Turning Point

by Bowering Sivers

Fiction that mirrors the experiences of women 45+ I'm going on a cruise. I've chosen my cabin, the ultimate in luxury, with a king-size bed and a Jacuzzi. It's utterly immoral...but I don't care. Daddy taught me to be very careful with money but he didn't teach me how to live. I'm going to make up for lost time. There's nothing like a coronary to frighten the life into you. Ruth is a talented but overly-modest artist whose secret passion is the stage. The death of her father forces Ruth into a humdrum existence caring for her elderly mother, but a heart attack in her forties causes her re-examine her choices. Change is inevitable as she meets two men - one a scenic designer who opens up the possibility of a career in the theatre, the other a young artistic director who falls in love with her. But has she the courage to say yes to either or both of them? Ruth has reached a turning point...

282 pages, Paperback

First published April 8, 2005

Reviews

[Sue · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ruth is 44, recovering from an unexpected heart attack. She is single, living with her widowed mother, with whom she has a strange and co-dependent relationship. The heart attack is the catalyst for some re-thinking of her future, and an attempt to get out of the rut in which she finds herself. She's aided in this by a rather ascerbic - but charming - director called Ian, and hampered by her spoilt brother Matthew.

I liked Ruth, but found the other characters rather typecast and flat. The story flowed well - I kept reading to find out what happened - but I could see the climax of the book coming. The ending then happened rather quickly, and much too neatly. I like threads being tidied up, but these didn't hang together. Both Matthew and Ruth appeared to change character in the final pages,leaving me a little bewildered.

Not bad for light reading, for anyone with any interest in the theatre; very little bad language and a couple of mild sex scenes. Three and a half stars, really.

[Diane Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another easy read. I enjoyed this one. Simple storyline, Ruth of a certain age (40's) has had a heart attack. She lives at home with her mother and has to come to terms with what she has just gone through. Two men come in to her life, one an artistic designer who could offer her a career change and the other a younger artistic director who falls in love with her. Who will she choose! This may well be the 'turning point' in her life, but will it turn out well.

This is a Transita read, who have published books about women of a certain age, the older reader.

[Kate Millin · Rating 4 out of 5]

About someone recovering from an early heart attack (in her 40’s) reassessing her life, and needing to value herself and break the apron strings