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The Book of Someday
Three women. One stranger in a shimmering silver dress. Whatever binds them together has already destroyed one life. It just might consume them all.
Someday, Livvi Gray will break free from her past. Someday, she will escape her recurring nightmare about that stranger in a shimmering silver dress. Someday, she will have a family of her own. Now she's found Andrew, and someday seems to be right around the corner. But there's so much Livvi doesn't know.
Shortly before her thirtieth birthday, she will come face-to-face with the stranger from her dream-an encounter that will alter Livvi's future and crack open everything she knew about her past. Livvi is swiftly moving toward the ultimate turning point in her life-and she's not the only one. Linked by an unforgettable mystery, photographer Micah and young mother AnnaLee are also being rapidly drawn into a web of devastating secrets about the unexpected ways in which we choose to protect-and betray-the people we love.
Someday, Livvi Gray will break free from her past. Someday, she will escape her recurring nightmare about that stranger in a shimmering silver dress. Someday, she will have a family of her own. Now she's found Andrew, and someday seems to be right around the corner. But there's so much Livvi doesn't know.
Shortly before her thirtieth birthday, she will come face-to-face with the stranger from her dream-an encounter that will alter Livvi's future and crack open everything she knew about her past. Livvi is swiftly moving toward the ultimate turning point in her life-and she's not the only one. Linked by an unforgettable mystery, photographer Micah and young mother AnnaLee are also being rapidly drawn into a web of devastating secrets about the unexpected ways in which we choose to protect-and betray-the people we love.
335 pages, Hardcover
First published September 3, 2013
77 people are currently reading
3280 people want to read
About the author
Dianne Dixon
7 books63 followersDianne Dixon (winner of the Humanitas Prize for Excellence in Screenwriting and double Emmy nominee) regularly received glowing reviews for her work in television: “Her characters dance off the page.” (Jane Hewland/Sky Television, UK) “An enormously gifted writer.” (LaVerne McKinnon/CBS Television) “Her knowledge of storytelling is both clear and articulate.” (Nate Hopper/Sony Pictures).
Now Dianne is receiving equally enthusiastic response to her work as a novelist: “Captivating, fascinating.” (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) “Absorbing and provocative.” (Huffington Post) “Convincing prose, particularly the dialogue.” (Kirkus) “An exciting new writer, capable of creating a well-paced, emotional page-turner of the best kind.” (Katie Crouch, New York Times bestselling author of Girls in Trucks and The Magnolia League).
The Language of Secrets is Dianne’s debut novel. Her second book, The Book of Someday, has a September 2013 publication date. And her third novel is scheduled for in summer/fall of 2014.
Now Dianne is receiving equally enthusiastic response to her work as a novelist: “Captivating, fascinating.” (Seattle Post-Intelligencer) “Absorbing and provocative.” (Huffington Post) “Convincing prose, particularly the dialogue.” (Kirkus) “An exciting new writer, capable of creating a well-paced, emotional page-turner of the best kind.” (Katie Crouch, New York Times bestselling author of Girls in Trucks and The Magnolia League).
The Language of Secrets is Dianne’s debut novel. Her second book, The Book of Someday, has a September 2013 publication date. And her third novel is scheduled for in summer/fall of 2014.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 272 reviews
September 9, 2013
ZERO stars
Livvi refuses to use her given name of Olivia because it brings back memories of a terrible childhood. She is a novelist and living in the guest house of a Pasadena mansion. Micah is a wealthy and famous photographer living in Boston. She’s convinced she must atone for the terrible things she did in her past. AnnaLee is a Long Island housewife and mother, married to a man who is brilliant but lacks the motivation to succeed, and as a result she is slowly selling off her family heirlooms to keep them solvent. The three women are connected by one image – a woman in a silvery gown, her lips bright red, and pearl-buttoned shoes on her feet.
Okay, there’s a nugget of a story here, but the execution is terrible. The writing is amateurish at best. The characters are one-dimensional and do not behave in believable ways. The dialogue is ridiculous. When I wasn’t rolling my eyes I was swearing aloud. The plot is a mess. Livvi’s story is oddly reminiscent of the plot of Jane Eyre … miserable childhood, told she’s unlovable and wicked, gets her education on her own and meets a wealthy if mysterious man with his own secret. I had figured out the “big secret” connecting the three women by page 100, but had over 200 pages to go before the characters caught up. And then the book just ends … no resolution, big decisions yet to be made. I have no problem with ambiguous endings, in fact, I usually like them, but I got the feeling that Dixon just ran out of steam and couldn’t figure out how to get the characters out of this mess, so she just stopped writing.
I finished the book only because I received it from the publisher in exchange for an impartial review. I'm definitely not keeping it, but I hesitate to donate it to the library, it's that bad.
Livvi refuses to use her given name of Olivia because it brings back memories of a terrible childhood. She is a novelist and living in the guest house of a Pasadena mansion. Micah is a wealthy and famous photographer living in Boston. She’s convinced she must atone for the terrible things she did in her past. AnnaLee is a Long Island housewife and mother, married to a man who is brilliant but lacks the motivation to succeed, and as a result she is slowly selling off her family heirlooms to keep them solvent. The three women are connected by one image – a woman in a silvery gown, her lips bright red, and pearl-buttoned shoes on her feet.
Okay, there’s a nugget of a story here, but the execution is terrible. The writing is amateurish at best. The characters are one-dimensional and do not behave in believable ways. The dialogue is ridiculous. When I wasn’t rolling my eyes I was swearing aloud. The plot is a mess. Livvi’s story is oddly reminiscent of the plot of Jane Eyre … miserable childhood, told she’s unlovable and wicked, gets her education on her own and meets a wealthy if mysterious man with his own secret. I had figured out the “big secret” connecting the three women by page 100, but had over 200 pages to go before the characters caught up. And then the book just ends … no resolution, big decisions yet to be made. I have no problem with ambiguous endings, in fact, I usually like them, but I got the feeling that Dixon just ran out of steam and couldn’t figure out how to get the characters out of this mess, so she just stopped writing.
I finished the book only because I received it from the publisher in exchange for an impartial review. I'm definitely not keeping it, but I hesitate to donate it to the library, it's that bad.
August 27, 2013
The Book of Someday is much more than a simple coming-of-age story and it is more than a mystery: it is a story that gives voice to neglected, lonely children who carry the scars of a dismal childhood at the hands of selfish parents or guardians long into adulthood. It is a story of making mistakes and atoning for them, and of seeking forgiveness - or not. It is a sad but ultimately hopeful story about growing up and becoming a better version of your lonely, neglected childhood self.
In 2012, Livvi is finding a measure of happiness and peace with herself after the release of her first novel, at twenty-six, a book more autobiography than fiction - a fact she keeps to herself. It is a story about growing up with a silent, angry father and an abusive, domineering stepmother called Calista. It is an attempt to take charge of her life, several years after she severed all ties with her father, but she's still the product of her isolated upbringing: naïve and innocent, insecure with the certainty that she's unloveable, and inexperienced in the ways of relationships. When she meets Andrew, a successful PR man in his early forties, the heady heights of passion and love fill the void within her. He is her first in so many ways, so that when she discovers parts of his life that had been kept from her, she is torn between her instincts and her understanding that she can never come first for him, and her feelings that she will never find love again, that this is her only chance.
Meanwhile, also in 2012, beautiful, sexy photographer of worldwide renown, Micah Lesser, has just learned that she has advanced breast cancer. In the wake of this news and a hopeful plan for treatment, Micah has a more pressing question weighing on her conscience: given the grave mistakes of her past, does she deserve the right to fight this and live? Or should she pay for her past mistake with her own life? She begins to search out people she hasn't seen in decades, to find some kind of answer, some sign of forgiveness or redemption, or permission to live. Her journey takes her across the United States, into the murky shadows of her adolescence in which hide the monsters of her true self.
And in 1986, young wife and mother AnnaLee is anxious about keeping her family afloat: her husband, Jack, was a skilled surgeon but lacked the stomach for blood; now he's a lawyer but lacks the killer instinct, preferring to leave the office early and come home to read and play with his daughter, Bella. They live in the house AnnaLee's parents built, a beautiful house full of precious artwork and antiques, which she is being forced to slowly sell off in order to pay the bills. The summer is made more fraught by Jack agreeing to take in his teenaged niece for a few months, a rebellious, rude and wild girl whom everyone has washed their hands of. Only AnnaLee takes the time to slowly connect with her niece, to befriend her and show her that she too is worthy of love and affection - and trust.
These three women, and their lives, are bound by one terrible night, and one terrible vision: the woman in the shimmering dress and pearl-button shoes. AnnaLee has a painting of this woman hanging on her living room wall. Micah is haunted by another, similar portrait, and Livvi has had nightmares of this woman for most of her life. What is the connection, and what will they learn about themselves in unravelling the truth?
You can read The Book of Someday as a tightly woven mystery, a coming-of-age story with a delicious gothic atmosphere, or even as a romance of sorts. It is all of these things, and while the plot provides structure and momentum, it is ultimately a story about people and the relationships we form - or the ones thrust upon us, and the consequences of betraying the trust of a child. The thing that really got to me, as it always does (most especially since becoming a mother myself), is the character of the child who wants to be loved, to be hugged and spend time with their parents, to talk to them and be listened to and to learn from them, but who are denied for one reason or another. Both Livvi and Micah had failed childhoods. Livvi grew up believing her mother was a socialite who ran away, and her stepmother embellished this by telling young Olivia that she left because Livvi was such a horrible child. Micah's mother was a world-famous opera singer who travelled the world and had certain expectations of her daughter, none of which young Micah wanted to fulfil, while her father, his wife's manager, figured the best thing to do was to give his daughter space - without realising that what she really needed was parents who were present and there for her. My heart ached for both of them.
Contrasted to this is AnnaLee, a loving, caring, nurturing woman who showers love on her baby daughter and shares all she has with her niece when she comes to stay, riding the waves of the girl's anger and vitriol and being there for her. It makes what happens all the more heartbreaking, and gives a extra layer of sadness to Livvi's broken, loveless childhood and Micah's bitter, resentful, loveless adulthood. The strength of the novel lies in this juxtaposition of characters and emotion, in the contrast of "what is" with "what could have been".
The prose lends itself well to this emotional, atmospheric tale, though it did take me a while to get used to it. Dixon writes in present tense - the liberal use of which, these days, is a bit of a pet peeve of mine - but with her own writerly style. The occasional use of fragmented sentences - "A sound. Very faint. Is coming from outside. The crunch of tires on gravel. As if a car has pulled into the driveway. And stopped." [p.248] - lends itself well to the construction of heightened drama and tension, that feeling of time stopping or things becoming jarring. Dixon also uses more progressive verbs where usually you would expect simple present tense verbs - "Now her knees actually are buckling. One of them is banging against a cabinet door, and the door's wrought-iron handle is opening a gash on her kneecap." [p.73 - my emphasis] - which I did find a bit harder to read, as it doesn't give you a break from the sense of forward momentum. The use of present tense is also unusual in that the story is written completely from the third person. At first, reading it reminded me of when my toddler pushed some buttons on the remote control and the voice-over narration - like "He opens the fridge", "Some people are staring in the background"; that kind of thing - for the visually-impaired got turned on. But after a while you settle into it and it propels you along, guiding you through the twists and turns of the story.
While it begins with the sense of three completely unrelated stories and a great deal of mystery, it gives the reader an active role to play in piecing it all together - and I always much prefer to be an active reader than a passive, or excluded, one. You connect the dots at a slow pace because of how things are revealed, which enables you to focus on the story without being thoroughly distracted by the mystery side of things. The characters are never overshadowed by the plot, but are richly fleshed-out and realistic. I did find myself a little frustrated with Livvi - she has a lot to learn over the course of the novel and while she does find strength in herself, she reminded me a little too much of Christine Feehan's vapid innocent heroines (I would have been more sympathetic toward Livvi if I hadn't read a Feehan romance novel in my life, I'm sure), a contrast all the more acute because she's so drastically different from Micah, who is strong, selfish, successful, confident, arrogant, superior, greedy. I liked Micah more as a character, because she was less obvious, more complex, and the sympathy I felt for her was harder won, gradual and full of shades of grey.
As in Livvi's published novel, the ending of Dixon's The Book of Someday is rather ambiguous. I know which way I want it to end, but I have to give credit to Dixon for presenting Livvi with a legitimate dilemma. I just hate to think of her giving up true happiness only for the sake of giving a neglected child the love and attention she had lacked in her own childhood - I'm not a fan of martyrs, clearly. It's a powerful story that made me fight back tears, a compelling narrative of love, loss and grief as well as the need for redemption.
My thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book.
In 2012, Livvi is finding a measure of happiness and peace with herself after the release of her first novel, at twenty-six, a book more autobiography than fiction - a fact she keeps to herself. It is a story about growing up with a silent, angry father and an abusive, domineering stepmother called Calista. It is an attempt to take charge of her life, several years after she severed all ties with her father, but she's still the product of her isolated upbringing: naïve and innocent, insecure with the certainty that she's unloveable, and inexperienced in the ways of relationships. When she meets Andrew, a successful PR man in his early forties, the heady heights of passion and love fill the void within her. He is her first in so many ways, so that when she discovers parts of his life that had been kept from her, she is torn between her instincts and her understanding that she can never come first for him, and her feelings that she will never find love again, that this is her only chance.
Meanwhile, also in 2012, beautiful, sexy photographer of worldwide renown, Micah Lesser, has just learned that she has advanced breast cancer. In the wake of this news and a hopeful plan for treatment, Micah has a more pressing question weighing on her conscience: given the grave mistakes of her past, does she deserve the right to fight this and live? Or should she pay for her past mistake with her own life? She begins to search out people she hasn't seen in decades, to find some kind of answer, some sign of forgiveness or redemption, or permission to live. Her journey takes her across the United States, into the murky shadows of her adolescence in which hide the monsters of her true self.
And in 1986, young wife and mother AnnaLee is anxious about keeping her family afloat: her husband, Jack, was a skilled surgeon but lacked the stomach for blood; now he's a lawyer but lacks the killer instinct, preferring to leave the office early and come home to read and play with his daughter, Bella. They live in the house AnnaLee's parents built, a beautiful house full of precious artwork and antiques, which she is being forced to slowly sell off in order to pay the bills. The summer is made more fraught by Jack agreeing to take in his teenaged niece for a few months, a rebellious, rude and wild girl whom everyone has washed their hands of. Only AnnaLee takes the time to slowly connect with her niece, to befriend her and show her that she too is worthy of love and affection - and trust.
These three women, and their lives, are bound by one terrible night, and one terrible vision: the woman in the shimmering dress and pearl-button shoes. AnnaLee has a painting of this woman hanging on her living room wall. Micah is haunted by another, similar portrait, and Livvi has had nightmares of this woman for most of her life. What is the connection, and what will they learn about themselves in unravelling the truth?
You can read The Book of Someday as a tightly woven mystery, a coming-of-age story with a delicious gothic atmosphere, or even as a romance of sorts. It is all of these things, and while the plot provides structure and momentum, it is ultimately a story about people and the relationships we form - or the ones thrust upon us, and the consequences of betraying the trust of a child. The thing that really got to me, as it always does (most especially since becoming a mother myself), is the character of the child who wants to be loved, to be hugged and spend time with their parents, to talk to them and be listened to and to learn from them, but who are denied for one reason or another. Both Livvi and Micah had failed childhoods. Livvi grew up believing her mother was a socialite who ran away, and her stepmother embellished this by telling young Olivia that she left because Livvi was such a horrible child. Micah's mother was a world-famous opera singer who travelled the world and had certain expectations of her daughter, none of which young Micah wanted to fulfil, while her father, his wife's manager, figured the best thing to do was to give his daughter space - without realising that what she really needed was parents who were present and there for her. My heart ached for both of them.
Contrasted to this is AnnaLee, a loving, caring, nurturing woman who showers love on her baby daughter and shares all she has with her niece when she comes to stay, riding the waves of the girl's anger and vitriol and being there for her. It makes what happens all the more heartbreaking, and gives a extra layer of sadness to Livvi's broken, loveless childhood and Micah's bitter, resentful, loveless adulthood. The strength of the novel lies in this juxtaposition of characters and emotion, in the contrast of "what is" with "what could have been".
The prose lends itself well to this emotional, atmospheric tale, though it did take me a while to get used to it. Dixon writes in present tense - the liberal use of which, these days, is a bit of a pet peeve of mine - but with her own writerly style. The occasional use of fragmented sentences - "A sound. Very faint. Is coming from outside. The crunch of tires on gravel. As if a car has pulled into the driveway. And stopped." [p.248] - lends itself well to the construction of heightened drama and tension, that feeling of time stopping or things becoming jarring. Dixon also uses more progressive verbs where usually you would expect simple present tense verbs - "Now her knees actually are buckling. One of them is banging against a cabinet door, and the door's wrought-iron handle is opening a gash on her kneecap." [p.73 - my emphasis] - which I did find a bit harder to read, as it doesn't give you a break from the sense of forward momentum. The use of present tense is also unusual in that the story is written completely from the third person. At first, reading it reminded me of when my toddler pushed some buttons on the remote control and the voice-over narration - like "He opens the fridge", "Some people are staring in the background"; that kind of thing - for the visually-impaired got turned on. But after a while you settle into it and it propels you along, guiding you through the twists and turns of the story.
While it begins with the sense of three completely unrelated stories and a great deal of mystery, it gives the reader an active role to play in piecing it all together - and I always much prefer to be an active reader than a passive, or excluded, one. You connect the dots at a slow pace because of how things are revealed, which enables you to focus on the story without being thoroughly distracted by the mystery side of things. The characters are never overshadowed by the plot, but are richly fleshed-out and realistic. I did find myself a little frustrated with Livvi - she has a lot to learn over the course of the novel and while she does find strength in herself, she reminded me a little too much of Christine Feehan's vapid innocent heroines (I would have been more sympathetic toward Livvi if I hadn't read a Feehan romance novel in my life, I'm sure), a contrast all the more acute because she's so drastically different from Micah, who is strong, selfish, successful, confident, arrogant, superior, greedy. I liked Micah more as a character, because she was less obvious, more complex, and the sympathy I felt for her was harder won, gradual and full of shades of grey.
As in Livvi's published novel, the ending of Dixon's The Book of Someday is rather ambiguous. I know which way I want it to end, but I have to give credit to Dixon for presenting Livvi with a legitimate dilemma. I just hate to think of her giving up true happiness only for the sake of giving a neglected child the love and attention she had lacked in her own childhood - I'm not a fan of martyrs, clearly. It's a powerful story that made me fight back tears, a compelling narrative of love, loss and grief as well as the need for redemption.
My thanks to the publisher for a copy of this book.
October 26, 2013
Never judge a book by its cover. We all know the idiom well. However, I am afraid, that on this occasion I did judge the book by its cover. A beautiful and interesting image and a title that really appealed to me: The Book of Someday. How much possibility lay in that title, yet how disappointed I was with just about everything else.
There are three narrators in this story. First there is Livvi; an introverted writer who comes from an abusive background. Next, Micah; a world famous and renowned photographer who finds out she has breast cancer, and finally, AnnaLee, a Long Island housewife who is slowly selling off family heirlooms to help support her family because her husband can’t hold down a job.
I have read reviews describing The Book of Someday as ‘intriguing’ and ‘fascinating’, but I felt it was predictable and rather unoriginal. The mystery of the story is supposed to be that there is a connection between these women. However, I figured it out rather early on in the book. The only reason I kept reading (and the only reason this has an extra star) is not that I wanted to find out WHAT happened, but to find out HOW it happened.
Livvi drove me nuts with her neediness (and I realise she was damaged and abandoned, but so were a lot of great characters in literature.) She also develops an unhealthy obsession with basically the first child she meets.
The saga felt rather overdone and melodramatic. It could fit right in with Days of Our Lives. Dixon’s methods of concealing ‘the truth’ also grew a little tiresome as the story progressed SPOILER! (was nobody known by their birth name in 1986?)
There was nothing particularly clever about the writing either. There was no turn of phrase that took my breath away. Nothing I wanted to add as a quote. When I read a novel I want the author to wow me; to make me see and experience the world they created, to love or loathe the characters, but Dixon left me feeling indifferent.
I am sure some people will really like this book. Just like some people (a lot in fact) like Danielle Steel. And there is nothing wrong with that. It just wasn’t for me.
There are three narrators in this story. First there is Livvi; an introverted writer who comes from an abusive background. Next, Micah; a world famous and renowned photographer who finds out she has breast cancer, and finally, AnnaLee, a Long Island housewife who is slowly selling off family heirlooms to help support her family because her husband can’t hold down a job.
I have read reviews describing The Book of Someday as ‘intriguing’ and ‘fascinating’, but I felt it was predictable and rather unoriginal. The mystery of the story is supposed to be that there is a connection between these women. However, I figured it out rather early on in the book. The only reason I kept reading (and the only reason this has an extra star) is not that I wanted to find out WHAT happened, but to find out HOW it happened.
Livvi drove me nuts with her neediness (and I realise she was damaged and abandoned, but so were a lot of great characters in literature.) She also develops an unhealthy obsession with basically the first child she meets.
The saga felt rather overdone and melodramatic. It could fit right in with Days of Our Lives. Dixon’s methods of concealing ‘the truth’ also grew a little tiresome as the story progressed SPOILER! (was nobody known by their birth name in 1986?)
There was nothing particularly clever about the writing either. There was no turn of phrase that took my breath away. Nothing I wanted to add as a quote. When I read a novel I want the author to wow me; to make me see and experience the world they created, to love or loathe the characters, but Dixon left me feeling indifferent.
I am sure some people will really like this book. Just like some people (a lot in fact) like Danielle Steel. And there is nothing wrong with that. It just wasn’t for me.
May 13, 2013
I put this book down after about a hundred pages because it began to seem Harlequinesque. I got some positive feedback from others,so
- I went back and read the rest of the book. After the part where Livvi and Andrew have a few Harlequin moments, it was interesting in parts, but a lot of it didn't make sense. I did not guess that Micah was Bella and "the lady in the pearl button shoes" was Anna Lee, and I like the way all the relationships and identifies were revealed. (It reminded me of "The Hours", but only in that sense. "The Hours" is one of my favorite books, and this surely isn't.) i agree that Livvi was too obsessed with Grace. I also found Jack's behavior implausible. Someone who goes through all the trouble of finishing medical school and law school wouldn't be that passive. I also found Livvi's father not believable. I don't buy his excuses for being a bad parent. In the beginning, I liked Andrew, but as his secrets were revealed and his stubborn inability to leave his wife persisted, I found myself thinking that Livvi was really being sucked in to something really bad. Another thing I couldn't buy was "the new David." There were no hints that he was interested in Livvi, so it was a shock in the fairy tale sense. Yes, this book is better left to the beach.
- I went back and read the rest of the book. After the part where Livvi and Andrew have a few Harlequin moments, it was interesting in parts, but a lot of it didn't make sense. I did not guess that Micah was Bella and "the lady in the pearl button shoes" was Anna Lee, and I like the way all the relationships and identifies were revealed. (It reminded me of "The Hours", but only in that sense. "The Hours" is one of my favorite books, and this surely isn't.) i agree that Livvi was too obsessed with Grace. I also found Jack's behavior implausible. Someone who goes through all the trouble of finishing medical school and law school wouldn't be that passive. I also found Livvi's father not believable. I don't buy his excuses for being a bad parent. In the beginning, I liked Andrew, but as his secrets were revealed and his stubborn inability to leave his wife persisted, I found myself thinking that Livvi was really being sucked in to something really bad. Another thing I couldn't buy was "the new David." There were no hints that he was interested in Livvi, so it was a shock in the fairy tale sense. Yes, this book is better left to the beach.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 26, 2013
The prologue is somewhat mesmerizing, with a young girl named Olivia hiding from her father and stepmother, shivering in the cold while she waits to see if they will look for her. Then suffering when they find her.
Then Chapter 1 starts, with that little girl grown up, going by the name Livvi. And it's not as mesmerizing anymore. The book alternates chapters between Livvi, Micah and AnnaLee. Three separate stories that you know will eventually run together or interconnect in some way, though the connections didn't become apparent to me until about the last fourth of the book. Livvi has nightmares about a woman in pearl-button shoes. She's written a book, and has fallen in love with Andrew. She receives late night phone calls from someone who whispers to her and she quickly hangs up. She has secrets she keeps from Andrew, who turns out to have some secrets of his own.
Micah is a successful photographer who seems to have no friends and no family. She does nothing but work, and isn't even on a first name basis with her long time assistant. When she learns she has cancer, she sets out on some strange odyssey, unsure if she deserves to undergo treatment and live, or if she deserves to die. She has secrets.
AnnaLee's story is set in the past. She loves her husband and their precious little girl, Bella, but he's a dreamer who can't make a living, and she's slowly selling off family heirlooms to keep them afloat.
I struggled to finish this book. I never really connected with any of the characters or came to care about them for the most part. The writing didn't set well with me, it was at times choppy and disjointed. For example, this is a paragraph from page 65: "After a while. After AnnaLee has let Jack lead her into the house. After Bella is tucked into bed. And President Reagan has begun a speech on television and twilight has come. The single, long-stemmed white rose remains forgotten on the terrace. Being buffeted by a cold wind that will soon strip it bare."
And this paragraph from page 79: "Several of the Laundromat's patrons look in Micah's direction. She stares them down until they turn away. Then. To calm herself. She runs her hands along the sides of her silk skirt, smoothing at nonexistent wrinkles."
I was considering putting the book down and giving up on it, when suddenly Andrew's big secret was revealed and Livvi's world was turned sideways, and I finally began to actually feel a little sympathy for her. And shortly after that, AnnaLee has her husband's angry teenage niece thrust upon her for the summer, and I began to admire and respect her a little. So those two story lines kept my attention enough that I finished the book, and for the last quarter I even got caught up in the overall interconnecting story and began turning pages quicker. But I still breathed a little sigh of relief when it was over and I could move on to something else.
Then Chapter 1 starts, with that little girl grown up, going by the name Livvi. And it's not as mesmerizing anymore. The book alternates chapters between Livvi, Micah and AnnaLee. Three separate stories that you know will eventually run together or interconnect in some way, though the connections didn't become apparent to me until about the last fourth of the book. Livvi has nightmares about a woman in pearl-button shoes. She's written a book, and has fallen in love with Andrew. She receives late night phone calls from someone who whispers to her and she quickly hangs up. She has secrets she keeps from Andrew, who turns out to have some secrets of his own.
Micah is a successful photographer who seems to have no friends and no family. She does nothing but work, and isn't even on a first name basis with her long time assistant. When she learns she has cancer, she sets out on some strange odyssey, unsure if she deserves to undergo treatment and live, or if she deserves to die. She has secrets.
AnnaLee's story is set in the past. She loves her husband and their precious little girl, Bella, but he's a dreamer who can't make a living, and she's slowly selling off family heirlooms to keep them afloat.
I struggled to finish this book. I never really connected with any of the characters or came to care about them for the most part. The writing didn't set well with me, it was at times choppy and disjointed. For example, this is a paragraph from page 65: "After a while. After AnnaLee has let Jack lead her into the house. After Bella is tucked into bed. And President Reagan has begun a speech on television and twilight has come. The single, long-stemmed white rose remains forgotten on the terrace. Being buffeted by a cold wind that will soon strip it bare."
And this paragraph from page 79: "Several of the Laundromat's patrons look in Micah's direction. She stares them down until they turn away. Then. To calm herself. She runs her hands along the sides of her silk skirt, smoothing at nonexistent wrinkles."
I was considering putting the book down and giving up on it, when suddenly Andrew's big secret was revealed and Livvi's world was turned sideways, and I finally began to actually feel a little sympathy for her. And shortly after that, AnnaLee has her husband's angry teenage niece thrust upon her for the summer, and I began to admire and respect her a little. So those two story lines kept my attention enough that I finished the book, and for the last quarter I even got caught up in the overall interconnecting story and began turning pages quicker. But I still breathed a little sigh of relief when it was over and I could move on to something else.
August 31, 2013
Can your childhood affect your entire life?
THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY connects the lives of three unrelated women. Three women with different backgrounds and different lives. Three women with pasts, secrets, and regrets. Three women wanting and needing something that they never had before and are desperately trying to find. Three women looking for answers and an answer to why and to what happened.
Micah, AnnaLee, and Livvie were somehow connected, but what was that connection? Had they met at one point in their lives and were not aware of their meeting?
Who is this woman in a silver dress and pearl-button shoes? Could she be the connection between the three women? The three women who all need basically the same things out of life. Three women who question their relationships and the relationships they really didn’t have with family and others they cared about.
The chapters detail the lives of each character with no lull in the story. Libby's story definitely is a mystery with the other women woven in. Micah's story has a health issue. AnnaLee's story has social issues.
You will love Livvie and Grace. Andrew won’t be your favorite. You won’t like Micah. AnnaLee will pull at your heartstrings because of her unhappiness. Micah was quite cruel, AnnaLee was not happy, and Livvie was always feeling guilty and afraid but was the sweetest character who grew from her hurt.
Each story is skillfully wrapped into one well-executed story that definitely is unique and will keep you turning the pages. The author is amazing in the way she smoothly takes you from one life to the other leaving a tidbit of information at the end of each chapter that kept you hanging until that character appeared again with the continuation of her story.
THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY is ingenious. The writing is flawless, descriptive, and will pull you right in. The ending will blow you away. If I can use one word to describe the book it would be: WOW!!
I hope you get to read THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY and share the love and the lessons found in each chapter. I absolutely loved the book. 5/5
This book was given to me at the BEA free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.
THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY connects the lives of three unrelated women. Three women with different backgrounds and different lives. Three women with pasts, secrets, and regrets. Three women wanting and needing something that they never had before and are desperately trying to find. Three women looking for answers and an answer to why and to what happened.
Micah, AnnaLee, and Livvie were somehow connected, but what was that connection? Had they met at one point in their lives and were not aware of their meeting?
Who is this woman in a silver dress and pearl-button shoes? Could she be the connection between the three women? The three women who all need basically the same things out of life. Three women who question their relationships and the relationships they really didn’t have with family and others they cared about.
The chapters detail the lives of each character with no lull in the story. Libby's story definitely is a mystery with the other women woven in. Micah's story has a health issue. AnnaLee's story has social issues.
You will love Livvie and Grace. Andrew won’t be your favorite. You won’t like Micah. AnnaLee will pull at your heartstrings because of her unhappiness. Micah was quite cruel, AnnaLee was not happy, and Livvie was always feeling guilty and afraid but was the sweetest character who grew from her hurt.
Each story is skillfully wrapped into one well-executed story that definitely is unique and will keep you turning the pages. The author is amazing in the way she smoothly takes you from one life to the other leaving a tidbit of information at the end of each chapter that kept you hanging until that character appeared again with the continuation of her story.
THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY is ingenious. The writing is flawless, descriptive, and will pull you right in. The ending will blow you away. If I can use one word to describe the book it would be: WOW!!
I hope you get to read THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY and share the love and the lessons found in each chapter. I absolutely loved the book. 5/5
This book was given to me at the BEA free of charge and without compensation by the publisher in return for an honest review.
September 11, 2013
Absolutely riveting. I got this book in the mail, and it was like the cover was calling my name. I had attempted to start reading another book, but just couldn't get into it, and grabbed this book. I didn't want to put it down at midnight when my husband made me so we could sleep. I picked it up first thing the next morning, and I laid it down when I was done.
It's mesmerizing because the book is about three different women, in totally different circles in life. The chapters bounce between one woman to the next telling each one's unique story. The book drew me in in, and held me captivated, but I wondered the entire book why the characters were never connected in any way. It is not until the very end of the story that you realize that not only are the woman from different areas in life, they are from different eras in time.
At the very end of the book I found out how the women are intertwined, and it's an "aha" moment where I thought, "why didn't I put that together earlier?" It isn't my lack of intelligence, but the true talent of Dianne Dixon's writing and how she keeps you hanging on waiting to find out! I love the ending of the book, because again, you are hanging on waiting for an answer. Basically, the character Olivia, "Livvie" is at a fork in the road having to decide which path she will take, and the book doesn't say which path she took. The character merely started writing her second book. So, is a sequel in order? I don't know, but I sure hope so!
It's mesmerizing because the book is about three different women, in totally different circles in life. The chapters bounce between one woman to the next telling each one's unique story. The book drew me in in, and held me captivated, but I wondered the entire book why the characters were never connected in any way. It is not until the very end of the story that you realize that not only are the woman from different areas in life, they are from different eras in time.
At the very end of the book I found out how the women are intertwined, and it's an "aha" moment where I thought, "why didn't I put that together earlier?" It isn't my lack of intelligence, but the true talent of Dianne Dixon's writing and how she keeps you hanging on waiting to find out! I love the ending of the book, because again, you are hanging on waiting for an answer. Basically, the character Olivia, "Livvie" is at a fork in the road having to decide which path she will take, and the book doesn't say which path she took. The character merely started writing her second book. So, is a sequel in order? I don't know, but I sure hope so!
February 13, 2016
- My Description -
Three women, all different but very connected.
Their stories are told from different years and different times in their lives.
You're introduced to Livvi, AnnaLee and Micah.
As a child, Livvi did not have the perfect life.
She's older now, and has moved on to better things.
She meets a love interest.
Her darling love interest has secrets which she soon finds out.
AnnaLee has a good life with hubby and baby daughter.
Well, except for one thing, her husband doesn't like to work.
She has to sell their things to make ends meet.
Her husband's niece moves in with them for the summer.
At first, she's rebellious and hates everyone.
Through AnnaLee, she learns to love and be loved.
Micah has a no-nonsense-don't-mess-with-me-buddy attitude.
She's very successful in her career.
Then she finds out she has cancer.
Three women with very different lives but one very important connection.
Who is the lady in the pearl button shoes?
What connection does she have to the three women?
- My Review -
When I first started reading this book, it confused me a bit.
Only because I wasn't really sure where the story was going.
Kinda like jumping into a serene pool, not knowing where you're going to hit.
This book unfolded like a blooming flower.
I loved the mysterious mystery surrounding the words.
I loved the experience.
Everything came together in the end, and I LOVE when books do that.
April 10, 2013
I really enjoyed this book. You get the stories of 3 different women and wonder how they will all tie in together- and what a great journey it is getting to that. The story stays with you after you turn the final page – having dealt with love, loss, regret and that whole great mystery of life. The characters – sheltered Livvy, famous photographer Micah and housewife and mom AnnaLee don’t seem to be connected at all but they are – by a shattering event that changes everything.
September 5, 2013
Dianne Dixon's second novel, The Book of Someday, is an intriguing story of three women bound by secrets and lies, forgiveness and redemption.
At nearly thirty, Livvi Gray still bears the emotional scars inflicted by her abusive stepmother and disinterested father. Then one evening she is swept off her feet by Andrew, a charismatic and wealthy man. Livvi blossoms under his attention, convinced she has finally found someone to love, who loves her back. Livvi is naive and vulnerable, invoking immediate sympathy for the pain of her childhood. That she finds happiness with Andrew is at first something to celebrate but Andrew is not exactly what he seems, and his love may be what breaks her.
Micah is proud of all she has - stunning looks, wealth and international recognition as a photographer but when she is diagnosed with aggressive breast cancer, and finds she has no-one to turn to, she is forced to confront the mistakes of her past. Micah is not a particularly likeable character, portrayed largely as a cold, arrogant and selfish woman but we learn she was once a desperately unhappy girl at the mercy of a narcissistic mother which tempers the initial harsh judgement somewhat.
Though AnnaLee loves her husband, Jack, she is frustrated by the financial strain his career failures place on their family. With her adored baby daughter's security her priority, AnnaLee does her best to hold her family together, even finding room for Jack's rebellious niece, but her husband will betray her in the very moment she needs him most.
While Livvi and Micah's stories unfold in the present, AnnaLee's takes place almost a quarter of a century earlier. Slowly Dixon teases out the connection between these three women which makes perfect sense the moment Dixon reveals the identity of the woman in the silver dress and pearl-button shoes who has haunted them all. It comes, if not as a surprise, then as a very satisfying moment of affirmation.
The Book of Someday is a well written, absorbing tale of loss, love and the decisions that shape our lives.
"No matter how painful your life has been, you have the choice to learn from your past and then leave it. You have the choice. Every day. To love and be loved. To find your purpose. To work and to give. And to shape your world into something that's quite remarkable."
October 6, 2015
'The Book of Someday,' by Dianne Dixon intersects the lives of three women and takes place in 1986 and 2012. Olivia, in the beginning of the novel, has hidden from her father and step-mother in an attempt to elicit their proclamations of love. Dixon begins the novel with this sequence, and the reader senses the intense alienation the love starved child, Olivia, faces in a home that is not only bereft of love, but is at times intensely cruel. Olivia views the neighbors, the Grangers, as idealistically perfect and longs for sweet kisses from a loving mother. As a child, Olivia writes about all the lovely things that will happen to her in 'The Book of Someday.' We all have that book and we all keep writing in it, no matter what age we are. Flash forward to 2012 and Olivia has written her first novel,...'The Book of Someday,' but she is not the confident, accomplished woman one would think. She meets a jet setting boyfriend, Andrew. And her life becomes even more complicated. In flashbacks to 1986, we meet AnnaLee, a beautiful woman, who is enthralled with her baby daughter by the name of Bella. AnnaLee's husband, Jack, was going to be a doctor, then decided to be a lawyer, but he's most happy with a book in his hands. When Jack's niece, who wants to be called Persephone, comes to stay for the summer, life becomes a 'tempest in a teapot.' Talk about a rebellious teenager! Flash forward to 2012, and we meet Micah, an accomplished and famous photographer, who receives a diagnosis of breast cancer. Micah is a worldly career woman who hasn't built up a network of solid friends and steady loves, so there's not a wellspring of support. The story is at times propelled forward by Micah's quest to discover if she has the right to live. Micah lives with a horrible secret and thinks that maybe she deserves to die.
Sometimes alternating character viewpoints are irritating, but in this novel, Dixon creates interest and drama, as the reader searches for the connection between the characters. When I understood the connection, I was even more invested in the story, as I waited for the characters to also make the connection. There's a rich search for meaning in Dixon's story. The plot is intricate and richly layered, but Dixon makes it work like an old fashioned time piece, with elegance and simplicity.
Sometimes alternating character viewpoints are irritating, but in this novel, Dixon creates interest and drama, as the reader searches for the connection between the characters. When I understood the connection, I was even more invested in the story, as I waited for the characters to also make the connection. There's a rich search for meaning in Dixon's story. The plot is intricate and richly layered, but Dixon makes it work like an old fashioned time piece, with elegance and simplicity.
August 25, 2013
I received an ARC of The Book of Someday from the publisher and put it off for a while because of the multiple viewpoints (which have become so common that I'm just a bit weary of them). As it turned out, the jumps back and forth didn't bother me all that much, possibly because it's just a bit different from the more common version with one historical character and one contemporary.
The Book of Someday is the story of three women with interconnecting lives. The key to their interconnection is a painting/photograph/nightmare of the same thing - a woman in a silver dress and pearl-button shoes. One of the stories is told from the 1980s, the other two in 2012.
It takes a very long time to get to the connection and I figured it out before the author got to the point of the big reveal, even as she was still hiding little bits of the tragedy that connected their lives. I didn't mind that I figured out the mystery portion. I loved the fact that I found the book so gripping I actually fell asleep reading (the book falling, fwop, onto my chest woke me up) and turned the light out with deep regret then awoke at 5AM dying to keep reading. I love that kind of read.
There were only 2 things that kept this book from being a 5-star read. One was the constant use of sentence fragments. I understand using them for impact but they were used All. The. Time. For no good reason. Sometimes I had to visualize lower-case and correct punctuation to figure out a paragraph that genuinely should have been written as a single sentence.
The other problem was the ambiguous ending. I couldn't discern whether the author was telling me Livvi was planning to end up with one guy or the other and I wanted that clearly spelled out. I don't mind an open ending but this one was just confusing to me. I reread it several times and then went off to read other reviews and found that it didn't bother most readers. I just found it perplexing. Still, very solid storytelling with just enough held back to keep the suspense going. It might really deserve a 4.5/5 for the fact that I couldn't put it down till it fell out of my hands.
The Book of Someday is the story of three women with interconnecting lives. The key to their interconnection is a painting/photograph/nightmare of the same thing - a woman in a silver dress and pearl-button shoes. One of the stories is told from the 1980s, the other two in 2012.
It takes a very long time to get to the connection and I figured it out before the author got to the point of the big reveal, even as she was still hiding little bits of the tragedy that connected their lives. I didn't mind that I figured out the mystery portion. I loved the fact that I found the book so gripping I actually fell asleep reading (the book falling, fwop, onto my chest woke me up) and turned the light out with deep regret then awoke at 5AM dying to keep reading. I love that kind of read.
There were only 2 things that kept this book from being a 5-star read. One was the constant use of sentence fragments. I understand using them for impact but they were used All. The. Time. For no good reason. Sometimes I had to visualize lower-case and correct punctuation to figure out a paragraph that genuinely should have been written as a single sentence.
The other problem was the ambiguous ending. I couldn't discern whether the author was telling me Livvi was planning to end up with one guy or the other and I wanted that clearly spelled out. I don't mind an open ending but this one was just confusing to me. I reread it several times and then went off to read other reviews and found that it didn't bother most readers. I just found it perplexing. Still, very solid storytelling with just enough held back to keep the suspense going. It might really deserve a 4.5/5 for the fact that I couldn't put it down till it fell out of my hands.
October 9, 2013
This book would've been a lot better if it was written in a different way. The writing was so fragmented. It seemed like every other sentence. Was written. Like this. It was so choppy! There were way too many sentences that began with the word "and." Not to mention all of of the sentence fragments. The tense was also grating...a weird combination of past tense and present tense that led to more telling than showing.
As for the actual plot...
SPOILERS
I did not understand Livvi's relationship with Andrew and why it continued for so long. Her connection with Grace didn't make much sense to me at all. Right off the bat, Livvi felt like she had to be with her, even after they had just met? I have no clue why Grace's parents wouldn't have freaked out when the nanny brought Grace to New York on CHRISTMAS EVE without either of her parents knowing about it. Jack's motivations made no sense to me. He seemed to come across as caring and kind to his daughter. Why would AnnaLee dying change that so dramatically? The brief chapters in the end did not explain that to me. I figured early on that Micah was Persephone and Bella was Livvi. Not sure why the author felt the need to change their names?
A bit frustrating of a read overall, but I felt compelled to finish the novel to see how everything connected.
As for the actual plot...
SPOILERS
I did not understand Livvi's relationship with Andrew and why it continued for so long. Her connection with Grace didn't make much sense to me at all. Right off the bat, Livvi felt like she had to be with her, even after they had just met? I have no clue why Grace's parents wouldn't have freaked out when the nanny brought Grace to New York on CHRISTMAS EVE without either of her parents knowing about it. Jack's motivations made no sense to me. He seemed to come across as caring and kind to his daughter. Why would AnnaLee dying change that so dramatically? The brief chapters in the end did not explain that to me. I figured early on that Micah was Persephone and Bella was Livvi. Not sure why the author felt the need to change their names?
A bit frustrating of a read overall, but I felt compelled to finish the novel to see how everything connected.
September 9, 2013
3.5 stars
This is the story of three different women, none of them very happy. Two of them had painful childhoods and one a hurtful marriage. As each separate story unwinds, you are drawn into their stories that keep you turning pages to discover what will happen next. I found I put everything aside for two days as I simply couldn't put it down.
Livvi, the central character, has a horrible childhood. It has left her defenseless to face the world. She has no real experience in relationships of any kind and stumbles into one with a man who is extremely fun but emotionally unavailable. As she tries to make things work between them, she uncovers secrets about herself that make her reexamine everything she knows.
It is a remarkably readable book that keeps your attention. I think a little more careful editing would have been beneficial. The characters are a little too black and white. Some shades of gray would have added more dimension to the people. John was such a despicable person that something good about him would have made him more human.
I recommend this book though for an interesting read that will captivate you. This book was provided by the publisher through Book Reporter in return for an honest review.
This is the story of three different women, none of them very happy. Two of them had painful childhoods and one a hurtful marriage. As each separate story unwinds, you are drawn into their stories that keep you turning pages to discover what will happen next. I found I put everything aside for two days as I simply couldn't put it down.
Livvi, the central character, has a horrible childhood. It has left her defenseless to face the world. She has no real experience in relationships of any kind and stumbles into one with a man who is extremely fun but emotionally unavailable. As she tries to make things work between them, she uncovers secrets about herself that make her reexamine everything she knows.
It is a remarkably readable book that keeps your attention. I think a little more careful editing would have been beneficial. The characters are a little too black and white. Some shades of gray would have added more dimension to the people. John was such a despicable person that something good about him would have made him more human.
I recommend this book though for an interesting read that will captivate you. This book was provided by the publisher through Book Reporter in return for an honest review.
April 23, 2017
4.5 stars.
"Some people are defined by what they're looking for. Others by what they're hiding."
I am a reader that loves when a writer can strike at my emotional core and Dianne Dixon does just that. It is very rare that I say this but this is one of those books where I wish I had the author's personal phone number. Only because I want to tell her how much I was affected by this book.
I was immediately hooked to this story as the narratives of these three women- AnnaLee, Livi, and Micah played out within the pages. As the story unfolds, these three women find themselves faced with incredibly difficult decisions. At the heart of the novel is a mystery, a web of secrets. Secrets that ultimately cause the people keeping them to make incredible mistakes as they try to protect, and unwittingly betray, themselves and the people they love.
"Evelyn, how does God decide? How does he choose who to bless and who to punish? Why did he say to your children, "I want you to be born into light and love,' and say to me, "For you, I want darkness. I want your mother to run away and never look back. For you, I want pain you'll never forget."
"Some people are defined by what they're looking for. Others by what they're hiding."
I am a reader that loves when a writer can strike at my emotional core and Dianne Dixon does just that. It is very rare that I say this but this is one of those books where I wish I had the author's personal phone number. Only because I want to tell her how much I was affected by this book.
I was immediately hooked to this story as the narratives of these three women- AnnaLee, Livi, and Micah played out within the pages. As the story unfolds, these three women find themselves faced with incredibly difficult decisions. At the heart of the novel is a mystery, a web of secrets. Secrets that ultimately cause the people keeping them to make incredible mistakes as they try to protect, and unwittingly betray, themselves and the people they love.
"Evelyn, how does God decide? How does he choose who to bless and who to punish? Why did he say to your children, "I want you to be born into light and love,' and say to me, "For you, I want darkness. I want your mother to run away and never look back. For you, I want pain you'll never forget."
November 1, 2016
Dianne Dixon's THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY is a well-written complex, and in-depth story of love, forgiveness, love, deception, suspense, mystery, and abuse.
The story of three women Micah, Anna Lee, and Olivia (Livvi) –all with a past. During the reading, readers are unsure how these three are connected.
It is only at the end, the unveiling. Vivid and compelling story of three women whose lives are mysteriously connected.
Dixon does an outstanding job of suspending you in time and building for the finale which is bittersweet. The author has a rare gift of storytelling and keeping you glued to the pages.
I purchased the audio version and the narrator, Kate Rudd delivers an engaging performance.
The book is mesmerizing and captivating –centered around Micah’s secrets. Thought-provoking; as usual, Dianne Dixon does not disappoint.
Be sure and read, THE OTHER SISTER, coming Nov 1, 2016. WOW! Top Books of 2016.
The story of three women Micah, Anna Lee, and Olivia (Livvi) –all with a past. During the reading, readers are unsure how these three are connected.
It is only at the end, the unveiling. Vivid and compelling story of three women whose lives are mysteriously connected.
Dixon does an outstanding job of suspending you in time and building for the finale which is bittersweet. The author has a rare gift of storytelling and keeping you glued to the pages.
I purchased the audio version and the narrator, Kate Rudd delivers an engaging performance.
The book is mesmerizing and captivating –centered around Micah’s secrets. Thought-provoking; as usual, Dianne Dixon does not disappoint.
Be sure and read, THE OTHER SISTER, coming Nov 1, 2016. WOW! Top Books of 2016.
April 17, 2013
I really wish GR's had a half rating because I was really torn between a 3 & 4 stars!!! This tells the story of three woman with seemingly separate lives who end up being connected by one tragic event!!! Definitely made me want to keep reading... few parts just felt a lil too contrived for me!!! Still a good story!!!
July 19, 2013
I read the first chapter and thought "Oh, it's one of THOSE books". Then I read the next chapter and I thought "Wrong, it's one of THOSE books". And I kept reading, and I was wrong yet again! This was not a book to be pigeonholed, unless the pigeon hole is "don't want to put it down good book". I can't wait to share it so I can talk about it with friends.
September 9, 2017
I thoroughly enjoyed this book. So much so that I read it slowly in order to truly savor it. I went into it thinking it was going to have a magical supernatural basis (which at times it almost seemed to) and I sat back and let the story unfold. I didn't try to guess the twists or figure anything out and I was truly delighted and surprised. The author seamlessly wove the characters and events together and if it was a movie it would be one of those movies that when it ends you say "I need to watch that again!" Loved it!!
Read
September 5, 2013The Book of Someday opens up with a chilling glimpse into a lonely little girl’s nightmarish existence. From there, the reader moves to strong-willed, no-nonsense Micah and a crushing diagnosis that changes everything. Lastly, AnnaLee enters the picture as a loving wife and doting mother struggling to stay upbeat about the disappointing provider her husband is turning out to be. These three very different women lead distinctly different lives but their stories twist and converge in a poignant conclusion.
Of the three women, AnnaLee is by far the most sympathetic and enjoyable. Her love of her husband and conflicts between that love and her frustrations about his lack of ambition create a lovely little struggle within her and force her to show her determination. Compared to her, Micah is a cold-hearted bitch without a genuine bone in her body other than the one that guides her self-interest. Even though the two women are distinctly different, their contrasts play off of each other perfectly, creating a vibrant dynamic within the book.
In comparison, one finds it difficult to enjoy Livvi’s story as much as either of the other two ladies’ narratives. On the one hand, Livvi’s difficult childhood – the psychological abuse at the hands of her stepmother, her isolation, her lack of affection and love – create a character with whom it is easy to sympathize. On the other hand, any sympathy one feels for her dissipates in light of her ongoing hot-and-cold relationship with a married man. Her excuses to her friends as well as to herself fail to ring true after a while, and the entire drama-filled relationship loses its impact the longer it takes her to walk away from a man who will never leave his wife.
Then there is the inexplicable bond between Livvi and Bella. While one can reconcile her strong feelings for the little girl based on her love-starved childhood, the either-or aspect of their relationship – the idea that it would be impossible for her to stay in Bella’s life if she were to end her relationship with Bella’s father – will not sit well with readers. There is no exploration of a future in which everyone wins, even though all other elements of the novel lead down that path. When all of the other narratives are shades of gray, this one subplot is too black and white, and ultimately leads to an unsatisfactory ending in an otherwise decent novel.
The Book of Someday is an ambitious, triple-narrative story, the success of which rests on Ms. Dixon’s ability to make all three narratives equal in importance and emotion. Unfortunately, it is the same area in which she does not entirely succeed. Ms. Dixon’s use of present tense regardless of narrator, and in spite of the fact that the entire novel spans several decades, is distracting. This not only takes a reader out of the narrative but also requires some effort on the part of the reader to remember what is happening to whom and in what decade. Another point of weakness is the genre crossover. In some aspects, the story has a romance novel feel, where all characters obtain the justice, redemption, and/or love they seek. However, the ending is surprisingly ambiguous and results in a decidedly contradictory tone that does not fit the rest of the novel. In fact, the disharmony of the ending is disruptive enough to counter one’s enjoyment of the overall story. Ms. Dixon’s concept is interesting, but a few key flaws in the narrative make The Book of Someday enjoyable but weak.
Of the three women, AnnaLee is by far the most sympathetic and enjoyable. Her love of her husband and conflicts between that love and her frustrations about his lack of ambition create a lovely little struggle within her and force her to show her determination. Compared to her, Micah is a cold-hearted bitch without a genuine bone in her body other than the one that guides her self-interest. Even though the two women are distinctly different, their contrasts play off of each other perfectly, creating a vibrant dynamic within the book.
In comparison, one finds it difficult to enjoy Livvi’s story as much as either of the other two ladies’ narratives. On the one hand, Livvi’s difficult childhood – the psychological abuse at the hands of her stepmother, her isolation, her lack of affection and love – create a character with whom it is easy to sympathize. On the other hand, any sympathy one feels for her dissipates in light of her ongoing hot-and-cold relationship with a married man. Her excuses to her friends as well as to herself fail to ring true after a while, and the entire drama-filled relationship loses its impact the longer it takes her to walk away from a man who will never leave his wife.
Then there is the inexplicable bond between Livvi and Bella. While one can reconcile her strong feelings for the little girl based on her love-starved childhood, the either-or aspect of their relationship – the idea that it would be impossible for her to stay in Bella’s life if she were to end her relationship with Bella’s father – will not sit well with readers. There is no exploration of a future in which everyone wins, even though all other elements of the novel lead down that path. When all of the other narratives are shades of gray, this one subplot is too black and white, and ultimately leads to an unsatisfactory ending in an otherwise decent novel.
The Book of Someday is an ambitious, triple-narrative story, the success of which rests on Ms. Dixon’s ability to make all three narratives equal in importance and emotion. Unfortunately, it is the same area in which she does not entirely succeed. Ms. Dixon’s use of present tense regardless of narrator, and in spite of the fact that the entire novel spans several decades, is distracting. This not only takes a reader out of the narrative but also requires some effort on the part of the reader to remember what is happening to whom and in what decade. Another point of weakness is the genre crossover. In some aspects, the story has a romance novel feel, where all characters obtain the justice, redemption, and/or love they seek. However, the ending is surprisingly ambiguous and results in a decidedly contradictory tone that does not fit the rest of the novel. In fact, the disharmony of the ending is disruptive enough to counter one’s enjoyment of the overall story. Ms. Dixon’s concept is interesting, but a few key flaws in the narrative make The Book of Someday enjoyable but weak.
November 15, 2013
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Olivia grew up with a father who was physically present but emotionally and mentally checked out. Her stepmother was physically, emotionally and verbally abusive. Now an adult, Olivia has turned her experiences into a novel that is selling well. But she still anticipates that everyone she meets will hurt and reject her.
When she meets Andrew at a party, she is charmed by the handsome stranger. He wins her over with romantic trips and expensive gifts. But is he too good to be true? Has Olivia found the love of her or just another man that will leave her?
Micah is an artist, world-renowned for her photography. But her photos never have any people in them. When she receives a serious medical diagnosis, she wonders if it is punishment for things she has done. Instead of getting medical treatment, she begins to travel around the country trying to get in touch with people she has wronged. Can Micah have a second chance? Or does she have to die to pay for what she has done?
AnnaLee is a young married woman who loves her husband, Jack, and daughter, Bella. But she struggles because Jack doesn't work hard and provide for the family. Their lives are thrown into disarray when Jack's teenage neice (who wants to be called Persephone) comes to stay with them for the summer. AnnaLee struggles to love the unhappy wild girl the same way she loves Bella. Can Jack man up for his wife and child? Can AnnaLee's love and patience win over Persephone? Or is it too late- have their choices already gone too far?
The stories of these three women- Olivia, Micah and AnnaLee- are of course linked. The author does an excellent job, tho, of drawing the stories together gradually; so that the reader starts to put the puzzke together but is still a little surprised when the last piece clicks into place.
The Book of Someday is a beautiful story, and the characters have a lot of depth. Each of them grows throughout the story in ways I didn't anticipate when I opened the book.
The one criticism that I have of the book is that perfect strangers tended to share well-articulated insights into their innermost selves upon first meeting people. I understand why the author did this- she was trying to show not tell- but it struck an unrealistic note.
Can I just mention that the cover was exceptional? The "notecard" image was raised with textured edges. That was what first drew me to this book.
Olivia grew up with a father who was physically present but emotionally and mentally checked out. Her stepmother was physically, emotionally and verbally abusive. Now an adult, Olivia has turned her experiences into a novel that is selling well. But she still anticipates that everyone she meets will hurt and reject her.
When she meets Andrew at a party, she is charmed by the handsome stranger. He wins her over with romantic trips and expensive gifts. But is he too good to be true? Has Olivia found the love of her or just another man that will leave her?
Micah is an artist, world-renowned for her photography. But her photos never have any people in them. When she receives a serious medical diagnosis, she wonders if it is punishment for things she has done. Instead of getting medical treatment, she begins to travel around the country trying to get in touch with people she has wronged. Can Micah have a second chance? Or does she have to die to pay for what she has done?
AnnaLee is a young married woman who loves her husband, Jack, and daughter, Bella. But she struggles because Jack doesn't work hard and provide for the family. Their lives are thrown into disarray when Jack's teenage neice (who wants to be called Persephone) comes to stay with them for the summer. AnnaLee struggles to love the unhappy wild girl the same way she loves Bella. Can Jack man up for his wife and child? Can AnnaLee's love and patience win over Persephone? Or is it too late- have their choices already gone too far?
The stories of these three women- Olivia, Micah and AnnaLee- are of course linked. The author does an excellent job, tho, of drawing the stories together gradually; so that the reader starts to put the puzzke together but is still a little surprised when the last piece clicks into place.
The Book of Someday is a beautiful story, and the characters have a lot of depth. Each of them grows throughout the story in ways I didn't anticipate when I opened the book.
The one criticism that I have of the book is that perfect strangers tended to share well-articulated insights into their innermost selves upon first meeting people. I understand why the author did this- she was trying to show not tell- but it struck an unrealistic note.
Can I just mention that the cover was exceptional? The "notecard" image was raised with textured edges. That was what first drew me to this book.
September 9, 2013
This book pulled me in from the very first sentence. Livvi is a character that pulls so many emotional strings. She is the center around whom the book revolves; Livvi and her nightmare of the woman in the shimmering dress and the pearl button shoes. There are other characters - two women, Micah and AnnaLee - and the men in Livvi's life - her father and the two men vying for her love.
Livvi is a very complicated woman. She was brought up by an emotionally absent father and an abusive stepmother. She never learned how to interact with other children or adults. She wrote all of her hopes and dreams in her "Book of Someday." Micah was a very hard character to like; hard and arrogant she pushed through the world as if it owed her adulation but she too did not know how to love. As her backstory is revealed the reader learns why she views life as she does. AnnaLee is a strong woman married to a highly intelligent man who is just plain useless in the real world. He loves her but he lives in a world of dreams and to be honest, rainbows and unicorns.
How these three women intersect truly caught me by surprise. I was so riveted by the story that for the very first time in my reading history I did NOT read the ending before I got there. I usually do - I know, I know. But this book just kept me IN the story. That being written, it was not perfect. Some of the characters were a bit underdeveloped (Micah was one - for a main character she was surprisingly one note.) and the men were all of a type; not a strong one amongst them.
The Book of Someday was a riveting read - I was turning pages until 3 in the morning. It brought me through a gamut of emotions; love, hate, compassion, sorrow to name a few. It's one I'll keep to read again because I know that I'll gain more on a second reading. Not perfect but a book that stays with the reader for a long time after the final page is read.
4.5
Livvi is a very complicated woman. She was brought up by an emotionally absent father and an abusive stepmother. She never learned how to interact with other children or adults. She wrote all of her hopes and dreams in her "Book of Someday." Micah was a very hard character to like; hard and arrogant she pushed through the world as if it owed her adulation but she too did not know how to love. As her backstory is revealed the reader learns why she views life as she does. AnnaLee is a strong woman married to a highly intelligent man who is just plain useless in the real world. He loves her but he lives in a world of dreams and to be honest, rainbows and unicorns.
How these three women intersect truly caught me by surprise. I was so riveted by the story that for the very first time in my reading history I did NOT read the ending before I got there. I usually do - I know, I know. But this book just kept me IN the story. That being written, it was not perfect. Some of the characters were a bit underdeveloped (Micah was one - for a main character she was surprisingly one note.) and the men were all of a type; not a strong one amongst them.
The Book of Someday was a riveting read - I was turning pages until 3 in the morning. It brought me through a gamut of emotions; love, hate, compassion, sorrow to name a few. It's one I'll keep to read again because I know that I'll gain more on a second reading. Not perfect but a book that stays with the reader for a long time after the final page is read.
4.5
September 3, 2013
Wow, this book kept me reading until the wee hours of the morning. Absolutely riveting! THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY is about three compelling characters, Livvi, Micah, and AnnaLee, who are mysteriously connected by a woman in a silver dress and pearl-button shoes.
Each chapter is told from the point of view of a different woman. As their stories are told, small pieces of the puzzle are revealed, leading up to a poignant conclusion. Livvi, the survivor of emotional and physical abuse as a child, is longing to fulfill her “someday” dreams of finding love and having a family. After receiving devastating news, Micah, a beautiful and successful photographer, is on a quest to find someone who believes she matters. And AnnaLee, a loving wife and mother, is perhaps the biggest mystery of all.
Finding out what dark secret bound these women together kept me turning the pages! The book is written in third person present tense, which I don’t always like, but it worked well here. It made me feel like I was right there with the characters, waiting on the mystery to be revealed at the same time they did. The characters made questionable choices that frustrated me at times, but I suppose that made them realistic.
THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY is a heart wrenching story of loss, forgiveness, surviving, and moving on. I’m keeping an eye out for more from Dianne Dixon. Highly recommended! 4½-Stars.
Source: Review copy from publisher
Each chapter is told from the point of view of a different woman. As their stories are told, small pieces of the puzzle are revealed, leading up to a poignant conclusion. Livvi, the survivor of emotional and physical abuse as a child, is longing to fulfill her “someday” dreams of finding love and having a family. After receiving devastating news, Micah, a beautiful and successful photographer, is on a quest to find someone who believes she matters. And AnnaLee, a loving wife and mother, is perhaps the biggest mystery of all.
Finding out what dark secret bound these women together kept me turning the pages! The book is written in third person present tense, which I don’t always like, but it worked well here. It made me feel like I was right there with the characters, waiting on the mystery to be revealed at the same time they did. The characters made questionable choices that frustrated me at times, but I suppose that made them realistic.
THE BOOK OF SOMEDAY is a heart wrenching story of loss, forgiveness, surviving, and moving on. I’m keeping an eye out for more from Dianne Dixon. Highly recommended! 4½-Stars.
Source: Review copy from publisher
October 17, 2013
On paper, I should have loved this book. A story weaving together three women's lives and dealing with the far-reaching consequences of a single event is something I would typically enjoy. However, in this case I enjoyed the story more in concept than execution.
For me, splitting the story between three women kept me from ever feeling that I really knew or understood any of them. All three women had complex back stories, and I would have preferred to delve deeper into what made them into the people they were during the course of the book. To a certain extent, the women explore their past, especially Micah, but as a reader, I was only being told about what she had done in the past, rather than seeing it happen, which created a sense of remove from the character that kept her a bit of a mystery to me.
I also had trouble with the love interests as written in this book--I could not feel the connection as written on the page. I could not understand why the women loved the men they did, or why they chose to stay.
I did enjoy the way the stories tied together, though I guessed the connection long before the story revealed it.
For me, splitting the story between three women kept me from ever feeling that I really knew or understood any of them. All three women had complex back stories, and I would have preferred to delve deeper into what made them into the people they were during the course of the book. To a certain extent, the women explore their past, especially Micah, but as a reader, I was only being told about what she had done in the past, rather than seeing it happen, which created a sense of remove from the character that kept her a bit of a mystery to me.
I also had trouble with the love interests as written in this book--I could not feel the connection as written on the page. I could not understand why the women loved the men they did, or why they chose to stay.
I did enjoy the way the stories tied together, though I guessed the connection long before the story revealed it.
June 13, 2013
I got this book as an ARC from Sourcebooks. I was warned right from the beginning that I would need to set aside a good chunk of time so that once I started I could finish all at one time.
I wish I had listened.
I read this book in bed. On the couch. In the bathroom. On my lunch hour, in the tub, everywhere I could read it until I was done with it. I read it even when I should have been working on my own writing.
It is very well written and suspenseful, and once you start figuring things out (or think you have them figured out) you absolutely, positively cannot put it down.
I congratulate this author on such a wonderful job writing this book.
Well done. I highly recommend it.
Chris
I wish I had listened.
I read this book in bed. On the couch. In the bathroom. On my lunch hour, in the tub, everywhere I could read it until I was done with it. I read it even when I should have been working on my own writing.
It is very well written and suspenseful, and once you start figuring things out (or think you have them figured out) you absolutely, positively cannot put it down.
I congratulate this author on such a wonderful job writing this book.
Well done. I highly recommend it.
Chris
September 26, 2013
How did I request this book? Did it get a good review in the NYT? Anyway, I started reading it and it does grab you with the neglected child vignette, and then goes on to alternate between 3 women narrators. We find out how they are linked at the end. Olivia/Livvi: where do I begin? A best-selling writer who seems to have no brain waves whatsoever. Micah, who is a total caricature and AnnaLee who is so sticky sweet and yet so down on her husband for not "being a man", i.e. earning money, that it is sickening. Does she have job? Unclear. Ok, I do not want to be cruel to the author, but simplistic, psychologically impossible, and Harlequinesque seem like very generous adjectives to describe it!!
February 7, 2016
I received this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
3.5/5
As a fan of Picoult I can see where the comparison is being made. The story was intricately woven and kept me guessing for quite a while. The characters have a depth and a realism that allows you to fully immerse yourself in the story. I didn't find it was "un-put-downable" in the sense that it wasn't a page-turner for me, at least not until the end, but I really enjoyed the story, certainly one to make you think.
3.5/5
As a fan of Picoult I can see where the comparison is being made. The story was intricately woven and kept me guessing for quite a while. The characters have a depth and a realism that allows you to fully immerse yourself in the story. I didn't find it was "un-put-downable" in the sense that it wasn't a page-turner for me, at least not until the end, but I really enjoyed the story, certainly one to make you think.
June 17, 2013
I read the entire book in about two sittings....the beginning was a little slow as I was trying to keep track of characters and timelines, but the last half really sucked me in because I was trying to figure out how all of the characters fit together. I usually guess pretty quickly, this one took me longer (which is a wonderful thing). As I kept finding out new details, it was fun to connect them back to bits I had already read and reevaluate each character.
May 21, 2013
Dual time narratives can be really cumbersome sometimes, but not so with this novel. It maintained a perfect balance between the narrators and included just enough connecting details to keep me guessing throughout as to how the characters might be related. And I wouldn't expect to remain dry eyed through this one either.
July 28, 2013
I was a lucky First Reads winner of this book and I'm so glad! The book is like a puzzle, told in three parts. I loved the alternating chapters, but found myself wanting to skip from one "Livvi chapter" to the next to see what happened next. Amazing how the three women's stories all come together in the end. The last few chapters were heartbreaking.
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