. I'll probably look into the other two books in the trilogy since I'm so invested in the characters.

[Deane · Rating 5 out of 5]

This second book of the Blaine Trilogy is actually a prequel to the first one "Fall from Grace"...interesting concept to write this book as the second in the series about the early life of Ben Blaine to find out why he was so hated by many in his family especially Adam, his son in the first book. The writing simply flows along making it difficult to put down. The Blaine family. summer people for years on Martha's Vineyard, is such an interesting but very dysfunctional family and an active member of the 'old guard' of rich summer people who owned large, older homes on the island knew how to pull strings to keep sons from serving in Vietnam, to get Adam to the top of the list for the draft, to keep a Jewish family from buying a house on their turf, etc. Now on to the 3rd book in the series.