On This Day

by Melody Carlson

As One Marriage Begins,
Five Others Are Put to the Test.
Drawn to Lakeside Inn from a variety of locations as diverse as they are, Elizabeth Anderson, Suzette Burke, Ingrid Campbell, Margaret Simpson, and Laura Fairbanks-the bride's aunt, family friend, bridesmaid, grandmother of the bride, and sister of the groom-seemingly share little more than their collective joy for the couple marrying at the mountain resort. During the course of one unforgettable day, however, each woman reaches a point of reckoning in her own most intimate relationship.
As their stories unfold, the women of necessity turn to one another-upholding each other through the pain of postpartum depression, doubts about an upcoming wedding, the discovery of a husband's affair, reflections on the ups and downs of life as a war bride, and plans to end a 25-year marriage. Through it all, their connection with one another deepens and grows, as does their understanding of themselves and of the healing power of love, perseverance, and friendship. "From the Trade Paperback edition."

Genres: Christian Fiction, Fiction, Christian, Romance, Contemporary, Chick Lit

ebook

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Melody Carlson is the award-winning author of over two hundred books, several of them Christmas novellas from Revell, including her much-loved and bestselling book, The Christmas Bus.

She also writes many teen books, including the Diary of a Teenage Girl series, the TrueColors series, and the Carter House Girls series.

Melody was nominated for a Romantic Times Career Achievement Award in the inspirational market for her books, including the Notes from a Spinning Planet series and Finding Alice, which is in production as a Lifetime Television movie. She and her husband serve on the Young Life adult committee in central Oregon.

Reviews

[Elaine · Rating 1 out of 5]

So many characters, several of whom are related in some way or about to be.

There's Elizabeth whose husband Phil doesn't pay her much mind. At this point, she's thinking about what life might be like without him in the picture. Elizabeth is aunt to the bride, Jennifer. Conner and Patrick, ushers at the wedding, are Elizabeth's adult sons.

There's Suzette who believes she's arm candy for her lawyer husband. Everything and everybody to Suzette, has to be top notch in her little world. She wears designer clothing and looks down on folks, quickly judging them by appearance. All is not well in her world. Her husband is the groom's boss. Suzette is convinced her husband is having an affair with his secretary.

Meet Mrs. Simpson (Margaret) - Margaret is pleasant, positive and upbeat. She sees trouble in people's lives and prays for them. She is the grandmother of the bride. She's missing her late husband Calvin of almost 60 years.

As Suzette and Elizabeth talk, things look bleaker and bleaker.

Laura is David's wife. They have an almost 2-month old daughter who keeps her busy. David is brother to the groom-to-be. She's feeling insecure in her marriage right about now. After all there are many lovely looking women at the wedding and her in-laws are so wealthy. She wonders if David is having second thoughts about her.

Ingrid, it appears, is the wedding planner for her friend Jenny. Ingrid is the maid-of-honor, Jenny's best friend. She and her fiance, Jason are planning on getting married soon as well. She's having second thoughts, eyeing Patrick.

Jeannette -- mother of the bride.

Eric -- father of the bride, son of Margaret.

Lana -- a bridesmaid and also Jenny's roommate from college. Also eyeing Patrick.

Catherine is the groom's super rich mother. She looks down her nose at her daughter-in-law, Laura. Catherine is married to Alex. He seems like a decent rich guy.

What appeared to have potential for the first several chapters, is now dragging on with whiny, insecure females, comparing themselves to the other women. Some of them are so sure their guys are or might be, more interested in someone else. I want to hear the guys' side of the story now.

The author uses a lot of "my Eric," "my Calvin, "my David..."

Quite the emetic.

I have to add though that folks do need to be reassured how much we value and appreciate them.

[Melissa (Always Behind) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Five women come together for a wedding. Elizabeth is the bride's aunt, Suzette the wife of the groom's boss. The maid of honor (Ingrid), the bride's grandmother (Margaret), and the groom's sister-in-law (Laura) round out the bunch. Most don't know each other, or are only passing acquaintances. But the wedding brings out feelings in these women, who form relationships to help them deal with different issues.

Laura is a brand new mother struggling with sleep deprivation, body image problems, and the overwhelming emotions that go with parenting an infant. Margaret, facing heart surgery, is not sure that she wants to prolong her life since she lost her beloved husband the year before. Elizabeth and Suzette, two complete opposites, feel insecure in their marriages. And Ingrid, facing her own wedding, has second thoughts. One woman's strengths are used to support another in her trials. The wedding is the central event that brings them together, but their individual dilemmas cause them to forge new friendships and support systems.

On This Day is an interesting tale. Each chapter is told from one woman's first person viewpoint. But because some of the incidents are told rather than shown, even with the first person perspective, it's easy to feel distanced from the action and storyline. And occasionally we have to backtrack to see the same situation from another woman's viewpoint, which gets confusing. However, the tone is intimate and offers more behind-the-scenes insight than another format would have.

We get to know Elizabeth, Laura, and Margaret best. Their motivations are clearly described. Laura's struggles struck particularly close to home, and I found descriptions of the feelings of new motherhood incredibly realistic and touching. Suzette's story, although detailed, was not concluded very clearly. Though I could imagine what probably happened, it was unsettling to have the entire thing left hanging. Overall, On This Day is an enjoyable character-driven story offering food for thought. Carlson easily gets to the heart of her characters' turmoil, giving readers a glimpse of their lives and how they deal with different problems.

[Jerry (Rebel With a Massive Media Library) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay, so, I'm not exactly the target audience for this book; so what?

Usually, I don't enjoy stories told from multiple perspectives, but, I actually did like this one.

[Kim R. · Rating 3 out of 5]

A quick read, light book, but a bit confusing with all the jumping back and forth with the different characters. I actually made a small cheat sheet to remind me who was who.

The most annoying part, though, was how many times someone said how PERFECT Jenny and Michael were, how PERFECT the wedding details were, how PERFECT the food, drinks and cake were. Not one single thing went wrong with the wedding prep. Totally not realistic (Oh, wait, yes, they ran out of asparagus HORRORS!)

The characters were mostly realistic, but the women were too whiny. One turns psycho at the end which was odd. And I couldn't follow the whole chasing the wedding car shenanigans. I basically skimmed that part since it was very convoluted.

Someone said this was Christian literature, and I didn't know that - no "bad" words or overt sex in it, so maybe that was why?

[Crystal · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up to 4.
In On This Day, Melody Carlson, explores the intricate lives of five women, one getting married and the other women that surround her. The cast is diverse: A war bride, a boss's wife, the aunt of the bride who is coming up on her twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, the maid of honor who is engaged but doesn't know if she should be and the wife of the best man who isanew mother and not sure how she fits in to the family dynamics. Ovrall, a light read by a good author.

[Nathalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of these books that you read very quickly because you get so involved in the story or stories in this case. Several women are attending the same wedding and are each struggling with a relationship. It is so easy to play mind games but the solution is the same - communicate! No one is a mind reader!

[Aleda Ellsworth · Rating 3 out of 5]

No bad language or descriptive sex.

[Tamra Muir · Rating 2 out of 5]

Numerous characters--presentation was confusing.

[Kammy · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 characters to follow on a brides wedding day. Three of which were not very likable characters. Just an ok story.

[Teresa Dixon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great book!

I really enjoyed the way the author was able to span so many ages and relationships reminding us all is not as it seems!

[Linda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Ridiculous fluff. Sorry I wasted a day. May have to rethink my motto of "always read to the end."

[Beth Given · Rating 1 out of 5]

I suppose this book was about what I expected based on the genre (Christian contemporary fiction — this is a clean book, at least!): the kind of book I could absolutely fly through (I read it in less than a day, and that never happens anymore) — but not at all a classic … just light. And fluffy. A little gimmicky. Quite possibly overdramatic. (Okay, fine. Possibly a more like my own life than I want to admit!)

What I didn’t expect was that I wouldn’t even like half of the main characters. It seemed like we spent entirely too much time with high-maintenance, trendy, alcoholic Suzette. While I (surprisingly) felt the slightest glimmer of sympathy toward the end of the story (she mentions something about her past ever-so-briefly that has shaped the way she thinks about things), the fact that her story went completely unresolved left me feeling mostly confused about why her character was included at all. Yes, the ending was probably realistic (her problems couldn’t be resolved so quickly and tritely), but why make her a major character of a novel if she isn’t going to have some positive growth?

Many of the other characters (notably doting aunt Elizabeth and, hmm, doting grandma Margaret) seemed more likable but still flat and one-dimensional to me, even though I was “inside their head” (this was told in the first person, which got a little awkward in places, I thought). I did find Ingrid’s and Laura’s storylines to be interesting, but is that because I have been in their shoes and projected my own feelings onto them, rather than let them be their own characters? Could be.

[Norida · Rating 4 out of 5]

As one marriage begins, five others are put to the test. Drawn to Lakeside Inn from a variety of locations as diverse as they are, Elizabeth Anderson, Suzette Burke, Ingrid Campbell, Margaret Simpson, and Laura Fairbanks - the bride's aunt, family friend, bridesmaid, grandmother of the bride, and sister of the groom - seemingly share little more than their collective joy for the couple marrying at the mountain resort. During the course of one unforgettable day, however, each woman reaches a point of reckoning in her own most intimate relationship. As their stories unfold, the women of necessity turn to one another - upholding each other through the pain of postpartum depression, doubts about an upcoming wedding, the discovery of a husband's affair, reflections on the ups and downs of life as a war bride, and plans to end a 25-year marriage. Through it all, their connection with one another deepens and grows, as does their understanding of themselves and of the healing power of love, perseverance, and friendship.

[Sarah · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't think this story was developed well and didn't feel the characters were authentic. As a woman, I sort of felt insulted that all of the women in this story were so insecure about their marriages and none of them tried to take care of their marital problems in a responsible way. I think the idea of marriage and what it means to us today is a topic worthy of exploration in narrative form; however, this is not the book to pick up if you're looking for that sort of story. A quick beach read if you're not looking to think too much.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

*spoiler alert*
The ending of this book is ridiculous. I didn't like how all the characters didn't seem to have their problems resolved. Like the one lady who thought her husband and his secretary had a thing going on? in the end of the book she's slashing the lady's tires. You never know if that's really what happened, you just know she's turned into a psychopath. I was really disappointed because it seems that Carlson took so long to develop the characters and their struggles that she ran out of space for the ending.

[Carly Trask-Kuchta · Rating 1 out of 5]

I haven't read this bad of a book in a while. It was super cliched and cheesy and stereotypical, so much so that it bordered on offensive. It was obvious that Carlson knew nothing about some of the subjects she hit on, like how affairs in a marriage actually affect people, and that it doesn't take 2 glasses of wine to make a woman drunk. There was some closure at the end, but not nearly enough when Carlson tried to make the story about, oh, I don't know, eight different women. This was a let down. I was very disappointed.

[Elsie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this book to be slow. The entire book covered the time period of one day from the perspective of 4 different characters, so you kept reading about the same thing, just from a different viewpoint. And even though it was supposedly a Christian book, I didn't find anything Christian about it. In fact, it read more like a soap opera. I wouldn't recommend it unless you want a really slow read!

[Barb · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this novel was not as good as some of her others I read last year, it was still a very good story. It followed several women through the course of a weekend that all of them are spending together at a wedding. Each of them winds up with decisions to make regarding her own future. It's not all sunshine and roses for everyone at the end, but it is ultimately a hopeful book. B+. 02/05/08

[Camie · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is told from the perspective of five different women who are involved in the same wedding. Each chapter the storyteller switches and I found it hard to jump around so much. I was really into two of the women's stories but the other three just seemed to be filling space in the book to me. It was too much going on so the characters weren't very well developed.

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was confused in the begining with so many characters, but by the end I loved it. One lady is getting married and all the others are in attendance at the wedding. Two think their husbands are having affairs. One is the grandma rethinking her life and her own marriage of 60 years. What a great story about marriage and families. Would recommend highly to others.

[Marisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Library Request. This was an ok read hence the three star rating, I found it didn't have the conclusions rapped up, nor was it anything that had me railing emotionally, I didn't feel any connection to any of I
The characters. Hum now that I think about it I really think I'll change the rating to two.

[Jill · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a good book but a little hard to follow if you had to put it down for a day or two! Jenny and Michael are getting married, but the book is about the thoughts and actions of other women in the wedding. Each thinks about the state their own marriage or impending wedding, as they take part in this wedding.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did enjoy this book and I do have a lot of passages I wanted to highlight. I didn't feel that there were to many perspectives. Many times I was confused of which character was which. I mean the story was touching, but the overall plot didn't really stick with me. I have read other books my Melody Carlson and overall I do enjoy her writing. This book just sort of missed the mark for me.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book has several story lines going on at once that of course are all somehow connected (this doesn't give away anything). It was a great read- quick and easy and entertaining. However, there was one of the story lines that wasn't concluded and that kind of annoyed me.

[Lori · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read this in one day and while it was quite good, and I definitely recommend it, I felt like the loose ends weren't quite tied up. One character in particular I felt should have had a little more resolution.
But overall I really enjoyed it, even the character I didn't like at all! :)

[Sheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked how this book was written from the different perspectives of five women all attending a destination wedding and was woven together by the way their paths intertwined over the course of the wedding weekend.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another cute Melody Carlson story, though I feel it ended kind of abruptly. After all that build-up, we never really got to see what happened with Suzette. And the other relationships just kind of trickled off.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a quick read. It grabbed my attention from the beginning, and held it. It was funny, sad, sweet, a chick-flick, book form. It wrapped up in a very inspirational way! I really liked it.

[Kerry K · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good book giving 5 different views from woman at a wedding at various stages in their own marriages.

Margret the oldest character who is in her 80's was interested to read. There are not to many characters I have read with an older character in the first person.

[Christy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This just isn't my favorite Melody Carlson. It's a sensitive, thoughtful look into the relationships of several characters, but some of the storylines felt a little too unfinished.